I don’t know about you all,but I find it exhausting and depressing to constantly feel like I have to fight for work here in Central TX. Feeling discouraged.
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Market is down, it is not wise to try to rely on this line of work for survival, hundreds if not thousands of Notaries are experiencing the same situation, if you have other skills that you can put to work, do it, do not expect LSA work to be the same for some time, diversify or get a nice job you can perform in order to get through this drought…
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There is a segment in other blog forum called “Desperate times call for desperate measures”
Notaries delivering food door to door and lots of stuff not related to Notary work, poor people, they really showing their value like the ones before not taking less than $125.00 for a signing, if I hit rock bottom I am just going to quit posting on these blogs and go on with my life…
jdeliseo: just chill…
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(CA) I’m not sure I understand your frustration with “fighting for work.” Everybody is fighting for work. Why do you feel you’re different? I don’t mean to sound cranky, but you’re experiencing what all of us are experiencing. Even when refinances were aplenty, we all still had to fight for the work. What do you expect, someone to call you up and kindly ask if you could spare a moment to handle a signing for $250, please, oh, please???
You’d do well to really look around on this site and see what other notaries are saying about work opportunities, fees and how they are going days without a signing. It’s the way things are and you’d better get used to it because it won’t improve for quite some time. I’m not scolding you (even if it feels like it) but your discouragement, while warranted and sad, finds no comfort on this forum. We’re all in the same sinking boat. Your complaint suggests that a different line of work may be a solution.
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“Fighting for work”. You can thank those " trainers" (using the term !oose!y) who promised a six-figure income in this industry and flooded a PROFESSIONAL market with promises to people expecting to get rich overnight…whi!e totally devaluing the importance and true meaning of “Notary Public”.
Also thank the " clickit and get it" p!atforms. The business is NOTHING like it used to be a mere five years ago.
Very sad
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Go, Linda! You speak the truth!
Anyone who fell for that “make lots of money with NO education and NO effort” bullcrap does not need to be a Notary Public.
The purpose of a Notary is, at it’s core, fraud prevention! Gullibility has no place at the table - we are professional cynics.
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Are you saturated, that could be a reason it’s hard to grab them.
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just need a new business strategy for the changing market
Me too. I am so frustrated. Title365 sends me a signing, but as soon as I go into the portal, another signer has already taken it. Or they tell me to change my password or enter my password and then by the time I do that, I’m screwed. They gave it to another signer. Then they send me a list of Dos and Don’ts containingf 25 paragraphs (that they send to everyone). I think I’m insulted that they don’t even send a little note (I’ve worked with them for a number of years). Something like this: Thanks notaries for bearing with us in these hard times. Sorry we don’t have more signings for you. We’re doing our best."
Then other companyh signings are offering $30 and if you negotiate, you’re screwed.
I’m trying to go in an entirely different direction. I put an ad on Craigslist and had an interview and I will be working next week - 2 times a week - fixing up his office mess for $20 an hour. I feel better - at
least I will have something steady.
Karen
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You describe jdeliseo as a person who feels entitled (why do you feel you"re different?), and looking for handouts (what do you expect, someone to call you up?). Yet you don’t know this person, her character, or her values.
As the bible says, "For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
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(CA) Wow, you’re quoting bible verses to me because I critique someone’s expression of frustration for not getting any work. Her character and values have nothing to do with what she laments, in my considered opinion. I am not judging her by any means. I question why she feels the need to tell us all about her woes and how she fights for work when most of us are also fighting for work. I don’t need to know her to opine on her comments, just as you don’t know me and yet you feel free to comment on mine, with inapplicable bible verses no less. Stay in your own lane, Jack.
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You question why she feels the need to tell us about her woes? 75% of the comments here are veterans expressing their woes about Newbies accepting low fees. Why the double standard?
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Huh? Your comments are non sequiturs. I have no idea what your argument is about.
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I’m here in CA… I’m experiencing the same thing with a lot of new notaries, Who don’t value their work… Taking signing for $45 - $60. Gas is high paper and toner is even higher now.
I went from $100 a signing to $80 a signing just to get work.
I don’t understand how they are making $$$.
Please somebody explain… This is crazy. I never seen it this low, I been signing since 2012 full time.
Peace
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(CA) Today, I was offered two nice jobs that I could do in my sleep - one for $70 and the other for $40. Using my method of calculating net-net-net profit, I quickly found that I’d maybe break even on the $70 job and lose about $30-$40 on the other one. I’m happy to let those jobs float by into the hands of another notary who will, by almost any measure, lose money on those jobs.
The “just to get work” approach simply doesn’t pay. Fortunately, I work with some top notch signing services (my secret) that always offer good paying assignments and they stand by me if little problems occur, and they pay on time and in full - always. I nurture those relationships and my efforts pay dividends. Those outfits know they can count on me, too. Mutually beneficial relationships.
My advice is to always do excellent work (duh), admit and correct your errors, don’t get greedy and don’t whine. If you can’t make a profit, no matter how juicy the job may look, let it go to someone else. They’ll soon be out of business and you’ll be standing ready to take assignments on your terms.
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Lol… I love it. You are so right.
Thanks for the feed back.
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hello. I know that times are hard. These are the times when you just have to find a way to water through this rough patch. I was a financial advisor with Wachovia Bank in Brentwood, CA. in 2008 that is when all the house market crash happened. All that you have to know is that you are great, you are in a profession that has its good times, and down times. That’s how it is right now. This economy will recover, you and everyone here in this platform will be better off when the economy pics up. Keep your spirts up. everyone, we will be better soon.
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I’m been working for T365 for a few years. My experience matches yours. I don’t even see the request. It is super-frustrating!!!
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I haven’t received a notary sign on since I have became a notary in July, 2022. I wish I knew the secret. I was so excited whenever I completed everything, but now frustrating. So many notaries in my area.
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I realize not all of us will always have the same experience but just to add a little positivity to these comments, here’s what I’ve done in these hard times.
After a month and half of getting minimal solicitations and getting underbid by what I’m assuming was a more desperate notary in the area, I stopped and looked at what I could change. I figured out that signings 45 minutes away (live near a rural area) were having issues getting notaries to accept so for a time I focused on those contracts and gave them a no BS number and realized my real worth in these trying times as I began getting contracts again. I also started picking up those last minute “I need a signing agent now” jobs as well and have become “favored” because of this. I’ve had 3 contracts in that last week with the lowest fee being $175 for local. Obviously I do this part time but if you do as well, then don’t be hard on yourself, just take a look at what you can do different.
Good luck to you all!
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