It’s been a long time since I have written an article on pricing, so I feel it is high time! Most Notaries want to have a fixed fee and make tons of money. This is not always possible. The Notary market is a market with lots of little ups and down that a smart Notary needs to constantly adjust to. It’s smarter to have systems and formulas worked out ahead of time so you know how to react to these fluctuations.
There are fast days and slow days, monthly highs and lows, as well as changes in the market that happen over the years. There are also changes in who is competing with you in your area at a particular time. The key is to be flexible and learn how to charge accordingly. Here is how I would set my prices.
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1. Time Involved
A smart Notary should charge based on how much time is spent. Notary jobs during rush hour involve more time. Jobs that involve printing more than the average amount of pages should be billed accordingly. Smart Notaries ask who the Lender or Bank is. This is because the name of the Lender can determine with some accuracy the size of the package. Signing companies lie about package sizes which is why smart Notaries ask. Additionally, there are many loan types and some require more time. Refinances are faster, while Construction Loans are longer but have more professional and businesslike signers. Reverse Mortgages, VA, and FHA take more time. Piggy Backs are double signings and have double the pages and double the Notary work. Time for doing a signing is based on these components:
Negotiating Time — Some companies are easy and pleasant to deal with. If it is fast getting assignments faxed or emailed to you and easy to confirm with the borrower, take notes of that time. It can differ from company to company.
Printing Time — Notaries should charge by the page for e-documents. Printing takes time, and often involves waiting for documents to be ready which can be hours if you work with irresponsible companies.
Driving Time –Factor in how much time it takes to get from point A to B. Keep notes so you’ll know how to charge for jobs to particular cities in the future.
Signing time — Some Lenders have loans that get signed quickly. Some Lenders answer the phone and get situations handled quickly while others don’t.
Loan Type Influences Time Spent — VA & FHA signings are just plain longer. Reverse Mortgages are for the elderly who are less businesslike and might need a lot more time to sign. Power of Attorney signings are the most likely not to fund, so take that into consideration. Piggy Back loans are double the signatures and double the notarizations. But, once everyone has sat down and you have your journal out, it goes quickly.
Fax Back Time — Fax Backs are a pain in the rear, but they serve a purpose. Signing companies can hire newbies and get away with it, because the signing company can check your work before it gets sent back to Title. They no longer need experienced Notaries. However, fax backs take time, so if your time is worth something, charge for each page faxed back.
Cancellation Rate Time Waste — Factor cancellation rate and billing time into the price.
Billing Time — Some companies pay on the first request while others require hounding.
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2. Expenses Itemized
Printing Documents — is not only time consuming but costs money. You are using up paper, toner, cartridges, ink, and using up your time to restock what you used up. Charge accordingly.
Car Expenses — Driving a car is not free. Tires wear down, brakes wear out, plus you need to change the oil, filters, shocks, transmission, and more. So, in addition to time, try to work a mileage fee into your pricing in addition to charging for time.
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3. Track Record & Risk of Not Getting Paid
Late Documents — If the signing company or title company was late getting your edocuments in the past, make a note of that. Keep detailed records of each company. Record how fast they paid you on each job. Recalculate their average days to payment every month just to keep records updated. Also, keep records for how late they are sending edocuments or how incompetent they are about keeping their borrowers informed. If you are dealing with a flake, charge more.
Unknown PartiesIf you accept a job from an unknown lender, or one with a bad reputation online, you might charge more, or make them pay up front. You should always charge extra when there is any type of risk involved. . These signings assume risk. Some of the risk is spending an unpredictable amount of time or not getting paid at all.
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4. Payment Terms
If a Lender will only pay you if the loan funds, you need to charge more. Some Lenders will not pay your printing fee if the job gets cancelled, so make sure you know what the terms of the agreement are. Some will pay part of a travel fee if the job gets cancelled mid-way. However, the signing company booked your time, and you can’t give your leftover time to some other company at the last minute just because they needed to cancel. You have to commit your time to them, but do you make companies commit to paying you?
I personally feel that Notaries should set their own terms. You are not a bank, and it is not your job to gamble on whether or not a loan funds. You should be paid before, or within 72 hours of a signing in my opinion. But, you can make your own terms. Beginners have to accept the terms dictated to them, but old pros can make their own terms and get away with it. However, if you do accept terms that limit your ability to guarantee payment, charge a lot more.
