Posted by docs1954CA on 10/19/07 3:59pm
Msg #217380

The latest from 11th hour.Long..... pt 1

Posted - 10/19/2007 : 04:35:56 AM
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From: Paige Tiffany [mailto:[e-mail address]] Posted 10/19/07

Dear Independent Contractor:

We would like to inform you that due to the market downturn and other circumstances beyond our control, we have experienced temporary cash flow difficulties from last quarter due to lenders going out of business, escrow companies shutting down, and a significant amount of monies owed to Eleventh Hour Signings. Collectively, this put us in our first deficit.

Previously, we maintained a consistent track record of on-time payments for services rendered over the course of our three year history, as a lot of you are aware of and have provided a lot of work to attorneys, notaries, and title producers all over the world. This is work that our independent contractors wouldn't have gotten if we hadn't worked very hard over many years to achieve these business resources. We are very proud previous history and we all have worked no less than 15 hours a day providing excellent service to our clients.

Unfortunately, WE have had to reduce overhead in order to return to a cash flow positive status, which is clearly in the best interests of all involved. Accordingly, we have now returned to normal operational status, and all new closures are again being paid in a timely manner. For payments still due for services rendered during the above mentioned time period, we anticipate closure PRIOR to the first quarter of next year. We sincerely apologize for the severe inconvenience this presents to many of you. Your patience with this matter is greatly appreciated.

You will get paid. We have never NOT paid anyone that has followed policy and procedure. WE are going to be late with your payment and are communicating this to you rather than dodging the bullet because it is very hard to give out this news as we care so much about our independent contractors.

We would also like to note that as part of our adjustments, we are planning to begin providing periodic corporate updates on our web site, which should help reduce our correspondence overhead while improving visibility into our operations and status. We also have several exciting new initiatives in the works for recognizing your loyalty and consistent performance over the longer term such as higher pay than any other signing company and being exempt from the no-sign policy if you end up on our platinum status profile with our company. We will provide more details on these programs as they become available.

Again, thank you for your best efforts and for your understanding as we emerge from this difficult transition period. If you could keep correspondence on this matter via e-mail to the owner, Paige Tiffany at [e-mail address], it would be greatly appreciated. The more you work with us rather than against us and the less time we have to spend going back and forth with independent contractors that can't look at the whole picture and want to argue with us all day, the more time we can put into getting new clientele, working with our attorneys on positive things that will allow for us us to move faster and get you paid SOONER!

Please be advised,When you choose to not to work with us and choose to work against by slandering our name or calling our escrow officers complaining, you are only bothering them and a lot of them are putting these independent contractors on their national do not call list because they believe that we have been honest - they know about our letter - they know about the market - and feel as though an independent contractor that is not willing to work with us - is not someone they would want to work with in the future. Remember, these are our friends. We have built solid business relations with them over years of hard work. WE have been through a lot together and they are e-mailing us all of the names of people that call them to complain. After a notary called one of my clients complaining, she called me and said,this is exactly why we use signing companies. They do not have the time to deal with notaries on the phone all day long complaining about something that we are working on. They are busy dealing with their clients and working hard on their title work. Eleventh Hour Signings hired you. There are other measures you can take if you are upset. I wouldn't burn a bridge in this industry as we all need to work together during this hard time.

Best Regards, Paige

Reply by Phillip/TX on 10/19/07 4:21pm
Msg #217388

Appears to be a JOKE in the making.... they will pay you now, but they wont pay you for what you did in the past.... Bet ole Paige took home a paycheck every 1st and 15th or whenever their paydays were....

Reply by Yoli/CA on 10/19/07 4:24pm
Msg #217389

11th Hour Signings has always paid me. The agreement

calls for payment in 45 days. I may have to remind Paige of invoice, but payment has always been made and no checks have bounced. She and her staff have always been very pleasant to deal with. I know they've gotten some bad write-ups here, but I've not had any problem with them.

Reply by Charles_Ca on 10/19/07 4:35pm
Msg #217395

Re: 11th Hour Signings has always paid me. The agreement

I agree Yoli but business is business. I have serious problems with these business who contract and then not pay their contractors as agreed. There are many ways that can be accomplished. When I had a large engineering company in Oakland most of our projects were government projects and the government is notoriously bad a paying on time. I used to have line of credit with my bank to cover payroll if payments from the government were late. I'd go hungry before I'd be late on a debt owed and that especially includes subcontractors and employees. I always figured that I promised that my employees and subcontractors would be paid and that if they performed as required they had earned the right to be paid when I said I'd pay them.

