Posted by sandi42 on 5/5/07 9:33am
Msg #188970

Companies lowering their fees

In the last two days I had two title companies ask me to lower my fees to $65.00 for one company and the other company to $85.00 dollars. These are big title companies. Believe it or not people in my area are taking these closings for that price.

Reply by Linda_H/FL on 5/5/07 9:39am
Msg #188971

This when gas has gone over $3.00/gal and the price of paper is going up too...go figure..

Reply by trnsa_IL on 5/5/07 10:58am
Msg #188978

My father, a 40 year employee/union member, just received a PAY CUT after a recent study was released stating that the cost of living has gone down. Of course the study did not include the cost of heating and cooling or fuel, how convennnnnnient!

Everywhere I turn the cost of living is going up: gasoline, natural gas, food, and we just got word that electricity will go up as well. Then, I received the new tuition costs for school next year, and they are higher.

I know that there are people in my area who are working for lower fees because when they call me to work for free, I quote my fee, and I get the usual response "I will have to get that approved." Of course they move on and find someone else who will do it. I figure when those signing agents go out of business then maybe I'll get those jobs too.

I recently had a gal contact me to sign up with her title company. Then she got upset with me because I marked through the line that read if the borrower did not sign at the table, rescinded during the 3 day period, or the loan did not fund I would receive $25.00. This statement was attached to every possible scenario; local signings through signings 50 miles one way! I lined through and initialed it. As soon as she got the fax she called me back asking why I did that. I explained that I cannot spend the time (30 mins.) and money to print the documents and drive 100 miles round trip (2 hours) and spend time with the borrower (1 hour) only to recieve $25.00 for 3 1/2 hours of work. I told her I thought that half of the agreed upon fee was fair if they didn't sign at the table, and full fee was expected if they rescinded or it didn't fund because I had completed the job. Well, she took me off their list! No skin off me nose...I WON'T work for free!

Tonya

Reply by trnsa_IL on 5/5/07 11:01am
Msg #188979

OOPS! should be "no skin off my nose" n/m

Reply by Calnotary on 5/5/07 11:51am
Msg #188992

Tonya you should have asked her if

the loan doesnt fund does she still gets paid. I assumed she is an hourly paid employee.

Reply by trnsa_IL on 5/5/07 11:54am
Msg #188993

Re: Tonya you should have asked her if

That's is too funny - I told my husband the same thing! I wasn't quick enough but I will be from now on!

Reply by MelissaCT on 5/7/07 9:55am
Msg #189177

Grocery bill is $100 average higher & I'm buying the same

items. Milk is scheduled to hit $4.00/gal this year. Gas is now over $3/gal. We're supposed to take less so TC can still make their margin??? I don't think so.

Even if my markup stays the same, my margin is down due to rising costs. They need to tighten belts but not on us.

Reply by jba/fl on 5/5/07 9:55pm
Msg #189031

Gas is projected to be $4 per gal. by Memorial Day - shocking, esp. when someone wants to schedule appt. and you ask for increase due to cost of gas, etc. Then they act like you are blowing them out of the water. I sometimes ask how long they have been at their job, did they get a raise, and would they take a cut to continue to work there. I know, it is to no avail, but I get so disgusted with the constant low-balling and other games they try to play.
Again, hold on, find another parttime $$ source, and pray that they will realize you get what you pay for.

Reply by Vince/KS on 5/5/07 11:35am
Msg #188985

Companies lowering their fees - illegal aliens needed

Around here the fast food chains are staffing with a large number of part time employees that are illegals. The roofing contractors are largely staffed with illegals and the construction industry has been taken over by them. In the rural areas, the slaughterhouses, motels, hotels and so forth have them. Banks cannot afford to pay benefits for too many employees so they hire 20 to 40% part time workers as have other firms. Many notaries are part time workers as well - not earning enough to have an average working paycheck (never mind the benefits). So, perhaps what the banks/title companies need is to lobby for a special work permit that would allow anyone not proven to be a felon to become notaries that can work for these "special" rates. Heck, the government may even help out by paying for the certification program and a background check... ;>}

Reply by BrendaTx on 5/5/07 11:47am
Msg #188989

Just remember when they tell you they have to get that approved it doesn't necessarily mean that they are getting a notary for a lesser price.

