Posted by Maria_CA on 2/23/11 1:55pm
Msg #373848

Newbie rejects lowball offer!!! was I wrong?

Hi fellow Notaries, I'm a newbie Notary, and let me tell you all that I have learned a lot from this forum.. thank you very much. Yesterday I was offered a signing for loan docs, in a city about 40 miles away from my home. To get there at 6:00pm (rush hour) I need to cross bridge pay $5 toll, plus it was an e-docs situtation so I needed to print the docs (she said between 60 to 100 pages) and then they were asking me to fax back the same day.. oh and they needed a background checked Spanish speaking notary for two borrowers. They offered $40 for loan docs and $20 for e-docs...That's it!!!! I said I would do it for $125.00 they never called me back, did I ask for too much????

Reply by Ilene C. Seidel on 2/23/11 1:58pm
Msg #373849

You did good Maria, that's a minimum you should charge

Reply by C. Rivera Chicago Notary Services on 2/23/11 2:00pm
Msg #373851

yup...that figure should be the bare bones minimum...

IMO, you were justified in turning down that ridiculous low ball offer!

Reply by Maria_CA on 2/23/11 2:07pm
Msg #373856

Re: yup...that figure should be the bare bones minimum...

Ok, I feel better already. With gas as high as it is, and paper and toner so expensive, it is really offensive that they offer so little. I would probably make more money working at my nearest fast food place.

Reply by CopperheadVA on 2/23/11 2:11pm
Msg #373861

Re: yup...that figure should be the bare bones minimum...

Maria, the low-paying companies are the most hassle to work with in more ways than one. The companies that pay $125 - $150+ are usually a pleasure to work with, don't require faxbacks, and pay in a timely manner. Business is slow right now, so I understand that it's hard to turn down work. But at some monetary point it's simply not worth it to accept the job.

Reply by Jodith/WA on 2/26/11 1:16am
Msg #374287

Re: yup...that figure should be the bare bones minimum...

That's exactly the decision I had to come to. I was taking less from a few companies because they gave me a lot of work and they paid fast. I finally came to the decision that as long as I was willing to work for anyone for that price, I was just hurting myself. So over the last couple of months I've been slowly raising my prices.

The bad news? The low ballers only call me when they can't get anyone else.

The good news? I've picked up a few more clients who are more than happy to pay me the price I want, especially when they realize that I do good work.

Work is a little slower without the lowballers, but I'm essentially making the same amount of profit from the fewer higher priced signings I'm doing.

I think the good payers tend to be a little concerned when someone charges less than they should. They probably think it reflects on the quality of your work. Since I've raised my prices, I've gotten more calls from Title Companies and less from signing agencies.

Reply by Patti Corcoran on 2/23/11 9:16pm
Msg #373927

Newbie, I'm proud of you! n/m

Reply by CopperheadVA on 2/23/11 2:05pm
Msg #373855

I agree with the others - that fee is absolutely ridiculously low. You would be working for free or at a loss. None of us do this job so we can break even - we do it to make a profit. For a job 40 miles away (and 40 miles back home!), with a $5 toll (how about the toll on the way back?) and faxbacks, I would charge a MINIMUM of $150, but probably more like $175. If they don't want to pay that, then I don't need the hassle.

Reply by Moneyman/TX on 2/23/11 2:58pm
Msg #373874

Agreed! Maria, you were right to turn that down.

Also, the fact that they needed a Spanish speaking SA on top of all the points that Copperhead made would have been $175-$200 minimum for me if I were bilingual. The ability to speak multiple languages makes one better able to market their services to more people and as such should be able to charge more for being able to provide that service, IMO.

Before someone jumps on me, I'm not saying that just because someone speaks another language that the SA should charge more. If the SA has to speak, for example, English to one signer and Spanish to another at the same signing I think they should be able to charge for that service. If all parties are speaking the same language, then there might not need to be any additional charges. I happen to feel that if someone brings more to the table they should not feel bad for charging more.

