After getting a lot of experience as a NSA, I’ve begun to charge a minimum of $125 for a straight signing and $150 for scan backs, as it adds 40 more miles to my travel, being in a remote location. It seems that there is “a new kid in town”, who is taking $80 and $90 for any type of signing in my area. I know they must be losing money, and hopefully they will realize this, but fortunately I have companies that know me calling me directly to do signings. It has reduced the jobs available in the last two weeks, but I still am finding enough since this is part time for me.I was surprised at the appearance suddenly of this probably new Notary. They spoil it for everyone.
I am taking $ 80, $ 90, $ 100, like you said for any type of signing, oh I forgot to tell that I am a New Notary Getting Experience, sorry for spoiling your earnings, Oh, I am saving money to take my family on vacation to California this summer!
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What is wrong taking a $80 sellers signing? just a few pages as you know , and only 1.5 miles from home.
Nasty? why because I am planning to go on vacation this summer?
If this make you happy I have a signing for tomorrow 06/10/2021 @ 10.00 am, From Xome, a Refinance 180.00 , Have a wonderful day!
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Good for you. Maybe you are learning you will get to a california quicker that way. You must be in an area with nearby overnight facilities. Where I live they are 40 miles r//t away and scanbacks would double that mileage. . If I only had to drive 1-1/2 miles, it might be worth it. But at $80 it’s just not. And you are not spoiling my earnings, only yours.
All my $80,$90’s signings are cashed out, I understand sometimes Notaries have to travel far to get signings done, of course if you travel far you can charge accordingly, everyone does it, Oh, I do not think I am spoiling my earnings, after making numbers for paper, toner, Fuel, car and time doing prep. and signing, I am satisfied with the money left after expenses, please do not be hard on us newbies, we will catch up with you, the professionals.
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Well, In response to your comment. I also live in CA. And we are now paying 4.59 a gallon for gas. and as for sharing with the platforms?? I also pay $9 a month for Venbooks so I can invoice the SS who rarely pay on time… and I am also charged $2 a month for some reason by Signingorder.com just to receive orders… aka the Platform. I am also a 20 year Realtor/Broker and I know how fast the services are paid by escrow… Immediately after close… I know what my experience and time is worth and I can calculate expenses.! And you are wrong… The time it takes to print 120-200 pages twice… then prepping the docs. Then sitting down with the signers and completing the process correctly with no errors in a professional manner. you have invested at least a min of 3 hrs. if you think you are only worth $20 25 an hour you may as well go work at McDonalds. they pay $15 AND they pay your taxes, as well as sometimes offer benefits. and there are no expenses ie: ink, paper, gas, vehicle maint. so… I’m sorry but in CA … your wrong…
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you REALLY need to get a new scanner. I got an Epson ES-580W for $380, just scanned 168 pages of mixed legal/letter in 1 batch, and it took about 5 minutes.
Recalculate your numbers based on that, it should really help.
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This may be a silly question, but how do you do thirty signings in a week? Do you do multiple ones on the same trip? Maybe that’s not an uncommon amount, but as someone who is just getting started, I cannot even imagine doing that many.
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That is a really good suggestion to have separate devices. I’m new and recently bought an all-in-one. Although I don’t have much experience with all that goes into a loan signing, I can definitely see the benefit by the way you explained it.
I just did another reverse mortgage for $150. Don’t think I will take more of these. 250 pages twice. 2+ hours to get it signed plus time to review before going to signing, mileage to signing and FedEx. Not worth it. And both times signers were a bit overwhelmed, which is why it took so long. Maybe other notaries like them but not for me.
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It’s not always about the money! After doing 2-3 reverse mortgages, like you, I decided to not do them any more. They are tedious and time consuming. In addition the borrowers seem not to have a good handle on the process and they ask lots of question that the notary is not in a position to answer. If you are doing a reverse mortgage application (which does not require notarization) you are responsible for collecting a plethora of additional documents (insurance policies, bank statements, billing statements, etc.) that often the borrower has not assembled before your arrival, or they have excuses about not being able to find them or only having one from 5 years ago. But, you have your list you are working from of documents that are supposed to be in that package. For me, $200 is not enough inducement to do reverse mortgages. But, for someone it will be.
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I’ll do them for $200 if I could get that in my market. LOL! My only problem with them is when the signer has trouble signing. That makes the process much longer. The apps are great because of no notarizations so I don’t have to fill out the journal, plus there are only about 80 pages for the app. Grab what they have and I’m out the door in 40 minutes or less. However, the actual Reverse Closings are on average 90 minutes long but I recently did one in about 45 minutes.
I like:
‘Scan backs are done after hours’. Thanks for the tip.
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I concur, exeternotary, about total package scan.
Most of the clients I work with usually only require scan backs if it’s a Purchase package. On the Signing Confirmation there is normally a cutoff receipt time for the scan. If I’m unable to honor that cutoff time, I’ll advise them ASAP. Usually, they accept the time offered that I am able to scan it, but sometimes they simply say: “Just get it on the plane for overnight delivery and that will be great.”
You could totally teach a class. You are a HUGE Text book of knowledge.
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Yes they are great I have 2 of them lol
Hello fellow notary. I see something that can help you. Please upgrade your scanner. Don’t put yourself in that situation. I can scan 200 page documents in 4 minutes. If you think it cost too much, keep in mind you can deduct it in your taxes. Just my 2 cents
I hear ya, its the newbies accepting with their low fees, drowning the market. Read my experience with snapdocs, where all the newbies go and see the faulty thinking.
Do not believe you should be doing Reverse Mortgage Applications unless you are a loan originator.
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your math is deeply flawed. it doesn’t take $35 worth of toner. more like $4. 3 hours to scan 150 pages time for a new scanner should take 5 minutes. printing 15 minutes includes prep time. your total time invested should be an 1.5 hours based on the facts you gave. if it takes you 5 hours to complete 1 signing than you need to charge $500 per signing to make a decent living. i do agree that the SS need higher payouts.
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