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May 23, 2016

My interpretation of how the Notary industry went South

Filed under: Marketing Articles,Popular on Facebook (comments),Popular on Facebook (shares),Popular on Facebook (very),Popular on Linked In — Tags: , — admin @ 9:57 pm

It is sad to see what has happened in the Notary industry. Notaries who were getting paid a comfortable living are now working for peanuts or have left the field altogether. Some people blame signing companies for lowering fees. Others attribute the problem to SnapDocs. A few claim that the lack of volume of jobs in the Notary industry combined with too many signers has caused a drastic lowering in fees.

Why are fees so low?
If you ask me, there are several things going on here. Yes, SnapDocs created an automated way to get Notaries for cheap which involves very little work for the signing or Title company. Additionally, in the old days, Title companies used to pay a lot more than signing companies. These days, many Title companies are paying low fees as well. Yes, there are too few jobs and too many Notaries. And yes, the interest rates haven’t changed much in seven years since the Mortgage crash. The bigger fact is that due to the Mortgage crash in 2008, banks cannot lend money unless you have good credit. Since our government is eating up so much money by borrowing it to fund its insatiable hunger for cash — that might be the reason there is very little left over to lend to homeowners.

Low interest rates caused by artificial market conditions
I feel that low interest rates are artificially maintained because the government will go out of business if interest rates rise even one percent. That means there won’t be any more America, no more USA flag, no more hamburgers — okay, there will still be hamburgers, but nobody will be able to afford them. By preventing people with average credit from borrowing, that leaves more money available for the banks to lend the government. The government refuses to lower its spending on wars, military, jails, interest payments, education, infrastructure, etc. If we would cut military spending and put the people in jail in a penal colony where they could work for a living, we could pay off our debt, and not go out of business as a nation.

Reasons for lowered fees:
(1) Banks aren’t lending much >> too few jobs
(2) Too many Notaries
(3) SnapDocs facilitates low-balling
(4) Low skill of most Notaries

Low skilled Notaries
I spent four months in 2015 testing Notaries over the phone. We got our total count of Notaries from 1600 to 2000 which was a huge victory for 123notary and for those who passed our test. However, I noticed that most Notaries had no clue what they are doing and didn’t understand Notary law, signing agent knowledge, and couldn’t even follow directions properly not to mention not having much common sense. For signing companies hiring Notaries, if you limit yourself to hiring good Notaries, your selection will be really small. So signing companies got smart and started planning for incompetence. This is why they prefer to hire unskilled Notaries, and then have them fax everything back to double check their work. Instead of hiring a pro like Carmen for $175 per signing, they can hire a complete novice for $40, double check the faxes themselves, and make a huge profit. I don’t like what the signing companies did, but this is the fault of Notaries not knowing what they are doing. Had Notaries educated themselves, this fax back system probably never would have evolved. It evolved through dealing with incompetent Notaries who in my opinion should not even be Notaries. The state Notary divisions are run by fools who don’t test or double check their Notaries’ work for the most part outside of CA, NY and LA. And the Notaries in the states with testing are not that proficient either. In my opinion a skilled Notary is worth $100+ per signing. But, an unskilled one (unskilled by my standards not yours or NNA’s) is worth $40 per signing and don’t even deserve to work. So, there you have it, that is my point of view which you might not like!

Unfortunately, many of the high skilled Notaries have had to lower their fees or leave the industry altogether (which was horrible for 123notary) because of the lowered fees and fax back system. Many are still around, but they have to charge $85 to $100 instead of $125 to $150 which is probably what they are worth.

The future of America
As I mentioned before, the government seems to have manipulated the banking industry to make huge amounts of cash available to borrow at low rates. This is actually not a bad thing, because it prolongs the amount of time that America can be a nation. The bad thing is the stupidity that led up to this huge 19 trillion dollar debt is the thing that should borrow you (or bother you.) In real life you cannot keep borrowing and borrowing and borrowing. It has to end sometime and when it ends, you could lose some, most or everything you have. As an individual you can recover, but how can a country recover? Are we going to click the reset button? It is not China and Japan that lent us most of the money — they lent only 15% of the money. The majority is from banks and some local investors. If America can’t pay its debt, the banks will be insolvent. That means not only no more America, but no more financial system like we know it today. Sure, we will still be here, and hopefully won’t starve, but it is not predictable what will happen.

