Posted by Jessc098 on 8/26/09 7:14pm
Msg #301818
What do you do when E-Docs are late?
I've had some really bad luck lately getting docs on time--even in time for the signing. I'm curious what others do once the SS/Title Company have missed the appointment that they set?
I had a signing at 4:00PM today which was scheduled at 1:00. I thought *that* was pushing it. I was clear that it can't run late, I have a signing at 7:00.
It is 5:15 now, and there is not even an ETA on the documents for the 4:00 signing.
I turned down three assignments to meet this SS's needs, and they sure aren't doing anything ot help me out.
What do you do when your SS or Title company provides docs hours after the promised time. Do you accomodate or tell them to find somebody else? My response in the past has been mixed, and I'm deciding if I want to implement a hard-and-fast rule fr these things.
Thanks,
Jessica
| Reply by jonpa on 8/26/09 7:25pm
Msg #301824
The first thing I do is gripe up a storm. Once I realize that that isn't helping, I call the SS and ask where the docs are. If they cannot give me a straight answer, I politely explain to them that I had turned down a signing to make sure that I was available to do this work. (Once I was offered another 10 bucks.) I try putting the ball in their court asking them what they would do when you got borrowers , NSA waiting to do a signing but have nothing to sign. I normally get the docs ASAP but not always.
| Reply by MrsKay on 8/26/09 7:25pm
Msg #301825
I do charge an expediting fee after they missed their period of time. $ 50.00 charge will be automatically added to their bill.
| Reply by CaliNotary on 8/26/09 7:29pm
Msg #301827
"$ 50.00 charge will be automatically added to their bill."
And how often do you actually get that $50? How many clients have you lost because of it?
If I can accommodate them I will. If I can't, I can't and I give back the signing. It's a way too common occurrence to get stressed out over. Yeah, sometimes we've turned down other signings because of it and we get screwed. That's just a part of this job, can't win em all.
| Reply by Jessc098 on 8/26/09 7:29pm
Msg #301828
Great tip Mrs. Kay, how do you notify them of this? Do you tell them when they first agree to give you the signing?
I'm thinking of creating a "counter-confirmation" that says things like
1. I don't pay for your return shipping--you do.
2. I clear my schedule for this signing. If you fail to produce docs, you will pay for the time I wait for them...
You get the idea...
I've actually had a few companies "forget" to send the return shipping label and then "forget" to reimburse for shipping. It usually takes a good bit of cage rattling but so far I haven't had anyone outright stiff me on the shipping.
I'm not a shrew to work with really, but some of these SS's are really abusive with time.
The docs I'm waiting on right now I've been waiting on for five and a half hours, and NOT ONCE has the SS called me with a status update.
The borrower and his banker have been calling me asking me what the problem is, and I keep calling the SS--they say "we'll check on it and call you right back." You guessed it, for my twelve calls to them, not ONE has been returned.
This is downright abusive, and I wouldn't be so mad, but it isn't isolated--too many companies are treating their notaries like this.
| Reply by John Schenk on 8/26/09 7:36pm
Msg #301833
No shipping label or no account # they get NO docs!
I'm not using MY account to ship anybody's docs. A lot of them don't provide a shipping label, which is fine, but they need to provide the address to ship to and an account number. You could be stiffed on any closing at any time and then you'd also be out the cost of shipping the docs. I wouldn't do that, EVER.
JJ
| Reply by CaliNotary on 8/26/09 7:46pm
Msg #301840
"I've actually had a few companies "forget" to send the return shipping label and then "forget" to reimburse for shipping"
Why on earth would you pay for shipping out of your own pocket? I've been doing this for over 6 years and I've never done that a single time. If there's no return label and I wasn't given a Fed Ex or UPS account number, I call and get the account number, simple as that.
All your counter-confirmation is going to do is identify you as a PITA and cause companies to find a different signing agent for future signings. Whatever money you think you're losing now will pale in comparison to what you'll lose when you start sending that out.
And nobody is forcing you to sit and wait and be ignored. If you find it abusive, it's because you're allowing them to abuse you. You should have used one of those 12 phone calls to give back the signing and been done with it once and for all.
It's all quite simple, decide what your rules are going to be, then enforce them when necessary. That's one of the perks of owning your own business, you get to decide what you will and will not put up with. You just have to look at the bigger picture as well, so you understand what the possible outcomes will be when you do enforce the rules, then decide if it's worth it or not.
| Reply by CaliNotary on 8/26/09 7:52pm
Msg #301842
And one more thing
If you're giving back a signing and are concerned about them getting upset with you for doing it, lie. Tell them that the rest of your day is booked with signings, even if you're going to actually spend it picking lint out of your belly button. That, they'll understand, giving a sermon about how valuable your time is isn't going to do anything to change the industry, it's only going to start getting you blackballed in the industry.
| Reply by John Schenk on 8/26/09 7:55pm
Msg #301844
LOL Picking lint out of your belly button?
