I was contacted by a firm inquiring about my price to notarize 40 Affidavits for a mobile signing. I asked for more information, such as any witnesses, etc. before responding. I should receive a reply by the morning.
I am conflicted on what to charge. I have a standard, base fee which includes travel (which isn’t far), $5.00 State Notarial fee, and my hourly wage. I plan to charge state fees for each document and likely tack on an extra hour wage. When I did the math it came up to approximately $260. Does this seem low for such a large amount of documents?
I also ask because three years ago, I hired a mobile notary just across state lines for three POA docs and she charged $60, which I thought was pretty high (I wasn’t a notary at the time.) She commented that “because two POAs required initials… she increased the fee to $60.” The initials were on only one page per each document and I had to do the initials not her, so I didn’t understand her reasoning.
I know pricing is reflected on the notary’s quality of service, experience, and time, but I would appreciate general feedback.
It depends on what state you are in, and whether you are doing other than traveling and notarizing. Typical things that are not covered by state notary pricing laws are printing, bringing the finished documents to a shipping point, and waiting for the signers to be ready.
There are no extra fees that (I know of - still waiting on reply) need to be charged. So no printing, shipping, etc. I already have the travel fees included in my base price.
If more than one signer, are you going to have to travel to each signer or are all signers going to be present at one place? Or are you going to have to sit and wait for them to show up?
Are they aware they’ll all need proper ID?
For 40 Affidavits in one place, I’d probably waive travel fees if it’s not too far away, but that’s just me
According to the law firm it’s only one signer but it’s unclear, as of yet, if any witnesses are required. I haven’t received the full details yet but I do know the law firm is legit so it’s not a scam. I’m curious myself to see why this one person need 40 Affidavits.
That’s exactly the type of case it is. They actually gave the order to someone else who responded quicker than I (early bird gets the worm!) At least I know that this can occur and a good price to charge per Affidavit.
Yes, initials! I went back and looked at my three-year old email communications with that notary and that’s exactly what she said. Now that I’m an experienced notary, it disgusts me that she would even say that as an excuse.
@snmccoy29 You may want to add a bit of ‘cushion’ time onto your interval estimate.
For the Mesothelioma lawsuit documentation files I’ve completed, the time duration was negatively impacted by the signer (patient) status/condition.
Most needed additional time & tired out easily during the process. Usually, the attorney (or their representative) is present & keeps things flowing while honoring the signer.
@Notary_veg Some POAs, specifically the durable POAs, require initials within the body of the document on certain issues, initials indicating the principal is granting those specific powers to the AIF. And I do know down here, in the law offices I worked, the lawyer had the principal initial in the lower right corner of each page (so pages could not be substituted after the fact).
Yes, I usually keep a wide window open when dealing with patient signers. Sometimes, it’s a regular signing and other times, my time is at least doubled.
Yes, there’s usually one or two pages in a POA that require initials only. I’ve done the initialing on a POA and I’ve also witnessed signers do the initials as a notary. I don’t see it as a reason to charge “extra”. I don’t ever want to nickel and dime my clients unless it’s necessary (such as if the signing takes significantly longer, etc…). Every time I’ve witnessed initials being added, it took barely any time, even after the signers thoroughly read what they’re initialing.
The mobile notary who charged me extra was fantastic otherwise: very professional, showed up on time, and friendly. However, I won’t use her again simply for the extra “initialing” charge.
Lots of variables here. Are they standing in line for you or is it spread out all day? Do you have to go over anything? Do you have to take possession of them afterwards? What document is this, and something you are comfortable notarizing or could it be questionable later on? Do they speak English or the language you speak?
IF they are all together, same place and time, 1 travel fee and then a volume discounted rate for them would work. If you have to stay there 8 hours, then charge accordingly for your whole day.
I didn’t get all the answers about this signing because it eventually went to someone else as they accepted it before I did. However, it’s my understanding that it was for a Mesothelioma lawsuit; one client; signing all at once; one travel location; no prints; and their attorney takes possession afterwards. If I get a similar request again, I’ll likely charge my hourly fee + travel + a minimum of $5 - $10 per document, depending on the quantity and involvement with signing.
Notaries don’t have an HOURLY WAGE I’m sorry if someone told you that. You can only charge PER STAMP the fee for your state.. You can charge for travel fees like $20+ So 40 x $5 = $200 Plus travel.
