Right to cancel? I have been having trouble getting work and I snapped back a YES to a loan offer because it gave the address which is five blocks from my house. Since I don’t have to drive, I figured the measly 85 bucks would do. The woman immediately called me to confirm and sent the documents. I told her I was on my way out the door and look at them when I got home. I just looked and their are TWO signers. She knew this. She knew they wanted documents printed on legal sized paper, which I have, but is exceptionally more expensive. And she knew they want full scanbacks. I am furious ! 85 dollars. In CA, we must do separate entries for each notarization - she knows this as well. I’ll be there for a couple of hours.
That is one of the many Challenges we face…We have to determine/figure out…Which Signing Companies are Worth our Time, Effort & Experience! How to Counter their offers! Generally as you Do more Signings for Different Companies you can take notes when you have time…Bottom Line …is to Focus, Check the Docs thoroughly when Signing done which will increase your Opportunities & your Ability to Barter! 
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Thank you. I cancelled. I was so upset I didn’t sleep last night. I was up debating whether I would accept being completely abused or not. The fee is 15 per signature in CA and they are offering less than half plus legal sized paper which costs more.
I don’t even get signings. That job would have been the third. The offers are filled instantly or are physically impossible to meet. There is no way to prepare 150 pages, drive in the pouring rain and be on time.
One can get $15 per signature in California for any GNW performed. If one chooses to do loan signings (like me), one will have to accept the rates offered and negotiate if more $$ is desired. I do this all the time (and I’m a 1-year newbie) and I’m averaging 3 refi signings a day at roughly $100. I rarely travel more than 20 miles in any direction. Most of my signings are mixed size paper, average 135 pages and about 50% are scanbacks (which I hate, but do quickly). I’m marginally profitable and I watch my expenses pretty carefully. I spent all the money at the beginning of my tenure as a notary buying cool writing instruments, a great copier, convenience stamps, etc.
My advice is this: first and foremost, know your numbers! Ensure that what you’re accepting is profitable or will lead to profitability. Next, ensure you have good equipment. Third, have a real strategy for how to develop and retain business (this means, a business plan, which we all hate doing).
Every business has surprises, setbacks, crummy customers, non-payers and other negative elements to it. I know, this is my fourth fulltime gig (I sold two other businesses and one is dormant) and I have a ton of experience. Use the next few days to take a break and work on your strategy and forget about getting stiffed or burned with funky jobs. 2022 will be a fascinating year for notaries and you’ll want to be ready. I’m going after all the GNW I can get. My margins should go way up.
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Thank you for a local (CA) insight. I just cannot figure out how you or anyone else in CA can consider 100 for a refi decent pay ? With $15 base per signature, a discount for quantity is completely fair and I would offer a deal even if working directly with title companies. However, the prices are down to about 25% of that, gas is five dollars and up, plus other supplies. If you consider yourself to be profitable perhaps I am not realizing it will eventually pan out taking these low balls. I’m not beginning to see how it will eventually lead to profit. And that is my problem.
I guess my numbers are off. I see these low offers and can’t help but think I’m pretty much paying to do this job. I was up all night going over and over the 85 offer. I’d made money vs. nothing but it just burns me these signing companies are competing for business by low-balling. They are making their money by sheer volume and it’s the signing agents doing all the work. I’m thinking that may be the reason many of these documents are not mailed until the last minute.
You did read my mind. I’ve been thinking of ways to build on GNW and let others fight over these loan packages.
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I don’t think $100 is particularly adequate, but it’s the going rate, give or take. Forget about comparing to the $15 one can get for each GNW signature. The signing services take their cut (fair or unfair) and offer us the $75-$150 fees for our splendid services. Nobody will pay us $15 for every signature we notarize in a refi package.
Look at it tis way: I do, on average, 16 notarizations (8 for Mr. and 8 for Mrs.) in a given loan package. At $15 each, that’s $240 and we haven’t even touched all the other signatures I must obtain and all the other paperwork and handling I must do which is worth another $100, easy. Then, add in my costs (travel, equipment, paper, etc., etc.) and the job would cost in excess of $500. Well, nobody is going to pay that.
The $15 per sig is wiped out in this signing scenario. The whole thing becomes a consolidated job and is valued at a measly hundred bucks or so, take it or leave it.
We can complain, moan, argue, and all the rest but nothing will change much, as I see it, anyway. I’ve decided to get as efficient as I possibly can, build my reputation, build my GNW and eventually take only those SS jobs that I want/need and work with only those SS that treat me well. I figure I’m about a year away from achieving that objective, maybe less.
I like getting my mobile fee plus $15 per sign in GNW because I don’t have to print a stinkin’ thing, there are no scanbacks, my clients like me and I’m beginning to get repeat customers and nice referrals. It’s a strategy and I’m determined to make it work.
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While there are more signatures on loan documents you are only notarizing a few of them. If someone is notarizing a lot of other documents they might see loan closings as less profitable, however, unless you have a designated place to notarize documents you are driving to multiple locations rather than one to do an loan signing. I had an offer for $75 and the location was an hour and a half away and the signing was offered an hour and a half before the signing. Of course I declined. I guess we all have different ways of looking at things. My ultimate goal is to work directly with companies rather than through signing platforms because you get the whole closing Notary fee and not a portion of it. Some of them pay upwards of $200 per closing.