Posted by PJM/MI on 9/26/06 5:13pm
Msg #148607

Before you get started..

I keep reading on here about the "newbies" who are frustrated and upset because they have the shingle out and no one walking into the store.
I sugggest for those of you who MAY be interested in this bandwagon, check out your area and see how many other closers there are in your area.
I mentored a gal who thought this was going to be a "9-5" job so she could be home at night with her family. The good ol' NNA didn't tell her (after she plucked down her certification $) that over 75% of the closings are in the evening.. when the borrowers are at home. (After their 9-5 job).
JMHO.

Reply by Poppy on 9/26/06 5:30pm
Msg #148615

I'm not defending the NNA, but where does personal

responsibility and common sense kick in? Shouldn't we as newbies exercise due diligence before we jump into what is going to be our profession? Or is it reasonable to expect to plop down XXX amount of dollars to join an association so that they can tell us everything we need to know ahead of time. I think we are blaming the NNA for a whole lot that we should be doing on our own.
A reasonable person who understands what the job is, should be able to surmise that a large majority of the signings would be taking place in the evening.

This is not directed at you Pamela... It's just an observation I've made of late.

Reply by Beth/MD on 9/26/06 5:48pm
Msg #148620

Re: I'm not defending the NNA, but where does personal

I have to agree with Poppy. There seems to be lots of newbies just jumping into this profession without educating oneself about it first. Common sense should direct a lot of them, but with only dollar signs in their eyes they're blind to all else. There are basics about the profession that really are nothing more than common sense. The hours we work are a prime example. It would stand to reason that you'd have to be available when Mr. Borrower is available. That usually means after he's off of work. DUH!

Reply by MaggieMae_CA on 9/26/06 6:11pm
Msg #148623

I can't believe this!

I just emailed Harry and told him I was tired of the NNA bashing that goes on here. Nice to see others feel the same way. I've joined the NNA because in the eyes of some a notary/signing agent has more credibility than an individual who doesn't.

Thanks Beth and Poppy for stepping up to the plate and speaking out.

Common sense is good business sense!

Reply by LkArrowhd/CA on 9/26/06 7:04pm
Msg #148630

Re: This type of business is more about evening appointments

once folks are home from working during the day and for those that work... say not a 9-5 shift you get them whenever it works for them....... Gosh darn I miss some of my favorite TV 's shows.....because of the time frames that fit the borrowers.....it's not what works for me but what works for them.......

Reply by ThaliaRay_FL on 9/26/06 7:17pm
Msg #148634

Re: This type of business is more about evening appointments

Before I started this new adventure in my life I did research on it. LOL I am a big one for that btw. I looked on google for any SS or TC that did business in Fl (central Fl) and I gave them a call (a few in my area).
I asked questions, like how would I go about working for your company? What would the fees be and so on.
My point is this... when you put down the money you should know what you are getting yourself into and for the only way to know that is to research and have realistic expectations.
JMHO

Reply by Becca_FL on 9/26/06 7:23pm
Msg #148637

Essential equipment for the NSA...

TIVO or a DVR! Never miss LOST again.

Reply by BrendaTx on 9/26/06 7:28pm
Msg #148639

Re: I can't believe this! - MaggieMae - take a look at this

message. I think Harry is probably close to being on the same page as many of us ...JMHO.


Re: NNA Trying to Fix Minimum Notary Fees
Posted by Harry [NR] of IA on 10/21/03 2:40am
Msg #142

Cheryl -

I hope the last line of your message is sarcasm. :-) Beyond their self-serving, transparent efforts to peddle their certification and sell more memberships vis-a-vis the rates announcement along with their get-rich-quick ads, there are two additional points for which they should be ashamed:

1) Product Pricing. Do you know what the actual cost of their Official Journal of Notarial Acts is? Based on their purchasing volume and the quotes I have in-hand for our forthcoming Journal, it's probably UNDER $3.00. Do you know what you would pay, including shipping, if you purchased their journal at retail or even member pricing? If that's not bad enough, how about the "Signing Agent" incarnation? Wow. Then there's the matter of stamps, another key notary tool. The Ultimarks we sell in our store are comparable to their premium stamp. Once shipping is taken into account, our stamps are about 50% LESS, and we still make a small amount of money on them.

