Posted by Paula/AZ on 6/17/05 7:59pm
Msg #45691

to be a SA or not to be

I have yet to do a signing, have received a few calls but turned them down primarily b/c I do not have a laser printer yet and just feel like I'm not ready yet. My dilema is whether or not I want to invest further into this business or not. Should I buy a printer or not? I thought this would be a good business for me since I am a stay at home mom and could do this w/out having to put my son in daycare. I thought I could do signing while my husband was home from work (evening). However, from reading this board assignments are usually so last minute, that I may be kidding myself into thinking that I can do this only in the evenings and with enought time to make sure husband is home. Are there any other mom's that do this and how is it working for you all??

Reply by BLE on 6/17/05 8:15pm
Msg #45698

I don't have kids so I'm always amazed at how moms juggle everything. My husband is an engineer and likes to have toys...that's why I had a laser printer when I started out.

Reply by SarahBeth_CA on 6/17/05 8:30pm
Msg #45699

I chose this specificaly because I can choose my own hours. I'm needed at home during the day but am available nights and weekends. So far it has worked out and I am looking forward to making this a success.

Reply by Liz on 6/17/05 8:39pm
Msg #45700

Lots of evening only notaries

We have lots of notaries who do signings for us, and are only available in the evenings. Because most homeowners work, we do many signings between 6-9 pm. I think you should give it a try. You will get to meet a lot of people, and make some money.

Reply by Ernest_CT on 6/17/05 9:49pm
Msg #45722

Re: Lots of evening only notaries

Please do not take this post personally. It may not apply to you.

Yes, there are a lot of "evening-only notaries". Many treat signing as a hobby, figuring that a few dollars is better than nothing, and not doing high-quality work. That cheapens the NSA profession in three ways:

First, because the average quality of signings goes down, leading signing services to demand excessive faxbacks (et cetera) and lowering their fees because they may have to send another notary to clean up after the first.

Second, some states have so many complaints that they disallow notaries for doing signings except under the "supervision" of an attorney, or, in some states' cases, prohibit notary-only signings completely.

Third, the hobbyist notary doesn't demand high enough fees, because it is not their livelihood and the money they bring in is gravy. It is to the signing services advantage (most of the time) to use the evening-and-weekend-only notaries as leverage to drive down fees.

For full-time NSAs: Just for fun, when you've negotiated what you consider a reasonable fee, a substantial increase from what the signing service initially offered, you've gotten the confirmation, and a while later (minutes or an hour or more) the signing is "cancelled", keep track of the borrower's name and address. (DO NOT CONTACT THE BORROWER after the cancellation! That would be at least unethical, IMHO.) A month or two later, when you're in the borrower's town/city and have some free time, go to the office of the Registrar of Deeds (or the equivalent). Look up the borrower's property and see the date their latest mortgage was signed. Care to bet that it was signed on the date that your "cancelled" signing had been scheduled?r Warning: Do NOT be a stalker. Do NOT harass the other notary, borrower, lender, signing service, title company, or anyone else! All you've done is a little research in PUBLIC records. You've satisfied your curiosity; that has to be enough. If you are not sure you will be willing to let the situation go, then don't do the research.

Reply by SarahBeth_CA on 6/17/05 10:11pm
Msg #45727

Re: Lots of evening only notaries

Don't worry, I'm not taking this personally. I would like to point out that I think there is a distinction between "evening notaries" and "hobby notaries". I for one used to pull the 9 to 5 and for family reasons no longer can. However I haven't lost my work ethic. I pay as much or more attention to learning everything I can about the career and doing flawless work. I'm in business to make money, if it became gravy money I still wouldn't work for cheap.

Reply by Ernest_CT on 6/17/05 10:59pm
Msg #45743

Thank you, SarahBeth_CA. ...

... You're one of the NSAs I was hoping NOT to offend. IMHO, you're doing everything right. Thank you, and best of luck!

Reply by Nicole_NCali on 6/18/05 12:50pm
Msg #45847

Not offended either...but here is my take

I can only do 10-15 signings a month. Most of the TC and SS know this when I sign up. I like to ensure that my documents are flawless and I am anal retentive so I check the documents thoroughly. I send a coversheet with my documents and arrange the package with the security instruments (read another poster on serving a convenience with the title co) and if there is any discrepancy, I also ensure that my coversheet outlines this.

Based on the fact that I take each dollar transaction seriously, I expect to be compensated accordingly. Sometimes after reading the boards, I know that my prices are inflated to cover my lack of volume but the professionalism that I put into each packet.

My average time for each loan is 3.5 hours. 30 minutes to prep, 1.5 to sign, 30 minutes to review at the table, 30 minutes to prepare coversheet, and 30 minutes of discretionary time (review for notarizations, etc).

For the hobbyists, not alot of preparation is given to the packet. For the hobbyists, the reality of multiple thousands of dollars in this one transaction is not even applicable to them, for the hobbyists, ensuring good customer service is not even something they consider. But for the professional, all of this and more is appreciated and that is why some are called for more loans than what they are willing to take on per month..like me

Reply by Ernest_CT on 6/18/05 5:49pm
Msg #45902

Great! Another NSA who is to be applauded! n/m

Reply by TAgey_VA on 6/18/05 2:41pm
Msg #45866

Re: Lots of evening only notaries - DITTO (n/m)

Reply by Melody on 6/17/05 9:02pm
Msg #45707

"While husband is home from work"

Almost all signings are scheduled between 4pm and 9pm.

If you do this work, you would only see your husband on weekends. And your weekends would be interrupted by signings.

You might want to think about what other kind of "work at home" work might better suit a family schedule. www.BizyMoms.com has some great ideas.

Good for you in wanting to find a way to stay home with your son while he is so little!

Reply by TAgey_VA on 6/18/05 2:36pm
Msg #45865

Paula - I am a stay at home mother of three and I too wait for my husband to get home to do signings. I also make myself available on weekends. Since I am not "pressed" to make the money quickly, I am comfortable with the growth pattern of my business. When I do not have any assignments lined up, I use that time to sign up with other companies or do more research for my business. I am always looking for ways to expand into other areas as well. I do not believe in putting everything into one area of service. Working P-T is working well for me at the moment. I am going F-T in August when my children go back to school. Just be flexible for right now and enjoy and learn. Just MHO.

Reply by paula/az on 6/19/05 5:30pm
Msg #46066

thanks for all the replies. I also am not looking to make BIG bucks, meaning I don't plan on taking but maybe a few assignments a week (mostly due to spending time w/ family priority). However, this being said I am taking this business very serious that is why I am not rushing into anything. I want to be prepared before I take my first signing. Reading posts on this board has been very informative. So thanks to all.