Posted by mwm143 on 6/18/11 7:44am
Msg #386768

To the Newbies

Just curious.... how is it that the new folks manage to find Notary Rotary and seek advice AFTER they subscribe and pay $$$ to NNA only to get their hopes and dreams of a 6 figure income crushed...or even a 5 figure income.

Reply by Lee/AR on 6/18/11 9:08am
Msg #386776

Don't know, but it sure would be interesting to know where they are marketing now. Know that during some part of the boom years, they were marketing to everyone who held a r.e. license--complete with 4 color glossy brochure, free briefcase on wheels if you bought the super-duper deluxe package with all the bells and whistles.

Reply by Linda_H/FL on 6/18/11 9:12am
Msg #386779

Back in 2006 when we were preparing to move to FL

and I was working on getting my FL commission, NNA advertised it on Monster.com -

Reply by desktopfull on 6/18/11 9:47am
Msg #386783

They can fork over money to the NNA, but then want free financial & business advice from NotRot. Go figure. Maybe we should offer this business advice for a fee, most businesses pay professionals for analysis and building their businesses. Just a thought, I mean there has been at least 10 newbies seeking this advice in the last 2 weeks alone. They don't even bother to read the forum or check out the website for anything that would aid in answering their questions. If they want to be lazy, shouldn't we get a fee for providing the info that they seek. The NNA does!!!!!!!!! JMO, LOL.

Reply by JanetK_CA on 6/18/11 5:26pm
Msg #386834

Re: To the Newbies - I think you're on to something!

Interesting point! Maybe we should start giving out the number of the original post of THIS thread to newbie requests, instead of the one that everyone says is now outdated... If any new person really takes the time to read this forum, they'll find it. If not, then maybe they don't deserve all the info available there.

The more I think about it, the more I like that idea. It will deal with both the trolls AND the newbies who are looking for an easy ride on someone else's efforts. Attitude adjustment first, mega info download second!

Attention Newbies: practically everything you could possibly want to know about this business is available on this forum to those who are willing to dig for it. If you're not willing to make the effort to educate yourself, then I recommend you go find another line of work where you won't risk jeopardizing someone's loan...

Anyone else agree?

Reply by 101livescan on 6/18/11 10:47pm
Msg #386847

Re: To the Newbies - I think you're on to something!

I couldn't say it better...AMEN!

Reply by JanetK_CA on 6/19/11 1:31am
Msg #386852

It's Msg #386768 - kinda has a ring to it, no? ;>) n/m

Reply by 101livescan on 6/18/11 9:49am
Msg #386784

I think newbies need to start thinking about other kinds of notary work to keep themselves busy.

I don't believe the NNA offers Signing Agent classes any more...our industry is waning that is for sure!

I do not believe newbies will find this work a cake walk. Having done this for many, many years, every transaction I sign is majorly challenging, and the clients are pretty fedup with the process. It is no longer possible to complete more than 10 transactions a day with all the logistical snafus that are now so common.

So many people who were in the mortgage lending business are now in the loan modification business. Believe it or not, these creeps are still out there extracting money from poor folk who are in foreclosure, one last desperate attempt to save their home from going back to the bank. NMLS will not renew licenses for people with 600 and below FICO.

I'm seeing some desperate people taking out loans on their automobiles, costing about 80% of the loan...scary stuff. The auto repossession business is ripe now. Many people losing their vehicles. (Good time to buy a used car.) There seems to be a lot of this business out there for notaries.

The usual notary work, durable POAs, adoptions, dmv work, contracts, etc. will always be around.

Reply by Linda_H/FL on 6/18/11 9:55am
Msg #386787

They still offer Signing Agent courses, Cheryl

at least for Florida they do - it's $169 ... oy

Reply by Linda_H/FL on 6/18/11 9:58am
Msg #386788

Shamefully, here's the opening line to it..

"With Notary Signing Agents in great demand, you'll want to acquire the expertise to take advantage of this lucrative career opportunity"

No wonder there's such an influx..

Reply by laurel/nc on 6/18/11 10:15am
Msg #386791

Re: Shamefully, here's the opening line to it..

Looks like their advertising campaign is working.....

Reply by Shoshana/AZ on 6/18/11 10:28am
Msg #386793

That is false and misleading advertising. n/m

Reply by CJ on 6/18/11 11:28am
Msg #386803

"Lucrative".

