I was hired as the second notary on a split signing. The transaction is a primary residence refinance for an Orange County, Florida property.
My signer, the co-borrower, is scheduled to sign tomorrow. His mother, the borrower, and her husband, a non-borrowing spouse, signed yesterday in South Florida. I received the signed docs via FedEx today and sent an email to the title company noting the following issues:
•My signer's name was NOT deleted from the notarial certificates on those docs that are intended to be signed by all borrowers. The docs affected are:
1. Affidavit as to Debts, Liens, Possession and Taxes
2. Mortgage
3. Compliance Agreement
4. Occupancy Affidavit and Financial Status (the affiant names and method of ID were not added)
•The county was either not corrected to the actual county where the notarizations took place or was left blank on ALL notarial certificates.
•The Proceeds Confirmation form was completed, but no funds are due TO the borrower. In fact, there are funds due FROM the borrower in the amount of $1,943.00. Am I to collect these funds from my signer (John Q Public)?
•The form intended to collect the borrowers' contact information was not completed, but a big X was placed on it instead.
•My signer's (John Q Public) 1003 and 92900-A was signed by Jane B Public (as the borrower). Her 1003 and 92900-A were signed correctly.
•Jane B Public's 4506-T was also signed by her spouse, in conflict with your instructions.
•John Q Public's 4506-T was also signed by Jane B Public and the word "spouse" was corrected to read "mother".
•The first notary placed her notary seal on the USA Patriot Act form for Jane B Public as well as signing and placing her seal on the ID copies.
•The first notary signed and placed her seal on the Signature Affidavit and AKA Statement intended for my signer (John Q Public) although there were no borrower signatures for her to notarize. The forms for her two signers did not show the correct venue (county) and no method of ID was indicated.
Some of these issues are easily corrected by printing a fresh copy for my signer to execute. I was already prepared to attach a separate notarial certificate for my signer so my notarizations will show only the person who appeared before me, but I cannot touch the first notary's certificates.
I asked the TC if they wanted me to send the docs back to the first notary after I completed my part and also offered to scan/email the problem docs to the TC so they could see for themselves, but they asked me just to meet with my signer tomorrow and ship the package back to them so they could deal with any corrections needed. At least this loan has a three day rescission period, so some corrections can be made during this time.
The South Florida notary who did such a sloppy job has listings on the major notary sites. One of her listings says
“1000 loans signed; I'm familiar with refinances, 1sts & 2nds,as well as reverse mortgages.
Thank you Choosing me to represent your company for notarizations & mobile closings in Palm Beach County, Martin & St. Lucie Counties.
I'm familiar with all loan closing procedures & am familiar with all notarization procedures. I pride myself in my appearance, manners & punctuality. I strive for perfection in all aspects of my life & will represent your company with pride & excellence. Sincerely, 'Sloppy Notary'”
There are thousands of notaries in Florida, many of them working part time or full time as self-employed mobile notaries. When I see the poor work product that some of these notaries put out there, I wonder how long they will remain in business. I shouldn't have to QC another notary's work, but I cannot overlook obvious errors when acting as the second notary in a split signing.
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