Posted by Amber Hager on 5/8/10 6:15pm Msg #335572
Arizona Notary
Hello i have noticed that my signings have decreased lately. I am looking for more business like the rest of us. Can anyone inform me of any closers or signing co. that do work in the state of Arizona. Thank You, Amber Hager
Reply by Shoshana/AZ on 5/8/10 6:30pm Msg #335573
Why should I send all my business to you? You can find business like the rest of us! Do your marketing. You can start with the companies listed in SC.
Reply by Amber Hager on 5/10/10 3:41pm Msg #335724
Theres no need to be nasty. i have been marketing as this is one tool i was usig as well. Your rude ill be sure to make note of your name. With your attitude im sure you get alot of business. these no need to be so bitter. i was just asking from one notary to another. Thanks for your plesant info. Best regards, Amber
Reply by Glenn Strickler on 5/8/10 6:31pm Msg #335574
Amber, things are slow all over. You might check signing central. A company that hires you most probably will be from out of state.
If you read message #33325, there are some marketing ideas there. Don't overlook general notary work.
Reply by Amber Hager on 5/10/10 3:43pm Msg #335725
Thank you the info was much appreciated. I have signed up on most of the signing central databases . I thought someone might know something i didnt. Thanks again. Best wishes...
Reply by Shoshana/AZ on 5/8/10 7:04pm Msg #335576
If you really want to know where your signings are going....
ask the Phoenix area notary who has 7 years experience and is charging $75 for E-docs.
Reply by Glenn Strickler on 5/8/10 7:27pm Msg #335577
Just a thought
I looked up your profile on a couple of sites and I noticed that you have limited your hours of availability. In the past, I have been called to Needles several times and paid big bucks for the Arizona people to come over to my side of the border for to close loans later at night because they were turned down for late signings by the AZ notaries they could reach. At 8pm, especially this time of year, people are still out on the river.
With the population base as low as it is in your neck of the woods, I would consider adjusting your hours. Also add your surrounding areas to your profile. You are having title companies and signing services from out of state look at listings who don't have a clue where Ft. Mojave is, but can find Bullhead on a map. I don't know about Az law, but it doesn't matter in CA where the property is, where the borrowers live, it only matters that I notarize in a venue that is legal for me and follow the law. When I get called and paid big bucks to travel to Needles to close an Arizona loan, there is a problem on your side of the river.
Reply by Doris_CO on 5/8/10 9:28pm Msg #335583
Re: Also, Refi applications are down
I'm catching up on some of my reading and read this today in a Mortgage News Daily e-mail. Less refinance applications in April means less business in May and possibly June.
"Refi Apps Plummet While Purchase Demand Holds Steady in Highly Competitive Environment, by Adam Quinones."
"The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) today released its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending April 2, 2010.
The survey covers over 50 percent of all US residential mortgage loan applications taken by mortgage bankers, commercial banks, and thrifts. The data gives economists a look into consumer demand for mortgage loans. A rising trend of mortgage applications indicates an increase in home buying interest, a positive for the housing industry and economy as a whole.
QUICK RECAP: Refinance applications plummeted last week as mortgage rates rose. Purchase applications held steady after making significant improvements in the previous reporting period."
These reports tend to be based on national statistics, so what you're reading may not reflect the reality in your area.
Reply by Shoshana/AZ on 5/8/10 9:58pm Msg #335587
I did more biz last week than I have done in some months
They were all refis!
Reply by notaryaz on 5/9/10 6:52am Msg #335592
Re: I did more biz last week than I have done in some months
I have been so busy as well and next week very busy to. Last month as the best
Reply by notaryaz on 5/9/10 6:52am Msg #335593
Re: I did more biz last week than I have done in some months
oops last month was the best sorry typo
Reply by Grammyzoom on 5/9/10 10:50am Msg #335598
After many years in this business
there is one thing I know for sure. Never pay attention to what you read, especially the doom and gloom stuff, because it will change who you are and your belief in yourself. This business is like a roller coaster and you can never anticipate what times are going to be slow and when you are going to be busy.
