Posted by Jessica Ward on 10/23/12 10:24pm
Msg #440049

Shocked! Notary's kids at a closing. WHAT?

Had borrowers tonight who thanked me over and over for my professionalism. Their last closing agent brought a toddler, and then asked THEM to watch the baby while she did her "signing stuff." Apparently the little tyke was in to EVERYTHING and this was a beautifully tidy house that looked like it's never seen a toddler.

Seriously, what gets into people?

As many times as I've been to a home where someone was there because they were on house arrest, even if I were etiquette-impaired, that fact alone would lead me to the natural conclusion that bringing a small child along to closings is a wretched idea.

Also recently heard of a borrower who was asked by the notary to pick up the notary at home on the way to the coffee shop to sign, as the signing agent didn't have a car.

::Shaking my head::

Reply by ToniK on 10/23/12 10:36pm
Msg #440051

Wow @ having the signers watch her kid.

I met a BO at the airport who said the previous week when she signed with a CA notary, the notary called her and asked to her to come to the notary house or meet her at a Starbucks because the notary claimed the BO was too far and she didnt want to drive to her home. I was like wow...then why take the assignment? Makes me wonder about some people.

Oh and the BO was VP of a of one of the big banks....

Reply by sigtogo/OR on 10/24/12 12:14am
Msg #440056

wow, that is so far off the charts!! n/m

Reply by sueharke on 10/24/12 12:27am
Msg #440058

Re: wow, that is so far off the charts!!

I have only conducted one signing in my home to accommodate the signers and their RE agent. The signer used crutches and my home is not ADA compatible. If a signer wants to come to my home I now ask if they need ADA accessible access. If the answer is "yes," then I decline to agree to it.

Reply by snowflake/PA on 10/24/12 1:25am
Msg #440065

For one of my signings it was the realtor who brought her 2 year old granddaughter to the closing. She was into everything. Closing was at seller's realtor's office. Here's the kicker. She only came to get her commission check and it was a dry closing.

Reply by Karla/OR on 10/24/12 1:46am
Msg #440067

Amazing stories!!! Snowflake, I'm glad you restored their faith in notaries with your professionalism.

It really makes me wonder what else goes on out there that we DON'T hear about!!!!

Reply by Kendall Challenger on 10/24/12 2:56am
Msg #440071

I had this same thing happen to me in August. Apparently the previous notary brought her 2 year old child to the closing which in this case was at a busy warehouse with forklifts and other hazards.

Borrower was the office manager and she said the whole office was just appalled that this notary brought her child to the closing and allowed her to roll around on the filthy floor, screaming, having a tantrum and basically disrupting their whole office. When she found out she had to re-sign she called her contact at title and told them specifically not to send the notary the same notary that came out the first time.

Where do they find these people and what were they thinking?

Reply by Marian_in_CA on 10/24/12 3:59am
Msg #440073

Oh, it happens. There are plenty of notaries out there without cars... some who rely on bicycles or public transportation, many of them who proudly advertise that fact, too.

Now, there's nothing necessary wrong with that as long as they are responsible enough to get to their appointments themselves...but I've heard plenty of stories...

About 3 years ago I met with a couple who lived in the hills of Encino (Los Angeles) and they said that the notary that had been scheduled to see them the day prior called and asked to be picked up at a transit center where she stored her bike... because she was on a bicycle and didn't want to break in to a sweat riding up the hills to their house because she was in her good suit. When asked why she didn't just drive to the appointment... she said, "I don't drive anywhere, I don't believe in it. It harms the environment. I walk or ride my bike."

The husband said they told her to walk up the hill instead because they had no intention of picking her up and it wasn't their job to get her there. 30 minutes later they got a call that the appointment was canceled because the notary said she wasn't able to get there in time.

Reply by dutchcloser on 10/24/12 7:08am
Msg #440074

Re: I'm sure these are the $60 and $70 signing agents!!!SMH n/m

Reply by bfnotary on 10/24/12 7:28am
Msg #440076

Some notaries are just unbelievable. I have a 4 yr old and a 1 yr old. I would never even dream about taking my kids to a signing with me. I would cancel signing first. That is highly unprofessional. I know things could possibly happen with sitters, canceling on ya at last minute or something. But wow, if that ever happened to me, I would definately cancel the signing. I thought I have heard it all. But taking toddlers to a signing, that tops it all for me...

