Posted by HereinSOCA on 1/29/06 1:36pm
Msg #92214
Suggestion: New Signing Agent Training
Wouldn't it be better, to have a semester of (or a series of workshops) training at a community college or other facility, for new signing agents (such as myself), instead of only a one day workshop? And that each state had a mandated test, so that signing agents would be better educated?
For example, 40 hours or required training, before a certificate could be issued!
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Reply by Leon_CO on 1/29/06 6:00pm
Msg #92224
Yes, it would be better.
"Wouldn't it be better, to have a semester of (or a series of workshops) training at a community college or other facility, for new signing agents (such as myself), instead of only a one day workshop? And that each state had a mandated test, so that signing agents would be better educated?
For example, 40 hours or required training, before a certificate could be issued!"
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HereinSOCA, don't be disheartened by the laughter in the previous response. I think it's an excellent suggestion. But I doubt if we will ever see anything like that put into force.
The signing agent profession is lowly regulated. And it will probably stay that way. As it is right now, there are states in which you don't have to take any kind of exam at all in order to be commissioned a Notary Public. And in many of those states that do require an exam, you need a score of 70% in order to pass. In other words, you can fail 30% of it. If the Notary wants to perform loan signings they then take a one-day seminar, or buy a book, for which no exam at all is required. As a result, you have some people performing loan signings who aren't properly trained to be signing agents, and who are equally less qualified to be Notaries Public.
Granted, there are some who do take an exam to become "certified" signing agents. But what does that mean -- "certified"? There are so many different certification exams. And they all have different standards. Is someone who is certified by the NNA equally knowledgeable as someone who is certified by APN, or JPS? Just about anyone, clever enough to put together a course of instruction, can provide you with "certification". It's a bit like the paralegal profession where you have people saying they are "Certified" Paralegals. They have a certificate, suitable for framing, but they are not certified by the NALA, or NALS, or whatever. And of course, you have many signing agents who have no certification at all, who are better qualified to do the job than those who are "certified", the frustration of which tends to make them a bit certifiable.
In other professions, such as law and medicine, there are stringent requirements which must be met before one can obtain a license to practice. Not so with being a signing agent. Any commissioned Notary Public (who failed 30% of the exam) can call themselves a signing agent and notarize loan documents.
So getting back to your suggestion, I agree with you, and believe people would retain the loan signing knowledge much better if it were spread out over a period of days, or even weeks, rather than in a one-day seminar, or if it were read from a book in a few hours. And there would be exams administered after each block of training, which would have to be passed, before the trainee could move on to the next block. (The NALA Certified Paralegal exam, for example, requires a passing score of 90% for each section.) And at the conclusion of training, each and every potential signing agent would have to take a standardized test, similar to a bar exam, before they could be issued a license to be a signing agent. And they would have to take a certain number of hours of continuing education courses each year to stay licensed. That way, any signing service who wanted to know if the Notary was qualified would simply ask to see a copy of their license. It's no guarantee, of course. You have malpractice in all professions. But it would give them a bit more assurance that the Notary was qualified to perform any type of loan signing, regardless of the type of documents that were involved, or whatever system was used to transmit the documents to them. Better service for loan companies across the board, and fewer wisecracks about incompetent SAs on this board.
But as I stated earlier, I doubt if we will ever see anything like this put into force. And I admit to have engaged in a bit of cognitive reverie for a while. You have a good suggestion though. I believe you will be a good signing agent. Good luck.
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Reply by Dennis D Broadbooks on 1/29/06 6:24pm
Msg #92225
"Cognitive Reverie"?
I have to admit I had to do a slight bit of research in order to be certain of my perceived understanding of your use of this phrase. I knew the meaning of "cognitive", but I wasn't certain of "reverie". For those who may not know & haven't taken the time to look it up, here's a good definition:
"Cognitive reverie is when you are just sitting, thinking, and then typically you have a profound, inspirational, and pleasant insight. In fact, “cognitive” means thinking and “reverie” is a joyful daydream. So “cognitive reverie” would be a profound and delightful insight."
Keep up the linguistic contributions you're making to the board, Leon. You're raising the bar!
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