This is an area that all traveling notaries need to be an expert on. When a hotel in Vegas rents rooms during the slow times, they charge around $80. But, when things speed up, the same room could be $300, right? Notaries need to think like this. If someone wants you to travel 20 miles in rush hour, charge one fee. If someone wants you to travel 20 miles to do a slow signing at the end of the month when time is in short supply, charge a higher fee. If the job is on a slow day when there is no traffic, you can charge less if they don’t like your regular price for traveling notary work.
What you charge is up to you, but here are the components you should use in a pricing formula for traveling notary work.
(1) Time spent
(2) How valuable the time is when the job is assigned, i.e. end of the month, time is more valuable as there are more jobs.
(3) e-docs, extra fee
(4) Unknown company? Charge a bit more to compensate you for your risk.
(5) Miles – charge based on how far the job is and how long it will take. Windy mountain roads take longer than open freeways, and Los Angeles traffic takes longer than Oklahoma traffic.
(6) Pickup and delivery of documents. Charge for your time.
(7) Does the company cancel a lot? Charge extra.
(8) Are you desperate for work? Charge less.
(9) Three or more signers on loan? Charge more.
(10) Eight or more notarized signatures or a really long loan package? Charge more.
(11) Company owes you more than a few hundred dollars? Turn the job down until you get paid.
(12) Company has a bad reputation for not paying notaries? Decline the job.
Your exact fee for each act is up to you, but the forementioned twelve points are what you need to think about. Here is what I recommend.
Basic signing: $75-$125. Adjust based on how busy you are.
E-documents: $25-50 per double set. Adjust based on how busy you are.
Pickups: $40 extra. Could include some waiting time.
Dropoffs: $30 extra. There is less waiting dropping off.
Reverse mortgages: $125-$175. These are time consuming and long.
Piggy backs: $100-$150. These are long, but not always time consuming for traveling notaries.
Travel fee for mobile notary work: $35-$75 depending on what time it is, how far you are going, etc. Jail, hospital, and late night jobs should be billed on the higher end of the scale, while close daytime jobs should be billed on the lower end.
Please read our hospital blog for pricing information about hospital jobs.
Please share your opinions.
You might also like:
Notary Marketing 102 – a free & comprehensive notary marketing course that includes a section on pricing & negotiating fees
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=19774
Pricing formulas & time spent
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=588
Who is getting clicks in 2018?
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=19900
Pricing for mobile notary work: different strokes for different folks
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=697
This is great. Sometimes I am not sure what to charge when it is not a mortgage closing. I find people don’t value your time and gas spent to get to them or the liability you face each time you sign your name to a document. Too many people do not understand the importance of a Notary Public, just that they want one when they need one!! Great information.
Comment by Leslie P. Robinson — October 15, 2010 @ 9:44 pm
Awesome information. I struggle with this because of my location which is mainly rural and companies do not like to pay for my time and effort. There are also new people coming into the business who undercut our fees out here which makes it hard to keep going. I like what I do and think I charge fair prices. Thanks for the input and encouragement.
Comment by Angeleetta Hartmann — March 29, 2013 @ 4:13 pm
Hawaii is one of the most expensive states to live. The wages are low and the cost of goods are high because most everything is shipped to the islands across the Pacific. Therefore, the paper, toner, fuel, will always cost more than the continental US states.
Comment by Lucy Mossman — January 23, 2016 @ 5:00 am
Ahart Shipping Information, 01-23-16
Unisource/Signing Solutions
Ahart, 01-23-16, Danville
$125.00
FedEx#7822 2450 4803
Loan # UNLS1043178
These two:
(1) Time spent
(2) How valuable the time is when the job is assigned, i.e. end of the month, time is more valuable as there are more jobs.
Also:
1) Twice the normal fee (3x on a weekend) if they make me wait on the documents.
2) Additional fees requested for faxbacks, and if the faxbacks are a surprise after I agree to a closing, as well as printing for a “no print”, like a Quickens.
I just did a job yesterday, and told the vendor around noon Friday what my fee was and that was only if I had the documents at the time I accepted it.
I refused a Friday afternoon job Friday morning because the documents weren’t there yet–I had accepted this job 3 days prior, when the lender had sent out the borrower’s TRID–and the borrower/lender changed the time from 3PM to 5PM and Thursday I had turned down a 2PM job to do this one. I wanted twice the fee, considering MY loss, and they refused. So I forwarded the email to the borrower who had been in email contact with me. I wasn’t the rat, here, and, though I don’t solicit during signings, I let them know what law services our local office performed, like going to court for traffic tickets.
Yes, I have charged less, but only for companies like treat me like gold, and those are very few.