Recommended Reading:
Issues to consider when creating a signing agent services contract
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=2593
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5. Travel Fees for Non Loan Signing Work
Most Notaries charge $25 to $50 travel fee, and more if it is for jails or hospitals. You also charge by the signature on top of the travel fee. Charge based on how valuable your time is worth. If you are desperate for work, charge less. If your time is limited, charge more. If you have lots of other things to do, you have less supply of time so you can charge more — this is a strategy to consider — so stay busy my friends.
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6. Jails & Hospital Notary Jobs
Charge more for jails and hospitals because these are the jobs where there is a lot more that can go wrong. You also will not be dealing with the cream of the crop. You can get stood up at a jail. Inmates do not have ID and your credible witness or ID carrier might not show up. ID’s might be expired. Hospital patients are often drugged making it impossible to notarize them. Half of them can’t even hold a pen, so how can they possibly sign? Consider this when deciding upon your jail & hospital travel fees which should be $60 to $150 depending on how greedy you are! Some Notaries are afraid to go to jails, but it is safe, and that is where you can make money fast. Just make sure you have them read their ID to you over the phone including expiration date or you will be very sorry. Also, get your travel fee in cash at the door BEFORE you see the signer. They might not be available or might not want to sign! Be prepared!
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7. General Pricing Models
Keep in mind that a few years ago, Notaries could get paid a lot more. With Snapdocs and lower demand, companies can pay a lot less and get away with it.
Situations where you charge more or less
(1) Charge less during the first 17 days of the month. It is slower, and you have more time.
(2) Charge more during the end of the month. Additionally, you can charge more if you schedule a job several days in advance because you might miss out on a better offer. Additionally, jobs scheduled in advance in my day had a 25% cancellation rate which will wreak havoc on your schedule.
(3) Charge less if you are having a slow day and someone needs a last minute signing. If you are doing nothing, why not sell that time.
(4) eSignings have less physical pages, but often take longer because the signer and their spouse need to take turns looking at the computer screen not to mention the chance of delays due to technical issues.
(5) Charge extra if there are three or more signers on a loan.
(6) Charge more if the company cancels a lot
(7) Charge less if a company has a good track record and is easy and fast to deal with — or pleasant!
(8.) Charge more if there are lots of signatures to notarize.
Pricing Recommendations For Beginners. 0-500 signings
Basic Signing $60-$80
E-Documents: $10-$25 extra per double set or 7 cents per page
Pickups: $25 extra
Dropoffs: $20 extra — there is less waiting time during dropoffs
Reverse Mortgages: $100
Piggy Backs: $100
Regular Notary Work Travel Fee: $30 if within 30 minutes
Jail & Hospitals: $50
Pricing Recommendations for Intermediates. 500-3000 signings
Basic Signing: $80-$120; E-Documents: $20-$40 or 10 cents per page; Pickups: $30 extra; Dropoffs: $25 extra; Reverse Mortgages: $125; Piggy Backs: $125; Regular Travel Fee: $40 if within 30 miles; Jails & Hospitals: $70
When to charge in advance
You are not a bank and you should not offer endless credit to any signing company. Some of them will string you along and not pay you or play games with payments making it unclear which job they are paying for. Decide in advance how much credit to give each company and keep records. If you have a six month track record with a company and they pay you on time, you might offer them credit for six jobs. For all others, do one or two jobs, but don’t do any more until you get paid. It is not a bad idea to charge up front with Paypal, but few companies will pay a beginner up front. Ken, our seasoned Notary always gets paid up front, but he is a pro.
(1) New Companies — do one job, but don’t do a second until you get paid for the first unless they have a stellar record for payment on the forums.
(2) Some Track Record — do two jobs, but don’t do a third until you get paid for the first.
(3) Good Track Record — Watch out: good companies can turn bad if they experience financial difficulties or labor shortages. Do not offer credit for more than six jobs no matter what. A good track record should be over at least six months.
Don’t complain
There are many Notaries who have gone out of business because there is too much competition for too few jobs. If you are getting paid, getting experience, and staying afloat, you are ahead of the game. Many Notaries have this idea that they should get $125 per signing ever time. Unfortunately, it no longer works like this. So, take what you can get and just do your best! If you get more experience, you will be worth more in the long run. Additionally, the market could have an upswing at any time, so keep a positive thought.