In these bad ecomonic times we need to save money when we make a lot to get us through the times that are slow. I can do 30 or 40 signings one month and 10 the next. March was the worst month we ever had in 8+ years with about 10 signings and April was slammin!
Another thing happens during the rough times. The hanger on-ers (if that is a word?) will be the first to jump ship. That will leave more business for you and I. Whatever you do, do not lower your standards and start taking jobs that pay $50 $60. Let the people who don't know what they are doing take those signings. Like cream rising to the top, the people paying those fees will find out that they are getting what they pay for and it isn't cream.
Wow, that felt good! If anyone wants to argue with what I have said, go ahead, but I am not going to read it.
Reply by Lisa Marie Scherpf on 5/9/10 11:05am Msg #335600
Re: After many years in this business
I will be happy to argue with you! But alas, after many years in this business also, I couldn't agree with you, more.
Reply by Notarysigner on 5/9/10 11:12am Msg #335601
Don't read this!
HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!
Reply by Grammyzoom on 5/9/10 11:37am Msg #335604
Re: Don't read this!
James,
Thank you! Those who know me really well never tell me what I can or cannot do so of course, I read your message!
You and your family have a great weekend and tell you wife "Happy Mothers Day" to her from us.
Reply by Notarysigner on 5/9/10 11:44am Msg #335605
Re: Don't read this!
Yes thanks. She enjoying herself already. She just finished paying two guys to move some furniture upstairs and just left to take our daughter to her "zoomba" class and it's not even ten AM!
Reply by Claudine Osborne on 5/9/10 12:43pm Msg #335610
Re: Don't read this!
Ok..I have to ask..What is a zoomba class? Never heard of the term before!
Reply by Notarysigner on 5/9/10 12:53pm Msg #335612
Re: Don't read this!
My daughter said I spelled it incorrectly (not unusual). It's Zumba Dance
Reply by Sylvia_FL on 5/9/10 12:59pm Msg #335613
Re: Don't read this!
Reply by Notarysigner on 5/9/10 1:06pm Msg #335614
That's it..thanks for the demo n/m
Reply by Sylvia_FL on 5/9/10 1:21pm Msg #335616
Re: That's it..thanks for the demo
Now we want to see you do it James
Reply by Notarysigner on 5/9/10 1:25pm Msg #335617
I'm just a notary....;0 n/m
Reply by Sylvia_FL on 5/9/10 2:57pm Msg #335626
Pffffffffftttttttttttt! LOL n/m
Reply by Joan_OH on 5/9/10 3:50pm Msg #335629
Re: Don't read this!
A friend of mine does this a couple of days a week and has lost 40 lbs this year. I've been thinking about going, but have never actually seen it. The lady in the back in the green shirt? That would be me, 2 steps behind everyone! And that part where she starts shaking her butt? Well....hope there's no one too close to either side of me or there might be an injury! LOL
Thanks for posting.
Joan-OH
Reply by Linda_H/FL on 5/9/10 4:19pm Msg #335630
I already know I couldn't do it
Looks like it requires one to be able to get out of one's own way - eliminates me right from the getgo-
Those spin moves? I'd be flat on my face!!
Reply by MW/VA on 5/9/10 4:28pm Msg #335632
Re: I already know I couldn't do it
LOL, Linda. I'm with you on this. Time has a way of slowing us down, whether we want to or not. LOL
Reply by Sylvia_FL on 5/9/10 5:36pm Msg #335638
I could do it:)
But, alas, only in my dreams
Reply by MikeC/NY on 5/9/10 7:55pm Msg #335646
What I found amusing was the lady in the back row...
in the green shirt. She was basically just mailing it in... reminds me of gym classes from many years ago...
Reply by MW/VA on 5/9/10 6:57pm Msg #335640
Interesting, on "60 Minutes" tonight about homeowners
finding themselves "under-water" and walking away, including new companies in the business to help with the process. They reported that AZ has about 50% homeowners under-water. That is a dismal no. We haven't seen the last of the "mortgage meltdown" yet.
