Posted by JohnnyB on 10/4/07 8:51pm
Msg #214899

Who is the next company to go under?


They may have a good report on signing central, but
but you may noticed a drastic change in operations or a drastic cut in fees. Your favorite scheduler who you have schmoozed for six months is now gone and you have to start over again. These are signs that something may be up so you want to be careful how much credit you extend them. I'll have to admit, Express Financial was a complete surprise. The owners kept that one tight lipped right to the end. That was genius.

I'll save my vote till later.

Reply by CJ/OR on 10/4/07 9:33pm
Msg #214904

This is a dangerous question

The answers may precipitate the demise of any company listed if reading the responses causes notaries to decline their assignments due to unwarranted speculation.

Reply by cal2az on 10/4/07 10:38pm
Msg #214907

Re: This is a dangerous question

If they are reputable, ethical, and pay for work performed; they will have no problem with lack of notaries.

Reply by pan/nd on 10/4/07 10:57pm
Msg #214909

Re: This is a dangerous question

I hate to say it....BUT....

there have been SS out there that were reputable, ethical, and paid for work performed last

month that are disreputable, unethical and haven't (and won't) pay for work this month.

How about Express Financial Services (a title company) for starters? In business one week with all their attributes and doors closed and gone the next with many people stiffed for thousands of dollars.

And in this day and age of mortgage and subprime messes, one doesn't know whom to trust.

I'd take a loooong look at any NEW SS that comes along without a proven track record.

And, I'd be careful with some of the established ones.

If you don't look out for yourself, who will?

Reply by CaliNotary on 10/5/07 3:28am
Msg #214920

Re: This is a dangerous question

"The answers may precipitate the demise of any company listed if reading the responses causes notaries to decline their assignments due to unwarranted speculation."

Yeah, that's exactly why SOX is having so much trouble staying in business. Did you just enter this industry last week or something?

Reply by Loretta Reed on 10/5/07 7:05am
Msg #214925

Re: Express Financial...

I found out this week that the owner of Express Financial, Richard, is the proud owner of a steakhouse in Pittsburgh, PA. He opened it up last year with the money he was making from Express. Maybe he will have us all over for a steak on him.

I spoke to another title company yesterday, been in business for years, out of Pittsburgh. She was calling about a title search that I was doing and I told her that I could not complete the search until I received the $500+ check they owed. Her comment was "well, we are slow right now". I told her that had nothing to do with the work I had done. They should lay off some people and pay their abstractors. She told me that they have and I was lucky that they were still in business. I asked her how she would feel if she worked for 2 weeks and they told her that they couldn't afford to pay her but they needed her to still work there. She had no comment. She told me that she would reassign the search. I have been doing work for this company for 7 years.
I wasted my gas and toner and time to do their work when I could have been doing the work for someone that would actually pay me. I have 3 kids and they expect me and my family to suffer so they can ride in new cars and have nice homes. I am at the bottom of the bucket but I believe that I am one of the most important people in the transaction.

Reply by sue_pa on 10/5/07 7:57am
Msg #214926

...Express Financial was a complete surprise...

For every other reason in your post Express was not or should not have been a surprise to anyone. Payment went from faxing your invoice twice a month to 'automatic' which stretched it to 60+ days towards the end. Key employees left the company. The number of employees dramatically dropped - everyone should have known this because Karen sent out current phone extension listings (it had been 3 pages and the last one wasn't even a full page). For whatever reason, they used a lot of signing services when they traditionally had used direct notaries (also the 'begging' in Karen's e-mails to pay attention to your work also increased proportionally with their use of signing services ) - doubtful this connects to their downfall but the use of the signing services totally baffled me (although up until a week prior to closing they SWORE they didn't use services) with the problems it was apparently causing them because with the fees they were paying, their data base should, and at one point was, filled with experienced people.

Reply by Loretta Reed on 10/5/07 8:01am
Msg #214928

See your PM Sue, I am reluctant to post the name because I am still trying to get my money and I don't want the to have another excuse not to pay me.