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http://blog.123notary.com/?p=8914
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http://blog.123notary.com/?p=6493
Notary Marketing 102’s guide to negotiating Notary fees
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=19784
Notary Public 102’s guide to Notary pricing
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Global Notary
Many Notaries have done jobs for Global Notary. But, what are they saying?
http://www.123notary.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2517
lsaversl
“Just got a call from Global Notary-print 2 sets (150 each), drive 50 miles round trip, fax back 150 docks, for a whopping $30.00-I was about to tell them (are you insane), but just said I was very booked up.”
Minnesota7
“I completed some 15 closings up here in northern Minnesota for Global because they had no choice but to pay my travel fees. Only 2 or 3 travel where we go. In town I refused their starting fee $40. I would burst out laughing. My problem was they would call and ask if I was going to be on time, every closing. The last two they actually called the borrowers to see if I was there. Some snot nose brat called me from global and said don’t take it personal, they do that to all notaries. I asked for the home phone number to the Owner of Global so I could call him or her every morning at 4am and ask them if they were going to be on time for work that day. Now I have received 3 different 1099’s from them. They need professional help. I got along ok with one scheduler but I told him to see to it that they take me out of their system and don’t ever call again. Plenty of good companies still out there. MN7”
Joelbenedict
“I made an error in the date of the borrower certification. I then scanned 201 docs back without catching my error. Global Notary sent me an email giving approval to drop the docs. I called the next day to confirm that I had approval. I dropped the docs. Four days later, Global Notary contacts me to notify me that there was an error in the borrower certification and that Old Republic (the title company) had rejected it. I completed an acknowledgement, scanned it back to Global Notary, cc’d Old Republic. Two days later, Old Republic approved the acknowledgment and Global Notary told me to overnight the acknowledgment at my own expense or for a $20 reduction in my fee. I didn’t have my notary stamp or the document at home–this was six days after the signing. I printed another copy of the acknowledgment, filled it out by hand, and faxed it to Global Notary. I paid for the label online through USPS’ website. It cost $18.11 to Express mail it flat rate. 10-24 minutes later, Global Notary called me to tell me that Old Republic likely wouldn’t approve the handwritten copy. I griped to corrections about their not catching the mistake in either of the two approvals and expecting me to take the expense hit.
Their response was that they do what they can. I couldn’t get them to budge on any kind of action to prevent it from happening again, or even that they had made a mistake in not catching my mistake. The day after, Global Notary contacted me to tell me I’d have to ship the acknowledgment that was approved on day four because Old Republic had rejected it. I went over Global Notary’s heads and called Old Republic; I told Old Republic Title the same thing I’d told Global Notary, that Kentucky doesn’t require notary stamps, our signature and serial numbers are considered our seal; Old Republic said that the lender had rejected it. I had the approved acknowledgment with me this time; I paid for the shipping and put it in a box (a non-USPS flat-rate regular cardboard box). It cost $16.99. Now I’ve got to wait and see if there’s any more noise with this signing. I took it for $85, printed out 422 pages of docs, drove 26 miles total, have put at least 11 hours into this signing, and took a $35.10 hit in expenses. This is probably my sixth signing with Global Notary, but this one has been a poor experience. The other signings I got for $60-70.”
M.Quednau
“Never leave your fax machine unattended before it is finished. Just because a borrower “thinks” he knows what he is doing you ALWAYS check for errors. Always ask about fax backs before you agree on a price taking that into consideration before you agree to do the signing. Sounds like you should have been more proactive in checking for mistakes and making sure the fax went through and if the fax didn’t go through wait till you come back after the holiday (since it was only one day) and tried again to fax. Global pays on a timely basis. If I were you I would rethink working for them again if they were willing to pay your price. I think all the calls are because one hand doesn’t know what the other is doing. None the less it is very annoying. ”
NotaryMark
“I am aware that Global Notary Inc are low ballers, however their tactics and fees have finally become preposterous.
Yesterday I was called for a Mortgage signing, i verified it was a normal signing on the phone, then verified there was about a twenty page fax back, ok I said for $75. Yes thats low but it was close to where I live and a quick return.
HOWEVER…on documents arrival I find that the fax back is nearly fifty pages and this is a refinance where the total pages of documents are 187! So that would be X2 prints 374pgs and a fax back!!
Unfortunately I had to cancel this appointment because of a family crisis, sudden and unexpected”
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The 90 days no payment list of signing companies
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=15887
The met my fee list of signing companies
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=16979