You have lots of lint in that belly button, do ya? LOL J/K That made me laugh.
JJ
| Reply by John Schenk on 8/26/09 7:30pm
Msg #301829
You get ticked off like everybody else does when docs come in late. First of all, it's EOM, which is the most likely time the docs are going to run late. I just roll with the flow, and gritch about it under my breath, or make a post gritchin about it like you did. I still try to fit it in, if they get me the docs in time to do it. If they don't, I go to the one I've got the docs in and printed and let them know that I'll be glad to catch theirs when I'm done with the next one in line, whenever the next opening is. I just finished 2 closings and don't really have that problem at the moment or I wouldn't be sittin here answering you. LOL Some folks turn back the closing. I simply inform them that the docs are late and I'll have to go to my next scheduled closing, however, I will get theirs closed, provided I get the docs and the borrowers are willing to close it no matter how late they come out. I also always let the borrower(s) know that I have no docs and have another closing scheduled and that as soon as I finish that one I'll be there as quickly as I can as I'll have to print their docs after my next closing is done. Usually they're willing to work with you, if you make it known to them that you're doing everything you can to get their loan closed for them. They're a little grumpy sometimes at the table, but they realize you're doing all you can do to get it done for them..and they usually appreciate that fact. After you get that next closing out of the way and still have no docs you have to decide then when its' time to blow it off and say to heck with it, we're done for today. That's a personal decision each of us make.
JJ
| Reply by aatatusko on 8/26/09 7:34pm
Msg #301832
i miss Becca n/m
| Reply by BrendaTx on 8/26/09 7:54pm
Msg #301843
Re: i miss Becca I do too, double a-tatusko. n/m
| Reply by CaliNotary on 8/26/09 7:55pm
Msg #301845
Shut up, you're both MoMo jackbags. n/m
| Reply by BrendaTx on 8/26/09 8:03pm
Msg #301847
Thanks. I think I needed that. :) n/m
| Reply by John Schenk on 8/26/09 10:19pm
Msg #301873
What is a MoMo jackbag? n/m
| Reply by jba/fl on 8/27/09 2:30am
Msg #301890
use the orange search button n/m
| Reply by Jessc098 on 8/26/09 8:17pm
Msg #301848
Thanks guys for the feedback/ideas on late docs.
Just wondering if there was an industry "standard" that I was missing somewhere on how to respond. I want to accomodate and be flexible, but too much "accomodating" we all know, cuts into our ability to be profitable business operators.
Tough to find the balance between nice business to work with vs. profitable small business.
Thanks again for the ideas--Also, John, I think you asked about the docs & return labels. I have a few times sent back docs at my own expense because I wanted to send them and hadn't gotten the call back from the SS with their return info. Sadly, I don't have pickup service for deliveries, so I drop them all off at a shop. (Condo association rules--can you believe it?).
This allows me to consolidate my trips to one a day to drop documents off. As I mentioned, I've always gotten paid, but sometimes I needed to remind that the shipping portion of the fee is also due.
I don't do it if it's a 2nd time for a company, but I figure we all make mistakes, and I can cover it once, and I've never had a complaint from an SS for doing that.
Thanks again all!
Jessica
PS: I don't know Becca, so i'm assuming I missed something and the Joke's on Me? :-)
| Reply by MW/VA on 8/26/09 8:38pm
Msg #301851
Only missed that Becca would have ripped you up one side & down the other for paying for shipping charges. You really missed out on a lot of "verbage", to put it mildly!
| Reply by John Schenk on 8/26/09 9:27pm
Msg #301866
LOL For sure! Jess still feels human,
although shipping docs back to anybody using your OWN shipping account number, and then billing them for it, is insane.
If they don't provide you with a label, or an acct. #, you just wait until the next day to ship it. There's a 3 day RTC unless it's a HELOC or an investment property, so it's really no big deal if they don't give you a label or acct. # for shipping until the next day. Hey, a call to them and an email should be enough. They want the docs, they'll call you back, I guarantee you.
JJ
| Reply by jba/fl on 8/27/09 3:26am
Msg #301894
Re: LOL For sure! Jess still feels human,
"There's a 3 day RTC unless it's a HELOC "
HELOC's can have RTC period - your own state laws will define more clearly what is or is not required. Texas has different laws from many other states.
| Reply by JanetK_CA on 8/27/09 3:05am
Msg #301893
I would reiterate what the others said about never - let me clarify - NEVER, EVER use your own account to return documents. If it happens to me with a company that I've been doing business with for a very long time, I'll find a way to get their account number (probably from a copy of a previous airbill I've used). Anyone else, if they want to get the docs back, they'll make sure to take care of it.