I think this is more like it. They call you (Notary A) and you give a price of $110, then, they say they need to get that approved, call around and get a higher quote from Notary B for $125. They tell Notary B they need to get that approved, they call another notary and then from Notary C they get $130 and they realize they are not going to get a better price than $125-$130 so they say, I'll take it!

I would think that they will not go back to Notary A for less because what they do not want Notary A or Notary B to know is that they are offering a fair and very competitive price. They may lose $10-$25 on this one but the next time they have a job they won't call Notary C, they will call Notary A and if they have done their job right Notary A will feel as if her price is too high for them and cut them a deal for $90. So will Notary B. Then they are able to lock in a notary for $90 and have Notary C (who is higher, but good) for a back up.

Notary C simply moves down to the "high/last resort/but good notary" list.

If they have a couple of days they might call Notary A the next day to give you the signing and act as if it is another signing. Notary A might be really ripe for the plucking about right then.

Hold to your reasonable fees and don't give up.

I think the only time Notary A gets that fee approved is when there is no one else period to give the job to.

Reply by Charles_Ca on 5/5/07 1:35pm
Msg #189008

Ok, Brenda where did you get it????

Seems to me someone must have slipped you a clandestine copy of some SS's policies and procedures manual

Reply by BrendaTx on 5/5/07 1:37pm
Msg #189010

Re: Ok, Brenda where did you get it????

I lived it, man. I lived it.

Reply by Lee/AR on 5/5/07 9:47pm
Msg #189029

Re: Ok, Brenda where did you get it????

I'll second your concept for the same reason. It's exactly what they do.

Reply by Kevin/Ct on 5/5/07 11:50am
Msg #188991

They are trying the same nonsense that they pulled on the abstractors. The abstractors foolishly agreed. I hope the signing agents have more good sense

Reply by SD/CA on 5/5/07 1:17pm
Msg #189003

Whenever there is a declined signing it is because the LO or others did not inform the BO about the loan, i. e., interest rate, adjustable rate mortgage or other terms. These are problems that we have no control over and the LO or others who are responible should be responsible to pay our fees. There is no reason for us to take "no pay" or "reduced pay".

Reply by Charles_Ca on 5/5/07 1:37pm
Msg #189009

I don't know Kevin, judging from some of the stuff I read

here, good sense is not a prerequisite for being a signing agent. There are plenty who post here who demonstrate a general lack of good sense.

Reply by JanetK_CA on 5/5/07 7:48pm
Msg #189013

How interesting to read this thread right after coming from an assignment for someone who works with the co that does the NNA magazine. Naturally, it came up in conversation because I'm a notary, but the comment was made that their subscription volume seems to be significantly increasing! (grrrrrrrr) This person also mentioned that the NNA has some new intiative they're promoting with some kind of special cover on the upcoming (or last?) issue. (Or perhaps it's just a follow up from after the convention?? Anyone still getting their mag. care to enlighten us on what their latest promotional concept is?)

What does this have to do with anything? As long as there is a constant flow of new SAs, some hiring entities will be able to continue to pay very low fees and still find someone to work for that money. While the NNA success seems to be on the increase, I feel the overall professional standards of our profession are declining. We are all not only seeing companies reducing their fees, but also increasing the detail of the instructions to the notary, more and more fax-backs, checking up phone calls and whatever kind of hand-holding they can come up with. Also, I'm sure we've all noticed the increase in threats to dock our fees for any and every possible infraction and requests for higher and higher levels of E&O insurance. I don't recall ever seeing these things just a couple of years back.

Hopefully this will (if it hasn't already) turn into a segmentation of the market into those who are interested in price only and those who want quality and understand that you get what you pay for. There ARE still those who care about professionalism and getting the job done right. I just hope this trend doesn't drag things down to where more states go to attorney-only signings. (No offense, Kevin... ;>)