People ask me all the time, "Do you like you job? Is is LUCRATIVE?" When they say "lucrative", their eyes always get big. They look at the fee on the hud for the notary ($200) and they think I am getting the whole thing. They think I do this "all day", meaning, they think I did 8 jobs today for $200 a piece. They think I "set my own hours". Their mortgage is easily more than my monthly income.

I tell them, "Sure I set my own hours -- I can turn down all the jobs I want. But most people sign after work when they are both home, so while you are at home at night relaxing with your family, I am at work. I work weekends and holidays too. I work Christmas Eve, Thanksgiving morning and New Year's Day".

They say, "But you get compensated for gas and travel, right?" NO.

And I tell them I don't get benifits: no health, vacation or retirement. And if I make a mistake or miss a signature, I go back at the borrower's convinience. I have signed at 11:30 at night and at 5:30 in the morning. (Both of those jobs were presented to me as "open time".) By the time I tell them the truth about my job, they are recoiling in horror. One lady felt so sorry for me that she told me to come by her office and drop off a resume.

The money is not the reason I do this job: it's the be-my-own-boss, and no-more-office-politics that I do this. Plus, whether the borrowers are nice or crazy-making, every signing is an adventure. I make enough for the space rent on my single-wide mobile home, the utililies, and the car maintenence (oh yeah, and tons of paper and ink). It is not "lucrative" by any stretch of the imagnination.

Reply by HisHughness on 6/18/11 5:58pm
Msg #386839

Re: "Lucrative".

***The money is not the reason I do this job: it's the be-my-own-boss, and no-more-office-politics that I do this.***

Well, that and the fact that your husband-wife-boyfriend-girlfriend-partner never <really> know where you are, as they would for an office job. Sure has made for some blissful afternoons at the Poodle Dog Lounge.

Reply by JanetK_CA on 6/18/11 5:16pm
Msg #386832

Re: That is false and misleading advertising. I SOO agree!

And this is at the heart of my loss of any respect for the NNA. Sadly, the only "great demand" a newbie is going to find is for people who will work for the scammers or for peanuts - unless they live in a remote area where there aren't any NSAs at present. And I doubt those are the areas where classes are being held. Just a guess...

Reply by LKT/CA on 6/18/11 11:43am
Msg #386807

From desktopfull: "Just a thought, I mean there has been at least 10 newbies seeking this advice in the last 2 weeks alone. They don't even bother to read the forum or check out the website for anything that would aid in answering their questions."

From mwm143: "how is it that the new folks manage to find Notary Rotary and seek advice AFTER they subscribe and pay $$$....."

Like someone else alluded to the other day - the newbie posts are probably not from newbies but from trolls. You notice that they post and never come back ? They don't respond to questions posed to them and they don't participate in other threads. These trolls pose questions they know will cause an avalanche of responses that result long threads that turn into bickering and catfighting. JMHO

Reply by jba/fl on 6/18/11 12:16pm
Msg #386811

Good observation, Lisa.

There are some here that should be looking in the mirror, find some labels and attach the "hypocrite" one to their image. Unfortunately, they don't recognize themselves as such.

Reply by Sha/CA on 6/18/11 4:58pm
Msg #386829

Lisa, a troll?

What would be the point of a troll? I don't understand how that would benefit anyone. Could you explain to my little pea sized brain, please?

Reply by Notarysigner on 6/19/11 8:10am
Msg #386859

Same thought..in fact I thought of responding via P/M from now on just so they wouldn't respond. Of course I'd have a little "special" message included.

Reply by Susan Fischer on 6/19/11 12:44am
Msg #386849

And curiouser; how can new folks even ~think~ of starting

a business without the foggiest notions of Business 101, let alone Notary 101.

The Notary mill is the biggest dis-service to our industry - not to mention the lending, title, etal, most importantly, the Public's interests.

It's a crying shame.

Reply by desktopfull on 6/19/11 1:34pm
Msg #386876

5 star post Susan! n/m

Reply by desktopfull on 6/19/11 1:40pm
Msg #386878

Also a travasty that NNA treats this field of work like a

get RICH QUICK scheme. An organization that claims to represent notaries in reality is exploiting and demeaning them instead.

Reply by Susan Fischer on 6/19/11 6:41pm
Msg #386885

I think they're bad, horrid dogs. n/m