Hello members! I am a newly commissioned California Notary Public and a loan signing agent. I have signed up for couple of signing agencies and they send signing orders the same day with no reaction time. And usually the signings happen late in the evening, which does not work for me. Why don’t signing companies give at least 1-2 days notice for us to prepare and plan. Is there a solution to this? Thanks.
Greetings! I’m also relatively new to the Notary Signing Agent role, though I bring with me a robust 15-year background in real estate as a Realtor.
While it’s preferable for lenders to have loan documents prepared 1-2 days ahead of time, that’s not always the case. There are various reasons why lenders may need to rush documents to escrow and us notaries, all in an effort to ensure timely loan funding and the successful closure of the transaction as outlined in the original real estate contracts.
I’ve encountered situations where, as a buyer’s agent/Realtor, the only way to secure funding and successfully close escrow on time was by arranging for a notary to visit the buyer as early as 6 AM, followed by personally delivering the documents to escrow immediately after the signing. Typically, returning the loan documents to escrow before noon allows for same-day funding, with the property being recorded the following day to officially close the transaction.
While not every signing follows this tight timeline, depending on the lender, there are occasions when things truly come down to the wire. This applies to California as I’m not sure how it works for other states. I’m guessing it’s pretty similiar, however.
The best solution is to decline same day/late evening ones because odds are something went way wrong and the notary cancelled and they are scrambling to get someone to go (not necessarily to fix what went wrong). IME, these last minute and late evening/night ones are usually disasters. It is way more common to get 1 or 2 days notice AND the docs well in advance of the Appt. so you have time to look them over (& possibly discover an ‘issue’…and have time to get it fixed.)
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I hear what you say BUT when I meet with signers most common comment is “We have been trying to close this deal for months!” So a lot of last minute requests are due to poor organizing of creators. I’m in WA State but perform signings for many buying out of state.
So you are new. Title knows this. Something happened to push this to the last minute. Other notaries may have been offered this before you. They accepted and backed out, they don’t do evenings or weekends either, any number of things. The signing co, Title needs to get this done. This is a great opportunity to build your portfolio. I have done over 600 signings so far and I am so low on the seniority pole that I have to stretch myself to get work. Sr notaries, with 20 years experience will always get first choice. If you want to get more work, it will take time, ACCURACY and stretching your boundaries! Good luck. Check signing companies here to see if they are decent to work for!
Are you kidding me, Welcome to our world. Most orders are same or next day, especially now. And NOT signing in the evening will loose a lot of future orders, most couples get home til after work…
A relatively small percentage of signing requests that I receive are for evening signings (after 6pm). I rarely accept them, especially if they are more than a few miles away. A lot of people work from home now and are more accessible during the day.
I can tell you that the WORST time to do a signing is during dinner hour at a home with small kids. Some notaries might not mind that, but the signers are usually too busy dealing with the kids to fully concentrate on the business at hand. It can really try one’s patience.
Another thing that annoys me is when you get a last minute signing request and they still don’t have the documents. You’ve got 2 or 3 hours until the scheduled signing time (if you’re lucky) and …WHOOPS…no docs!! Now you’ve blocked off your entire afternoon from taking any new signing requests and you’re sitting on your hands waiting for docs for this signiing (that may be an hour drive in afternoon traffic).
Welcome. Get used to it…
It happens all the time…some will hire you with a few days advance
Some will not
Have fun
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Just my opinion (which obviously isn’t shared by the title companies) but I don’t think a notary should be assigned to the job until the docs are available.
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I don’t mind taking orders same day, as long as they pay what I want. No I wont do a low ball offer. Just did a last minute signing today. It was 25 pages. I told them $250 & they paid me. I have gained several title companies business for saving their behind. If you can be a hero, why not?
Last minute signing, and you got paid instantly? Hard to believe…
Title offices have the ability to print checks on the spot… It was not a signing service assignment…
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That’s cool, I believe you, last year I did a signing, (one page) and I was paid on the spot, The Gentleman asked me, "how much I owe you? I replied: $ 30.00 Dollars Sir, he gave me a $ 100.00 Dollar bill and told me to keep the change. Good things happen sometimes to us NSA’s…
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Just do not accept the offer. I need at least 24 hours notice with documents ready or I will not accept offer. It works for me every time.
What are the singing companies you signed up with? I am looking for a work and would work at anytime.
I would imagine that you have to pass up a lot of offers using that criteria.
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