Reply by Linda_H/FL on 5/9/10 7:22pm Msg #335641
Re: Interesting, on "60 Minutes" tonight about homeowners
I heard the other day on the news that across the nation homeowners are just walking away from their homes without any financial or legal repercussions at all...
Reply by Notarysigner on 5/9/10 7:51pm Msg #335645
Re: Interesting, on "60 Minutes" tonight about homeowners
A number of attorneys here are advising some homeowners to find a house to rent similar to the ones they have, negotiate a rent far less then their present mortgage then sign as long term least. The reason being the rental market is also suffering. Credit ratings take upwards of five to ten years to repair so take advantage while you can. Unbelievable although I do know two families who were struggling opted to do just that.
Reply by MikeC/NY on 5/9/10 8:39pm Msg #335650
Re: Interesting, on "60 Minutes" tonight about homeowners
Being "under water" is not necessarily a bad thing *IF* the homeowner is able to continue making the mortgage payments. They still own the property, and it may take a few years for the value to rise to the point where they can sell at a profit, but if they can handle it financially and have no reason to relocate, what's the problem?
Clearly, not everyone is in that situation - job loss, other financial setback, an ARM that reset to a ridiculous percentage rate, etc. The real problem is that people are starting to walk away from these properties because either they don't know what else to do, or they're impatient because they've made an investment, it's tanking, and they want to bail out before they lose any more money.
There are options many are not aware of: loan modification (legitimate ones), forbearance agreements, short sales, deed in lieu of foreclosure... Part of the problem is that the homeowners who are in trouble don't know the options and are afraid to talk to their lenders...
Here's something interesting - a foreclosure will devastate your FICO score - but you can qualify to buy another home 4 years later. A short sale will cause a hit to your FICO score of anywhere from 50-150 points or more (depending on how you are with your other debts), but you can qualify to buy another home 2 years later.
IMO, these people need counseling on what their options are - walking away should be the absolute last resort. As emotionally devastating as it may be, losing your house is not the end of the world - there are ways to extricate yourself from a bad situation, regroup financially, and be able to start all over again...
Reply by MW/VA on 5/9/10 9:23pm Msg #335653
Yes, Mike, you would think that's the way it is. The piece
on 60 Minutes described a very different scenario. These are people who can afford the payments, so they don't qualify for loan mods. Instead, they are facing values that have dropped 50% & more, and have decided the best financial move is to walk away. I've actually heard some financial advisers on morning tv offering the same advice. During the 60 Minutes piece, they talked about the Great Depression, and how the stigma was the worst thing that could happen was for people to lose their homes--moral issues of shame, etc. Some of the financial people are saying they don't feel it's the same thing. They rationalized people who got caught up in something that wasn't their fault, therefore there should be no moral issue to walking away--it's purely a financial decision. The whole concept is mind-boggling. IMO it would about topple the real estate market in many areas. Again, this was good reporting on the part of 60 Minutes. They were presenting the facts of what is going on out there. It certainly goes against everything I have ever been taught about financial responsibility.
Reply by GOLDGIRL/CA on 5/9/10 9:52pm Msg #335654
Financial responsibility....
is a two-way street. No doubt, many of these people should never have signed for these loans, but it's Wall Street, greedy investors, unscrupulous hedge funds, and all these bogus securities that brought this recession on us and the rest of the world. They are responsible for the crash in home values, huge unemployment, the need for tax-payer bail-outs, etc. The fact is, it is common practice for businesses to walk away from their "financial responsibilities" when they get in over their head. Didn't "60 Minutes" point to this huge walkaway from the biggest apartment project ever in New York? Earlier this year, Citi walked away from some schmoozy office building it had bought for itself - all the while excoriating homeowners for walking away from their Citi mortgages. What hypocrites. Owning your own home has always been the "American Dream" and then having to leave it is heart wrenching , adding to the complexity of the situation. But I think many homeowners are now starting to look at their home loan as a business transaction instead of this big moral/ethical/10 Commandments dilemma that lenders have been using to get them to feel guilty about nonpayment. They are looking at it for what it is - a business deal. That's what it is for a lender. And when lenders overlooked basic qualifications and were throwing loans at anybody with a pulse, what did they expect? Well, they expected home values to keep soaring. They took huge risks and now they want to blame everybody else?
