Posted by Victoria/FL on 4/16/05 7:32am
Msg #32174
I feel like I'm the "catch-all" girl"
If you can't get anyone else....Victoria will do it. How come I seem to get all the calls for Friday night and Saturday morning? The loans that no one else wants to do. This is my third Saturday in a row with a loan scheduled. Where's the Mon-Fri 10 am-5pm loans? Does anyone else feel that way?
I'm really NOT complaining, though, at least I'm getting calls! I'm hoping that eventually I'll move up to that first tier and be the first one called for a signing.
Long-time agents (1yr +): do you still do a lot of weekend/evening closings, or are you able to "pick & choose" the ones that you really want to do?
|
Reply by sue on 4/16/05 8:13am
Msg #32177
weekends and evenings are part of this business. If you've got your business built up with plenty of work 10-5 and start to cut out the weekends & evenings, you will see that your 10-5 work will also drop off. If a company likes you and uses you all the time and you start declining a lot (for any reason) they will start to use the next person they call who doesn't say no. Today is my first Saturday off since the middle of February and that is because I had 2 that cancelled.
|
Reply by Jeanie-fl on 4/16/05 8:29am
Msg #32180
I agree with Sue. Plus, I love my Saturday signings, I look at them as bonus dollars. I alway schedule them for the morning so the rest of my day is free. Today I'll be done at 1:00 then a friend and I are going to Epcot for the flower and garden show. Obviously the two signings I have this morning aren't messing up my day.
|
Reply by Becca/FL on 4/16/05 9:16am
Msg #32183
I don't mind weekend appts. and work an average of two weekends per month. I do try to get the Sat. appts. done before noon so I don't lose my whole day. I am guilty of turnning down business last night, though. I had plans for Outback take out and a movie on the boat.
Gotta go - have an 11am & then it's play time!
|
Reply by Sylvia_FL on 4/16/05 9:33am
Msg #32184
Victoria,
This is not a 10-5 job Most people work those hours so it is more convenient for them to close in the evening. And that is why they use signing agents, to make it convenient for the borrower.
I have been doing this for almost 5 years now, and I do turn down quite a bit of work, as because of health issues I am not able to do as much as I used to do.
I already have an $850 week booked for next week, and a $150 for a week on Monday - will obviously get more for that week, and more for next week, as I have a couple of days free.
I have done 7 in a day in the past, but those days are over for me. I will not do more than 3 a day now - unless one of my favourite title companies call and I can fit them in.
I have done loans on a Saturday. I once did one on a Sunday - the borrower only picked Sunday just to see if a notary would actually come out on a Sunday! He could quite easily have done it on the Saturday or one of the evenings, but he didn't believe someone would go out to his house on a Sunday, and asked the company to close on a Sunday! I wasn't too thrilled about that (I wouldn't have minded if Sunday was the only day he was available, but to just decide on a Sunday to see if someone would actually come out was not nice, I had canceled family plans to accommodate him!)
You will find that as you are being available for the Friday night and Saturday morning calls, and are doing good jobs for the companies, then they will call you first eventually.
|
Reply by Reginald Wilks on 4/16/05 1:03pm
Msg #32203
Sylvia
Question how do you schedule so far in advance? I have not been getting calls until like the day before then sometimes the day of the signing. How do you schedule that much that you know in advance a week?
Reggie
Kansas
|
Reply by BrendaTX on 4/16/05 1:08pm
Msg #32206
Reggie:
It does happen that you get signings scheduled up to two weeks ahead.
WAMU is good at planning in advance. I get a lot of their loans here. These are seldom cancelled and I can count on them to come through no matter how far ahead they are planned.
|
Reply by Ted_MI on 4/16/05 8:37pm
Msg #32262
Re: WaMu loans
Brenda,
I agree. I have a Wamu HELOC scheduled for Friday, April 29th. And that was scheduled two or three days ago.
|
Reply by Sylvia_FL on 4/16/05 1:16pm
Msg #32207
Reggie
Most of them are for one company, and even though the dollar figure is high, there are not that many signings really - just signings at $100 and $150 each - mostly the $150, although I do have one with edocs at $200.
I still have a couple of days left to schedule some if I get more calls.
|
Reply by sue on 4/17/05 6:04pm
Msg #32363
Reggie, it's all numbers. After you've done this a while (and I've got no idea how long you've been at it), you will have a large customer base and the calls come in. This week I had 16 scheduled before the week began. I've got 12 for this coming week and 4 the week after. I've even got one in May.
|
Reply by Victoria/FL on 4/16/05 1:31pm
Msg #32209
I've never been a 9-5'r anyway, but like Reggie, I get calls the day before or "day of" for signings. I'm looking forward to actually having at least a few signings scheduled in advance.
|
Reply by Becky/KS on 4/16/05 9:06pm
Msg #32268
Whos is WAMU? Washington Mutual? Would someone kindly post WAMU url?
|
Reply by Sylvia_FL on 4/16/05 10:12pm
Msg #32272
Yes, Washington Mutual - but they are usually through another service. I have never known them go direct to signing agents.
|
Reply by Ernest_CT on 4/17/05 1:25am
Msg #32291
I get a fair number of Washington Mutual loans each month, but always through the same signing service. I'd be willing to bet that WaMu doesn't go direct to any NSAs.
|
Reply by Ernest_CT on 4/17/05 1:26am
Msg #32292
Becky/KS
Post some way of contacting you and I'll send some info. I don't want to alert my competition....
|
Reply by Becky/KS on 4/17/05 2:48pm
Msg #32339
For Your Eyes only - Ernest_CT
Please fwd info to [e-mail address]. Thank you very much. Really appreciate it.
|
Reply by Joan Bergstrom on 4/17/05 1:15am
Msg #32290
I was teaching a loan signing class in Calif. today and I told the students that its seems the Saturday loan signing business is changing from when I started 3 years ago. I never had Saturday assignments 3 years ago and now I could do a 1-2 Saturday signings every week. I was called to do 3 Saturday signings today.
I almost never do any signings anymore with more than 2 days notice and truthfully most companies that call me for work want me to do them "today/tomorrow."
I don't know if this is a California situation or if other notaries are experiencing the same time constraints in other parts of the country, or maybe its just me out in Riverside, Calif and the companies that hire me?
I haven't had a company hire me with a one week notice in almost a year!! No complaints as I am super busy.
|
Reply by Stephanie_CA on 4/18/05 4:39pm
Msg #32501
I handle loan signings on a part-time basis - evenings & weekends; however, since I have been doing this for slightly over 3 years and have developed good relationhships with valued companies, when the calls come in, I can pick & choose which are convenient for me. I refer the others to NSAs that I am familiar with, so it's a "win-win" for me and other NSAs in my area , as well.
|