Reply by C. Rivera Chicago Notary Services on 2/23/11 3:51pm
Msg #373887

Re: Agreed! Maria, you were right to turn that down.

not jumpin on you...but I do charge more...because it takes twice as long...and each page is scrutinized...truly dread these gigs, but my fee is about what you posted and keeps me sane!

Reply by Sylvia_FL on 2/23/11 2:15pm
Msg #373862

No, you certainly didn't ask for too much. I would have suggested asking for more to cover the tolls!
Plus that is an 80 mile round trip!!!

Reply by Les_CO on 2/23/11 2:16pm
Msg #373863

I’d say a little low on your fee. I’d add $10 for the toll, and 15 for the language ($150). If they got someone for less they hired a fool, and will probably have to hire another, before they get the job done correctly. There are people out there that will work for a loss…be at ease that you are not one of them.

Reply by Maria_CA on 2/23/11 2:22pm
Msg #373865

I'll keep all your suggestions in mind. I did feel I was asking for too little but thought I could get my foot in the door this way, however I'm glad that this door is probably closed. I will wait for a better offer.

Reply by James Dawson on 2/23/11 2:21pm
Msg #373864

Sounds like you're in the Bay Area and if you are, Good for you...Gas today is $0.10 more than yesterday. Also remember that time in traffic is time being taken away from a possible additional signing somewhere else.

Reply by Linda_H/FL on 2/23/11 2:27pm
Msg #373867

Gas jumped $.20/gal in two days here!! Up to $3.38/gal n/m

Reply by Maria_CA on 2/23/11 2:35pm
Msg #373869

Re: Gas jumped $.20/gal in two days here!! Up to $3.38/gal

Yup, SF Bay Area. Gas this morning is $3.55 for regular and I would not be surprised if it goes up before the end of the day.

Reply by HrdwrkrVA on 2/23/11 3:12pm
Msg #373879

Atta girl! Way to go! you were right - stand firm & never

accept sub-par par for above-par work!!!!

Reply by JanetK_CA on 2/23/11 9:06pm
Msg #373922

It did go up since this morning here

I passed one gas station down the street this morning and it was at $3.59. On the way home this evening a little while ago, the same station was at $3.63! This is our commodity market at work again. Seems to be just speculation, as I heard someone quoted from an (Opec country, I think) saying that there is no shortage; it's just based on fear of shortages. Figures...

Reply by Renee Greene on 2/23/11 4:20pm
Msg #373889

You did the right thing, if everyone sticks to an adverage price $100 to $150 depending on milage it will help us all

Reply by MikeC/NY on 2/23/11 5:32pm
Msg #373896

You did it the right way, and could have asked for more.

Not that they would pay it, but this job sounds like it was going to be a PITA anyway.

It's virtually impossible to make a profit with what they were offering. You might want to point this out to them when asking for a higher fee, but I suspect that they really wouldn't care.

With offers like this, just say no and don't look back. Some desperate sucker who doesn't understand the cost of running a business will eventually take them up on it - just be glad it isn't you.

Reply by 1Notary1 on 2/23/11 6:09pm
Msg #373901

no you didn't.

Reply by Marian_in_CA on 2/23/11 10:26pm
Msg #373938

Maria, kudos to you for saying no!!!! You absolutely did the right thing. Yes, you're new, but that's no reason to work at a loss. $125 should be the minimum for a standard loan package, IMO. You'll find that many companies will not call you back... but trust me, those are the companies you want to avoid anyway. Expenses are skyrocketing for us right now, and you should hold to it.

IN the mean time, consider marketing yourself as a general mobile notary, too. I do that and the majority of the work I do is visiting hospitals, nursing homes, etc. The pay is obviously much less per assignment, but it helps. More and more, I get calls from people from prior clients who referred me or gave them my card. Just today, I left my house for one appointment to the hospital, and with calls, by the time I got home, I had 4 appointments, all of them paying cash.

Reply by jba/fl on 2/24/11 6:59am
Msg #373948

See that gas price thread right above - HECK!! No!! n/m