My spiritual guru predicted that America would experience some devastating natural disasters, go broke, and fail to be a nation. We would be fifty states. These fifty states will not have much of an ability to borrow money to function after the big crash, so expect massive poverty. Whatever problems you have now are nothing compared to what is going to happen.

The future of Notary work
It looks like Notary work will continue on being slow for the next few years since there is not much money lying around to lend to house buyers. Sure, there might be blips and temporary fast times, but for the most part slow. This will continue until our country goes off the waterfall, or has a huge war or financial restructuring. After the crash, it is completely unpredictable how the world’s financial system will be. I’ll have to meditate on that one. In the mean time, just do your best, and try to be more of an expert at what you’re doing.

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January 28, 2016

I’d rather stop being a Notary than carry a gun

Filed under: Drama & Tragedy,Popular on Facebook (comments) — Tags: , , — admin @ 1:07 pm

Notaries have very conflicting attitudes about carrying guns. Some are violently against it, while others just see guns as a fact of life. For people growing up in Haiti or Israel, there are people with machine guns everywhere. It is just a fact of life. But for Americans, guns are not so common unless you are a gangster, or drive a pick up truck in a red state. So, how can Notaries defend themselves?

(1) Some Notaries let their husband know where they will be and to call the police if they don’t hear back from them by a particular time.

(2) Other Notaries carry pepper spray. Pepper spray is nice because you don’t do any real harm to the victim. It is not expensive, and not difficult to use. Additionally, you can use it on dogs. In my experience, dogs are more of a realistic threat to Notaries (and mailmen) than humans

(3) Some Notaries always place themselves between the signer and the door so they can run if the going gets rough. You would be surprised how much anger the APR can cause!

(4) At 123notary, we recommend getting advanced training in Okinawan Japanese style Notary-jitsu. Notary-jitsu teaches you how to defend yourselves from the tactics of violent borrowers. You learn to protect yourself from knife attacks, beatings, and small dogs that say “yap.” Yes, this all-inclusive training could save not only your life, but your dignity.

(5) Having a gun. Guns are dangerous. If you use a gun, you will end up in court, and possibly in jail. I am not convinced that having a gun is a good idea, however, in dangerous areas, you might not have a choice. Even in “safe” areas, you could encounter trouble at any time. There are many psycho people out there. They don’t come out all at once — only when you are not expecting it. For some reason, our local taco place has the nicest employees, but the freakiest customers. I have had to call the police once, and on another occassion a woman was beaten so that the thief could steal her mobile phone and then casually walk away — not run, but walk away.

A gun could save your life in an emergency, but pulling a gun could also get you shot. If you can’t pull your gun in time, the gun won’t save you either. Or if someone has you at gunpoint, it is too late to draw. It is up to you to figure out what to do.

(6) Bringing a large flashlight
I used to have a huge flashlight with me when I was doing pizza delivery back in the day. Military flashlights are the only method for being able to read the numbers on someone’s house. They can also be used as a weapon. I used such a weapon to kill once. Don’t get your hopes up, the victim was a rat, not a human. The rat had invaded my bedroom and jumped into bed with me and then ran away. I cornered it and herioically bludgeoned it with a bash to its head. It was all over in a second. He/she felt no pain.

(7) If you were Crocodile Dundee you would bring a huge knife to the signing table. If the signer offered you an apple and was cutting it with a knife, you could say, “That’s not a knife — THIS is a knife!”

It is up to you what types of weapons you use. In my opinion, all women should know some type of self defence. If someone has you from behind, you should know how to stamp on their food and elbow them. You never know when trouble will come, but you should be ready.

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November 3, 2015

When to ask for ID over the phone & fees at the door

Filed under: Hospital & Jail Signings — Tags: , , , — admin @ 12:31 am

Many Notaries just don’t learn to be business-like. You have to get burned a dozen or more times to snap out of it. If you do notarizations at a hospital or for the elderly, they rarely have a current ID. If they do, then they can’t find it. In general, when you do notarizations, you need to verify that the signer has ID. Unfortunately, if you do hospital jobs, the daughter will insist that mom has her ID. When you ask for them to read the ID number to you over the phone they quickly discover that they have no IDea where the ID is. Hmmm. Have them call you back with the serial number and most important — the expiration date. If the expiration date is from 1964 you will not be able to notarize — sorry!