2) People as Billboards. Who in the world wants the NNA logo plastered all over their gear, their person, etc.? Why can't a stamp just be a stamp, a bag a bag or a journal a journal? Are notaries getting paid to use this stuff? Are you kidding? No, they're the ones paying - paying for the extra screen printing and foil stamping ad nauseum - paying a premium for the right to be a walking billboard. Figure that one out.

At the root of all of this, certainly, is greed and commercialism. What may have started as a noble institution - "non-profit," even - seems now to be a bloated, cash-craving 800 pound gorilla, trying to rationalize its bad behavior under the pretext of an unnatural symbiosis between itself and the notary signing agents it claims to be fighting for.

At the end of the day, I can tell you who the losers will be - this is nothing short of a pyramid scheme (in my opinion, of course).

Harry

Reply by Becca_FL on 9/26/06 7:57pm
Msg #148645

Re: I can't believe this! MaggieMae

I hold in my hand two pieces of junk mail and no, I don not plan on trashing them. Why? Because one is from the NNA and the other is from Ameriquest, two of the lowest forms of pond scum in our business, IMO. I have never paid for an NNA membership and I never will. I was given a complimentary membership to "experience all the benefits of membership." Well, guess what, I've yet to see ANY benefit to me, my business or the industry. So, I plan on sending the junk mail back to the scum suckers at their expense with a "nice" note about where they can stick their junk mail and why.

Reply by Lee/AR on 9/26/06 8:04pm
Msg #148647

Thank you Brenda TX, Becca Fl & especially...Harry! n/m

Reply by CaliNotary on 9/26/06 8:22pm
Msg #148651

Call me crazy

But I have a hard time believing Harry would be too upset that his competition is being portrayed in a negative light on this board.

I also don't at all see that Beth and Poppy's posts indicate that they're defending the NNA in any way, shape or form. It seems to me that they're simply saying that people need to be responsible for their own actions. A person can feel that way yet still thing the NNA are scumbags.

Maggie, if you truly believe that common sense is good business sense, then you must have really bad business sense. There is a good reason the NNA is the target of so much bashing on this board. They've shown time and time and time again that the only thing they care about is getting more and more money out of their members' pockets. This new background check requirement scam they have running should make that crystal clear to you.

But if you want to be fool enough to keep dumping your hard earned money in their coffers while they're doing everything they possibly can to ensure that nobody in California can make a living in this profession, go right ahead. My principles simply wouldn't allow me to give them a penny, even if I thought I would make my money back in a week simply by being a member.

But luckily I haven't drank the NNA Kool Aid and I know that it's a crock that more than a few companies give a hoot about NNA certification. I've managed to do just fine without their "help" for the past 3 years.

Reply by Beth/MD on 9/26/06 8:37pm
Msg #148655

Re: I am NOT singing praises for the NNA!

MY post does not sing the NNAs praises. I simply think those who fall prey to the NNA's advertising should take some responsibility and check things out before becoming an SA. Too many just jump in thinking they'll make $100,000 a year along with the other 75 SAs in their 2 square mile-wide neighborhood.

Reply by Poppy on 9/26/06 9:03pm
Msg #148660

Thanks Cali, I thought Beth and I were mis-understood... n/m

Reply by Tina_MA on 9/27/06 10:57am
Msg #148789

Re: Call me crazy ~ ditto what Cali said...NNA is a killjoy

.....they have not only ruined the profession in CA, but they have managed to lower the standard all over the U.S.

Look at all the TC's that want to pay lower fees, babysit with phone calls, and require fax-backs now.

This has happened as a direct correlation to the NNA spewing their "get rich quick" scheme all over the place and inundating the field with thousands of ignorant, so called certified signing agents who don't know the first thing about being a Notary Public, never mind loan docs.

Reply by MichiganAl on 9/27/06 2:14am
Msg #148712

Sorry MaggieMae

You're going to have a hard time finding many to agree with you. Even Beth and Poppy have re-posted to say that you've misunderstood their statement. People have to be responsible for their own poor business planning, but that doesn't get the NNA off the hook for turning into a mass marketing machine that misleads it's victims. Reminds me a lot of the cigarette industry. The dummy who puts a cigarette in their mouth is responsible for their actions, but that doesn't get the industry off the hook for creating a deadly product and misleading it's vicitims.

By the way, are you related to Fannie or Sallie?