Posted by BossLadyMD on 5/16/11 1:51pm
Msg #383299

Ok, that will be $8...LOL

I stopped in one of those private postal solutions stores this morning to get one document notarized and after the guy finished he said, 'OK that will be $8'. Well, here in Maryland the max he could charge is $2. I actually burst into laughter when he said that. Clearly, I made no mention that I was also a notary. Afterwards, he tried to pretend that he thought I needed extra copies, yeah right buddy!

Reply by Moneyman/TX on 5/16/11 2:05pm
Msg #383300

I might have paid it, got a receipt then turned them in. But I also like your approach as well.

Reply by BossLadyMD on 5/16/11 2:18pm
Msg #383304

You're absolutely correct; your approach would have been stopped this apparent thief. Now he will deny everything. He just caught me off guard!

Reply by FlaNotary2 on 5/16/11 2:35pm
Msg #383307

LOL We charge $10 in Fla. n/m

Reply by Moneyman/TX on 5/16/11 4:04pm
Msg #383330

Not all of us are that lucky, Robert.

TX max is $6 for the first one and $1 for each after that.

But the point of her post is something like a notary in an office where there is a $10 max charge (Like FL) charging $40 (4 times the max as in her post). Now do you see the issue?

Reply by MW/VA on 5/16/11 2:35pm
Msg #383308

LOL. Hope you said "gottcha"! I think I would have said

"here's the $2 you're allowed by the state to charge". Anyway, many of these businesses are also not versed on notary law. Not an excuse, they just set up their own price structures.

Reply by GOLDGIRL/CA on 5/16/11 3:59pm
Msg #383328

Re: LOL. Hope you said "gottcha"! I think I would have said

Actually, I don't see why these stores can't add a 'service fee." Such as in CA: charge $10 per notarized signature and then add $5 for taking up staff time ....? I once got a call from a previous loan signer whose sister was all in a tizz cos the UPS store had charged then $180 or something like that for her loan pkg and she wanted me tell her if they got ripped off. How would I know? Actually, I just finished a loan with 22 notarized signatures! And I sure didn't get paid $220 - more like $100. But I'm sure UPS would have charged $220 - though I have some people call me with loans, saying UPS won't even do loan docs. (Liability? Takes too much time?)

Reply by JanetK_CA on 5/18/11 3:20pm
Msg #383575

Re: LOL. Hope you said "gottcha"! I think I would have said

I don't completely agree with your example. If a person requests a notarization only and walks into a storefront that is advertising notary services, they should not be able to charge more than the $10 per signature. They aren't traveling (they're already there) and they're doing nothing more than notarizing.

When it comes to a loan signing, that's a different story, as they're presumably also providing a different service for documents that don't get notarized. There may also be other forms to complete. The fact that we charge a flat rate for a loan signing package is a different issue all together, imo.

Reply by Marian_in_CA on 5/16/11 5:09pm
Msg #383342

I made a house call visit not long ago to a couple who said that they'd gone to a postal store near their home for something a few months prior and paid $30 for one document to be notarized. I asked if they had their receipt, and he said that they did...

They charged $20 for the notarization (one each, which is legit) and a $10 fee for "document preparation services" --- which they were told was added because the guy had to attach a loose form.

I told them that this was 100% illegal, and I pulled out a CA SOS complaint form from my briefcase (yup, I carry them) and let them photocopy my handbook about the fees. They sent a complain to the SOS, and she called me and said that their office called them almost immediately upon receiving their letter. The SOS's office said that what happened was, indeed, illegal and that they were going to investigate this notary. Apparently, the independent pack and ship shops are the worst about this... adding fees all the time because they think they can.

Reply by Lavergne Manuel on 5/16/11 6:17pm
Msg #383348

We can charge .50 in Alabama but the legislature has passed a bill raising it to $5.00 and if the Governor signs it into law, we can start charging that on Jan. 1, 2012. It took almost 70 years to get that.

Reply by Yoli/CA on 5/16/11 7:00pm
Msg #383353

About 3 weeks ago, UPS Store close to me put out sign "free notary" as you drive in to parking lot and they have 5-6 notary commissions hanging on their wall.

Needless to say, the only general notary work I'm getting lately is for true convenience (going to jail or after hours).

Reply by Stoli on 5/16/11 7:19pm
Msg #383355

Way to go, Marian. n/m

Reply by BossLadyMD on 5/17/11 9:15am
Msg #383382

Kudos, Marian, great work! I just froze in total disbelief. n/m

Reply by BrendaTx on 5/17/11 10:10am
Msg #383388

*they charged $20 for the notarization (one each, which is legit) and a $10 fee for "document preparation services" --- which they were told was added because the guy had to attach a loose form.*

That makes a lot of sense now why documents notarized in California always, always, always, without fail had a new ack attached although I had sent the documents out with the exact wording for Cal. (Clients in an attorney's office, not "my" clients.)

Reply by Linda_H/FL on 5/17/11 10:17am
Msg #383389

IMO that's an abuse of the fee schedule n/m