Reply by NVLSlady/VA on 10/24/12 8:17am
Msg #440079

I saw these instructions from a SS ("don't bring children") and I was like, "WHO does that?" Now I know. Apparently it's a greater problem than we know.

Reply by Moneyman/TX on 10/24/12 9:56am
Msg #440092

I thought the same thing when I saw similar instructions. n/m

Reply by 101livescan on 10/24/12 8:32am
Msg #440082

Get what you pay for, eh?

Reply by bfnotary on 10/24/12 9:10am
Msg #440087

Exactly!! I have my standards in fees. But also, another expense I have to take into consideration is a BABYSITTER...lol. That is still awful to take children with you to signings, especially toddlers. wow

Reply by DMOH on 10/24/12 10:32am
Msg #440098

Unbelievable that anyone would think it appropriate to bring small children to someone else's home or place of business, for what I consider to be a business meeting!! I'm with bfnotary, my children are 8 and 5 and as seriously as I take my work, my 5 year old would be a constant source of disruption (God love her) and I would not be able to give 100% to these customers. I have a couple of babysitters that I pay to be "on-call," and I take into consideration those expenses when setting my fees with my clients. This is my business, so I make it happen! I feel like I'm juggling dozens of balls everyday making sure it's all covered, but that's why I make sure that my fees are worth my time, my dedication to my work, it's quality and my professionalism.

On a different note, a serious title company or signing service who is willing to pay for a seasoned signing agent is not going to tolerate such unprofessional-ism for long, unless they don't know about it. That means the more these companies know about these "unqualified" people out here doing this job, the more they can weed them out and the more business for you and I when a company gets tired of paying for these people and losing business. I did a reverse mortgage last night and the borrowers indicated that they signed with someone else a few weeks ago, but when they got to the HUD, which was at the END of the package, the numbers were wrong. They didn't come right out and say it, wife wanted to but hubby didn't want her to say anything, but suffice to say they were not impressed with the last signing agent and they thanked me for pulling the HUD out first (which is what I do anyway). I told them the same thing, "the title co/ss can't do anything about it if they don't know about it." just my two cents.

Reply by MW/VA on 10/24/12 10:47am
Msg #440102

Outrageous & completely out of line. I know of

someone who took her grandkids when they were in her care. While I completely understand "stay at home" moms who are trying to do this "part time", but then you have to have some arrangements made for childcare. It is NEVER ok to take children with you to a signing!!!!! (or pets, ;-) LOL)

Reply by sueharke on 10/24/12 11:44am
Msg #440116

Re: Outrageous & completely out of line. I know of

I know this is strange, but I have a 11 1/2 year old diabetic dog. If I ever had to do a signing at the time of his insulin shot (and give him some food and no one else was home to do this), I would leave him in the car if I had a signing at that time. I know about the care needed in leaving a dog in a car, but I would give him his medication and food before starting a signing. I know all the diabetics out there in notary land understand the importance of insulin and food at the right time. Anyone else have a unique situation like this? How would others handle such a situation?

Reply by CJ on 10/24/12 12:25pm
Msg #440132

Borrower's kids at closings.

One time the signing was at 2:00 pm. They had a two-year-old who was at the table trying to grab the pens and the papers the whole time. The borrower was a reader and spent two hours reading. At one point he apologized for the child saying it was his nap time, and that's why he was so cranky and troublesome (but they didn't put him down for a nap). I tried to distract and play with the baby while daddy patintly read like he had all the time in the world. Later they complained about me saying that *I* was unprofessional. What???!!!

Reply by Jodith/WA on 10/24/12 7:09pm
Msg #440191

Re: Outrageous & completely out of line. I know of

We take our dogs everywhere, but they stay in the car. The only time the dogs stay home is if it's too hot or cold for them (which in NW Washington isn't very often). I would never ask to take my dogs inside, though. I have, however, had borrowers give me treats for the dogs when I left *smiles*. Our area is very pro pets. I'd estimate 95% of the signings I do are in homes with at least one pet, and most have 2 or more.