Comment by betty — January 24, 2016 @ 6:56 pm
Well folks in Maryland need to be careful as maximum Notary fees are set by statute.
Comment by Hartley Saunders — March 13, 2016 @ 10:48 pm
Fax back are very time consuming specially when the whole package is required. How much should one charge?
Comment by Nadia C — April 29, 2016 @ 4:06 am
What should the fee be on Home equity loans. Chase send Documents to clients all you need to do is notarized documents and return FedEx.
Comment by Roslyn Lewis — May 2, 2016 @ 8:56 am
In Alabama, they will not pay much, and nothing for fax backs or mileage. $65 fee for refinance and one set of docs. Travel is usually 50-60 mi. round trip. I have quit doing them because it is not profitable. The company I did most for, allows one hour total, will not consider travel time. Fees docked for not confirming completed within the hour.
Comment by Julia Reagan — May 8, 2016 @ 1:38 pm
This is awesome information. If it’s not mortgage signing, I try picking their brain for some kind of across the board fee. Otherwise it’s all guess work. When I have to guess, I base my fee on location, time, # of docs and signers. It’s really good to have a guide. Thank You….
Comment by Irish Hill — June 20, 2016 @ 2:36 am
I am in Minnesota !ND we have a regulation for how much you can charge as a notary, but as a mobile notary we can charge what the market will bear. My fees include printing, travel, and signing. My minimum for a refill is $100. Double is $175.
Pages over 140 additional fee. My minimum for a small pkg, 30 or less pages is $65 unless it is 2 miles or less then it is $50. I only discount Co’s who give me a lot of work and whose packages are 95 to 110 pgs. Then I will charge $90.
Reverse mortgages I chg a minimum of $125 as it is larger and takes longer.
Applications I charge $85 as it takes as long as refinance.
I don’t travel more ten 25 miles one way and charge extra if it is rush hour.
I know someone who accepted $75 as her fee and does more closings then I do but doesn’t make much more, and is constantly running.
Comment by Debra — July 8, 2016 @ 1:35 am
I have 16 counties I cover. I have local areas up to 25 miles one way. Anything over 25 miles is considered my extended areas.
My fees start, in my local area at –
$125.00 for Straight Refi.,
$135.00 for CEMA and VA Loans,
$150.00 for Purchase and Reverse Mortgage.
Extended area closings start at –
$135.00 – $185.00 for Straight Refi
$150.00 – $165.00 for CEMA and VA Loans
$175.00 – $250.00 for Purchase and Reverse Mortgage Loans.
When you break it down and add up everything it costs to close loans. If you take a closing for anything less than $125.00. It doesn’t cover your time, costs, nor your professional value for the industry.
You are basically paying them to close their loan or making way less than minimum wage and it’s certainly not worth your time and effort.
Next time they ask you to close for less than it is feasible for you. Ask them if they would close a loan for $5.00 an hour? You’ll get an answer of NO!
Comment by Deanna Hopper — September 20, 2016 @ 10:20 pm
Sorry, correction in my Extended Area Closings.
Depending on distance and type of loan request.
Extended area closings start at –
$135.00 – $175.00 for Straight Refi
$150.00 – $195.00 for CEMA and VA Loans
$175.00 – $250.00 for Purchase and Reverse Mortgage Loans.
Comment by Deanna Hopper — September 20, 2016 @ 10:33 pm
Hartley Saunders – Our professionals is NOT” Traveling Notaries.”
Our profession IS “Certified Signing Agent.” or “Certified Loan Closer.”
There are no restrictions on that. It’s a profession. Separate from Notary State Laws.
We have to get out of the mindset that we are “Mobile Notaries!”
We are NOT!
Our services are not about “Notarization” our services are about… “Closing Loans.”
Fee’s are not set on Notarizations. Fee’s are set on your professional service as a “Certified Signing Agent” or “Certified Loan Closer.”
Set your fee’s according to your profession. Not as a Notary. Make sense?
Comment by Deanna Hopper — September 22, 2016 @ 3:31 pm
I get all my work from snapdocs. The fees are set for the most part. I have belonged to 123 for 5 months and have not gotten a call, notary rotary 6 months and have gotten 2 jobs. I don’t know how to get things moving.
Comment by George Furtsch — November 28, 2016 @ 3:07 am
Hartley Saunders…In California notary fees are set by the state However, those fees are only for the actual signature. As a mobile notary you can charge extra for mileage, photocopies, etc. You should always state these fees upfront. I also make a note in my journal of any extra charge and what it was for.
Comment by Brenda Oliver — January 7, 2017 @ 4:35 am