Reply by Phillip/TX on 10/19/07 4:39pm
Msg #217397

Re: 11th Hour Signings has always paid me. The agreement

KUDOS FOR CHARLES!!! I am the same way, my employees pay comes before mine any day... if I ask them to put in a days work for a days pay, they expect it, and I expect to give to them. If I have to transfer money from a savings to the payroll account to allow them to cash their paychecks, then I do, they have never not been able to cash their checks if they wanted to, or worry about depositing them in their accounts for fear of bouncing.

Reply by Yoli/CA on 10/19/07 4:53pm
Msg #217403

I totally agree with Phillip and Charles about meeting

payroll obligations. However, let's give Paige a little credit for notifying of her company's status. Practically on a daily basis we post here about SS that give no notice, just go out of business and never pay. Here Paige is saying everyone will get paid. At least she's trying.

I personally have not received this communication (either electronic or snail-mail) and I do have one closing on the books from earlier this month. Let's see what happens....

Reply by Charles_Ca on 10/19/07 5:36pm
Msg #217422

Good luck Yoli, I personally have had excellent relations

with Paige and have absolutely no complaints, my remarks were just in general. In fact Paige has always been very pleasant to work with. I just haven't heard from her lately but then I have been referring a lot out since I am very busy with other things. I never had any kind of a contract with her or any SS primarily because I don't sign unilateral or aleatory contracts. Well, that's not true, I do, I lied, Insurance policies are aleatory by their very nature.

Reply by SueW/Tn on 10/20/07 3:01pm
Msg #217516

Give Paige credit for telling SA's she can't pay???

The inability to pay someone what is owed doesn't sneak up on you....I know a month in advance what I need to earn in order to pay the overhead. You pay debts FIRST and everything else follows. Completed assignments are DEBTS and should be paid ahead of anything else. Frankly I'm a bit tired of this "give them credit for being honest"...I'll give them credit when they call with an assignment and tell me up front "we MAY not be able to pay as agreed". Know why they don't do that? Because then they'll not be able to work off of the income I earned for them. Nice is nice BUT BUSINESS IS BUSINESS.

Reply by MistarellaFL on 10/21/07 2:14pm
Msg #217555

I'm with you, Sue

Although I expect an occasional error in accounting/accounts payable, debts are first and foremost to be paid...my creditors won't allow me to use those excuses. Can you imagine Verizon, FPL or Sunoco giving me "credit" if I told them I can't pay? They would shut me down in a heartbeat or less. AND report me to the credit bureaus.

Reply by janCA on 10/19/07 5:46pm
Msg #217423

You are so right, Charles.

My husband has had a construction company going on 20 years and the first thing he was told when he went into business is establish a line of credit for a backup. He used to be an 8A contractor for the government and sometimes he would literally wait anywhere from 3-6 months on these big projects for payment. He always paid his employees and his bills on time, never late. Thank God for that line of credit, not only then but now. He has a very high FICO score and has earned it by his due diligence.

Reply by KKinNoCal on 10/19/07 7:53pm
Msg #217454

Re: I also had another business

and I am paying off money I borrowed to make sure my employees and bills were paid on time. I did without before I would make them wait for their money. These signing companies expect a lot from us. And we hold up our end of the deal...

Reply by LJ on 10/19/07 8:51pm
Msg #217460

Re: I also had another business

My husband and I actually had to take out an interest only loan for a few months during a rough time we went through to keep current on other obligations. One was making sure our employees were paid, our insurance and pension were paid. There were many many times we did not take a paycheck, but our employees got every dime of theirs every 2 weeks like clockwork. I was late paying my employees 1 time. That was only because I became a grandma during the night and was planning on doing payroll the next day. The baby had to be flown to another hospital. It was 2 days before I was in any shape to get back home and do it. They all understood. By the way, that baby is almost 4 now and as healthy as can be. We are very blessed. Very OT, I know.

Reply by MichiganAl on 10/19/07 11:48pm
Msg #217481

I looooove this part...

"When you choose to ...work against (us) by slandering our name or calling our escrow officers complaining...a lot of them are putting these independent contractors on their national do not call list."

That's a nice touch. Don't complain about us because if you do you will be put on a nationwide blacklist. Man, we've been trying for years to get our hands on that top secret national do not call list. What a complete load of.....oops, gotta go. A couple of unmarked black vans just pulled up to my house.

Reply by Kevin/Ct on 10/20/07 10:14am
Msg #217497

Re: I looooove this part...

On what web site is this so called national do not call list located. It does not seem to show up on a Google search.

Reply by MichiganAl on 10/20/07 1:20pm
Msg #217511

It's like telling a child the boogieman's gonna get them

It doesn't exist. It's a pathetic, dirty, but completely toothless threat.