Reply by MW/VA on 5/10/10 7:40am Msg #335663
Re: Financial responsibility....
That's the jist of all this. The banks & investors walk away. This wasn't really about bad loans--it was about being "under-water" or "upside-down". It was about the homeowners that bought homes and hold mortgages on properties that are now worth less than half of what they owe, and there would be no way to ever catch up, or maybe not reasonable to try. What was brought out in the reporting that this has never happened before, is extreme, and people shouldn't feel personally responsible for being in that situation. Good reporting from 60 Minutes.
Reply by jba/fl on 5/10/10 8:21am Msg #335664
Re: Financial responsibility....
"and people shouldn't feel personally responsible for being in that situation. "
Really? And this is called Financial Responsibility? I always thought that Financial Responsibility meant that one deals with their Finances properly - walking away from a mess that they personally created is not Responsible.
Did I go to the wrong school or something?
Reply by MW/VA on 5/10/10 1:47pm Msg #335703
Re: Financial responsibility....
I also feel that way, Julie. What I was bringing up on the forum was the 60 Minutes piece last night, and the new look at what options people who find themselves under-water have.
Reply by JanetK_CA on 5/10/10 3:38pm Msg #335722
Re: Financial responsibility....
I have such mixed feelings about this issue. We all have seen the abuses and misinformation that was put out there by lenders only interested in someone who could fog a mirror so they could have a big payday. Many people were taken advantage of and convinced to get into situations that were certainly not in their best interests. And there's no doubt that there's plenty of blame to around.
But there is also a part of me that is very concerned when we start setting a trend that implies that people needn't always be accountable for their own financial decisions. I missed the 60 Minutes piece, but it seems that what often gets left out of these discussions is that SOMEONE always ends up with the tab. [Of course, the banks should be responsible for their own decisions, too, but that's a whole other topic!]
What's so often left out of the discussion is that those of us who tightened our belts a little to stay in the slightly higher-interest, fixed rate loans that didn't have the risk of adjusting to unaffordable levels and didn't pull the on-paper-only equity out of our homes for a fancy new kitchen or a new car or expensive vacation, or didn't move up to a bigger place we could only afford with an ARM, end up sharing in the cost of those expenses -- even though we didn't share in the benefits.
I can't help but feel that discussion about walking away from a financial obligation by people who could otherwise afford it risks setting a trend that could be very harmful to our economy and our society. [BTW, I'm not talking about people who have been dealt blows outside of their control like layoffs, health challenges, etc.] I guess that ship has already sailed, though.
On the other hand, not offering any help to people who were mistreated by their lenders doesn't seem right, either. I wish there was some magic whiffle dust we could use to distinguish those who were taken advantage of from those who were just irresponsible so we could hold the right people accountable. I sure can't think of any solutions to that one, though!
I guess this should probably go over to Just Politics, but I try to avoid that page if I can help it - and I feel so much better after getting this off my chest...
Reply by ikando on 5/10/10 4:31pm Msg #335732
Re: Yes, Mike, you would think that's the way it is. The piece
I think the key word here is "responsibility", financial or otherwise. I've noticed a general lack of personal responsibility from people who want to blame all their problems on someone else. Keep in mind I'm coming from a background with attorneys in workers' comp and personal injury. I've seen too often a person blaming a store because they slipped in something on the floor. (Whatever happened to watching where you're going?) The sense I get is that people want something just because they breathe!
Unfortunately, when juries, or even a judge on his own, give awards to non-workers, it means those of us who try to do an honest day's work for appropriate wages must pay more because the costs are passed down. I'm sorry, but I can't get into the entitlement mentality. I know what I'm worth, and I'm willing to accept the responsibility of working to earn it.
will be the first to jump ship. That will leave more business for you and I. Whatever you do, do not lower your standards and start taking jobs that pay $50 $60. Let the people who don't know what they are doing take those signings. Like cream rising to the top, the people paying those fees will find out that they are getting what they pay for and it isn't cream.