I don't mean to sound cavalier about this. I will go to great lengths to try to contact someone and/or find the correct information and so far, I've never had to hold up documents for lack of shipping info. (I HAVE had to do a bit of chasing for the info, though.) But it seems the only times this becomes an issue is with new clients. I simply tell them that it's my policy to not pre-pay shipping. Like someone else said, I have enough invested in time and supplies already. I'm not about to fund them further by fronting the shipping costs.
I'm sure the ss would have no complaint about you putting up money for something you shouldn't! One less problem for them to deal with. But I think you should reconsider even doing it once for a company. This is a potentially dangerous precedent that I would think we'd all want to be careful to avoid. The last thing we need is for this to become the next angle that tc's and ss use to help manage their cash flow and have us help them finance their businesses. No excuse for it, imo.
BTW, Becca has a reputation for telling it - sometimes harshly - like it is. I'm doing my best to try to make up for her absence, but I know there's no way I could even come close to doing justice to her style...  FWIW...
| Reply by MW/VA on 8/26/09 8:41pm
Msg #301854
This has been discussed before. If you use the orange search button you should find it.
Most say that if docs run that late, that particular appt. gets pushed to the end of the line.
It's not a good move to turn down other signings while letting one hold you hostage. Yes, we have to be flexible and docs do run late at EOM, but you have to set a limit somewhere.
| Reply by HKT_TX on 8/26/09 8:51pm
Msg #301858
But what do you do if it is the only one you have scheduled after work, an hour away, and you turned one down in the other direction? Guess, like someone said, part of the job!
| Reply by MW/VA on 8/26/09 8:57pm
Msg #301862
Incidentally, Katy, you might want to complete your profile. That profile is your "billboard"--this is an advertising site & many companies use it.
| Reply by John Schenk on 8/26/09 9:20pm
Msg #301864
And Jessc may want to take....
loan mods out of her profile. A little due diligence will tell her that she may not want to be involved with those, if she wants to keep her commission and avoid potential criminal charges. JMO of course.
JJ
| Reply by MW/VA on 8/26/09 10:07pm
Msg #301869
Re: And Jessc may want to take....
There is no problem with loan modifications, JJ. It is the loan mod apps that are at issue.
| Reply by John Schenk on 8/26/09 10:13pm
Msg #301871
MY BAD! Thanks for pointing that out! I agree! NO Apps! n/m
| Reply by Jessc098 on 8/26/09 11:59pm
Msg #301879
Re: And Jessc may want to take....
I only do mods for lenders. No third parties, brokers, or "21st century's" (I did that briefly in the beginning of this mod craziness, and learned my lesson!) I've closed plenty of perfectly legit mods through the actual lenders. They're pretty much a refi with a forgiveness of some principal, usually--sometimes they're something quirkier with a lower interest rate, or a temporarily reduced rate, etc. They're totally OK, but thanks for the concern, I haven't taken a look at my profile since the beginning of the year, so it's likely due for some tightening up! 
A good reminder!
| Reply by LKT/CA on 8/27/09 12:28am
Msg #301884
<<<What do you do when your SS or Title company provides docs hours after the promised time. Do you accomodate or tell them to find somebody else? My response in the past has been mixed, and I'm deciding if I want to implement a hard-and-fast rule fr these things.>>>
I will accommodate them if I have nothing better to do. If I have other appts, I would call them and say, "Since the appt time has come and gone and docs STILL are not in my inbox, I have another appt at XX:XX and I'm available AFTER this appt. I will be available for your signing later this evening at XX:XX or tomorrow at XX:XX time OR would you like to re-assign this signing to another notary?
Put the ball back in their court....prepare for the 7pm signing (provided you have something to prepare for, like the docs in hand). If you would not be available after the 7pm appt then just give the job back - rather than sitting around frustrated.
| Reply by jba/fl on 8/27/09 4:17am
Msg #301895
Play games, clean house, file, clear my desk, watch movies, walk the dogs, visit a friend, research something, write letters; in short, continue with my life.
Once you 9TC, SS) are late with your docs to me I do what I need or want to do until you call me to say they are now ready. Then I get with BO to let them know ETA and whether still ok. No printing of anything until BO says new time ok for them. I remain cool, calm, collected so that the BO will stay as stress-free as possible and feels they are 'in the loop'. Unfortunately, sometimes I am the BO's only contact at that point and I prefer they grouse at me over the phone so that by the time I get there they are just wanting to sign and not be fussy. I think it helps to establish trust in me as I am doing exactly what I said I would do.
But, I don't have a day job so I can accomodate BOs until midnight, whatever it takes to get it signed on the right day, and not worry about getting up in the morning to be alert for a boss and his/her business.
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