Posted by Lee_CA on 5/18/05 8:08pm
Msg #38864

My seal bled through DOT!

I can't believe it. I got a call today from an Escrow company who just tried to file the Deed of Trust on a signing I did early last week. Los Angeles Recorder's office rejected my seal on the DOT because my stamp bled through and they couldn't read my commission end date. I've never had this issue come up before, however, by the time I got the message it was way too late to FedEx.

What this company wants is an all-purpose. Should I date it back to the date we did original signing or should I date it for today? I'm filling out the Optional entries below my seal just to make sure it is used for the DOT only.

I told this company that I would incur the charges to return the all-purpose via FedEx priority overnight and that I'd knock $25 off the invoice to make it as right as I could for the mess-up. This really upsets me though because I can't believe this happened... I'm so careful with my work, I'm almost annoyingly tedious about it. But you'd think this Escrow company would've looked at all of these things before they tried to record, right?

I knew this company was going to be a problem when I realized they only have one phone number, no voicemail, no fax and no e-mail!!

Oh sorry for sounding like such an unprofessional junior, but I'm pregnant and I'm hot!

Reply by CAtitlegal on 5/18/05 8:18pm
Msg #38871

Lee, any good title officer reviewing their documents for recording would have affixed a statement (from them, not you) stating your name, commission date, notary expiration date, etc. (IF IT WAS READABLE, IN IT'S ORIGINAL FORM) and that they were affixing that statement due to your stamp bleeding issue. The LA County Recorders office is concerned that once the document is filmed, that it is not reproduceable, or readable on film. There's probably no problem with what you did, or the service you performed as a notary - the issue is "recordability" (better "readability") of the stamp. If I were you (and I'm speaking for myself) I would simply fill out an acknowledgement (for the date you signed the borrowers, as is right) and send it to escrow, pronto.

Reply by BrendaTX on 5/18/05 8:25pm
Msg #38874

CAtitlegal...

I looked at your website...well...see, I cannot figure out what that is in the middle picture (from top to bottom).

It kind of scared me. Please tell me what it is.

Reply by CAtitlegal on 5/18/05 8:32pm
Msg #38881

Re: CAtitlegal...

Hi Brenda - well I went back and looked and I think it's a computer mouse that has that 'Darth Vader' look to it! Pretty cool, huh? Truthfully, I have a site on yahoo small business and for what they offer for web site hosting, it was the closest thing I could find for professionalism. When I get really up and running, I promise more interesting graphics

Reply by BrendaTX on 5/18/05 8:34pm
Msg #38884

Thank you...I think I will sleep better...(:>) n/m

Reply by Becca/FL on 5/18/05 8:55pm
Msg #38894

What it really is

It's a speaker phone.

The type of speaker phone made to sit on a large conference table so that all the upper management stiffs could hear the BIG CHEESE.

Reply by CAtitlegal on 5/18/05 9:01pm
Msg #38899

Re: What it really is

Good grief. So not me.

Reply by Anon on 5/18/05 8:49pm
Msg #38891

Re: CAtitlegal...

It looks like a meeting room conference / communication gadget thingie...

Reply by CAtitlegal on 5/18/05 8:51pm
Msg #38892

Re: CAtitlegal...

Whelp...(as my kid would say)...when you buy Yahoo...you get Yahoo Not bad for $4.98, hm?

Reply by Claudia_NJ on 5/19/05 7:51am
Msg #38956

Re: CAtitlegal...Dont't be scared

Hey Brenda,

Don't be sacred.... It's just a Speakerphone that is intended for use in a conference room (has really good sound p/u and is clear so that if there's a big group the sound will still be clear.... bla bla bla - you get the point)

Reply by Lee_CA on 5/18/05 8:31pm
Msg #38879

Thank you! Oh you made me feel so much better.

The stamp was readable. The issue was that my commision expiration date is 2008 and LA Recorder's couldn't tell whether it was 2008 or 2006.

I thought title should have caught something like that, and maybe I shouldn't have offered to pay for sending the doc back to them via FedEx. Oh well, live and learn.


Thanks again. =)

Reply by CAtitlegal on 5/18/05 8:32pm
Msg #38882

You're quite welcome.

Reply by Susan Axelrod on 5/18/05 8:41pm
Msg #38886

A true professional!

Reply by CaliNotary on 5/18/05 8:20pm
Msg #38872

Did you have them fax a copy of the seal to you to ensure that what they're telling you is the truth? I wouldn't be sending out an all purpose acknowledgement without seeing it with my own two eyes first.

You would date the acknowledgement the date of the signing. Unless the borrower appeared before you today, dating it with today's date would be a lie because they didn't appear in front of you.

Reply by CAtitlegal on 5/18/05 8:26pm
Msg #38875

An escrow officer would never have made the call in the first place, unless the Recorders Office hadn't "pulled" the document. This is a common occurance in title and escrow when a recording is pulled. I doubt, very seriously, if any escrow officer worth his or her salt would make such a call to the Notary, unless the document couldn't record, and escrow couldn't close. Trust me, this is absolute panic mode for escrow, when they can't close due to a Notary problem. This is why it's best to smile, send the acknowledgment (dated properly) at your expense, to escrow, pronto.

Reply by Sylvia_FL on 5/18/05 8:33pm
Msg #38883

Re: My seal bled through DOT! - CAtitlegal

It is never prudent for a notary just to send a loose acknowledgment. (Some state laws do forbid it!)

You should always get the document back and attach the loose acknowledgment yourself.
If this was in Florida the notary would have to go back out again and get the signers to acknowldege again that they signed it of their own free will, and then attach a new certificate to it.

I realize you are speaking from a title company's point of view. But we have to do things correctly as notaries, regardless of what the title company's would like us to do.

Reply by CAtitlegal on 5/18/05 8:35pm
Msg #38885

Re: My seal bled through DOT! - CAtitlegal

Of course! I would never suggest anyone do anything they are not totally comfortable with, or that was outside of their state's commissioned notary practice. What I wanted to convey was that the call from escrow indicated the documents could not be recorded, and a way to solve her problem, without breaking laws, or comfort zones.

Reply by Becca/FL on 5/18/05 8:58pm
Msg #38897

My thoughts exactly......n/m

Reply by ERNA_CA on 5/19/05 12:20am
Msg #38932

Re: Bleeding stamps,one more thing to worry about :)

Add band aid to notary tools.......couldnt help my self.sorry Just in a goofy mood.