Then, there are the hospital visits that end prematurely because the signer was just drugged by the nurse. It is not legal to notarize someone who doesn’t know which end is up. So, if you notarize for folks in hospitals, tell them that you will cancel the notarization if the signer is drugged or not able to communicate in an intelligent way (or hold a pen.) However, the party involved might not want to pay you after your 45 minute drive since you “didn’t do anything!” But, I drove here you exclaim!

Get your travel fees at the door. Explain when you book the appointment for a hospital, office or jail that you need your travel fee at the door and waiting time. People in Law Offices are never ready on time. They will hold you hostage for two hours without a second thought. They value their own time and not anyone else’s. In fact , their entire business model is based on making everyone else wait for them. So, make them pay for your time.

$40 to $80 travel fee at the door in cash. Sorry, but nine states have restrictions on travel fees which is not constitutional.
Jail and hospital jobs take longer by definition and should have a higher travel fee. Office and home visits are normally fast unless you are dealing with Attorneys who make you wait.
$20 waiting time the minute twenty minutes elapse, and every twenty minutes after before the signatures and ID’s are ready.
$? per signature depending on what your state allows.

So, you walk in the door. Before you see the signer, or any hospital rooms or jail cells you get your $40. Don’t pass go, don’t collect $200, rather, collect your $40 before you even go in the building. Then, you proceed to wherever you are lead. In a jail, you might have to fill out forms and wait in the waiting room. In a hospital you go up to the room and then there will be a twenty minute conversation about, “How are you feeling, and do you think you are up to sitting up?” The conversation always lasts for at least ten minutes before the topic of the Notary being there and please sit up and sign something starts. The Notary’s time is taken for granted at 90% of hospital Notary jobs which is why you charge a waiting fee. At $1 per minute people will either not hire you, or treat your time (and possibly you) with respect.

In the event that your prison inmate has been transferred, escaped, or is in lock down, you will be happy you got your $40 travel fee. For jails, I recommend charging $80 to $120 travel fee. You might get stood up, and there is a lot that can go wrong. Please read our blog’s other articles on jail signings to be a pro at dealing with cons!

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September 2, 2015

Can a California Notary Notarize an I-9 Form?

Filed under: Other Guest Bloggers,Popular on Linked In,Technical & Legal — Tags: , — admin @ 8:26 pm

CAN A CALIFORNIA NOTARY NOTARIZE AN I-9 FORM?
The straight, simple and clear answer is “NO”.
Why then are notaries in California regularly notarizing I-9 forms?
There is a lot of confusion surrounding the notarization of I-9 forms, because the Secretary of State is silent in the handbook about NOT notarizing I-9s. Instead the handbook only addresses documents that can be notarized. The confusion is further compounded when the I-9 is accompanied by official notification from the Federal government or employer that the I-9 needs to be notarized in accordance with their guidelines.

This is not the first instance where the federal laws conflict with the state laws that govern notaries. As duly licensed notaries in the State of California, we are primarily governed by the laws and rules established by the Secretary of State and therefore should not notarize I-9 forms. It begs the question, whether $10/- that you receive is worth the “civil penalty not to exceed $100,000 for each violation of the Business and Professions Code §22445 that you will be assessed and collected in a civil action brought by any person injured by the violation or in a civil action brought in the name of the people of the State of California by the attorney general, a district attorney or city attorney”.
Who can notarize an I-9?

California Notaries who are qualified and bonded as an Immigration consultant under the Business and Professions Code Sections 22440-22449 are the only people who can lawfully complete the verification of an I-9. Furthermore, when the Immigration consultant verifies the I-9 documents, he is only doing it in the capacity of an Immigration Consultant and NOT as a Notary. The SOS considers I-9 to be an Immigration form and therefore there is that requirement to be a duly licensed Immigration Consultant. A California Notary who notarizes an I-9 is in violation of Government Code Section 8223 ©
Refer those who come to you for notarizing an I-9 to an Immigration Consultant (recommended by the NNA and SOS), save yourself from exorbitant penalties and possible jail time and simply stick to knitting as it were.

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August 26, 2015

Do you use a Notary embosser?

Filed under: Technical & Legal — Tags: , , — admin @ 11:07 am

I read a discussion on Linked In about using an embosser for Notary work. I realize that I used to write about this a lot long time ago. Perhaps it has been since 2010 or 2011 since I have written about using an embosser. Here is what you need to know.

(1) Each state has its own rules about using seals and embossers. Some states don’t even require using a Notary Seal. I personally feel that it is not professional for a notary not to use a Seal and a Journal for all transactions regardless of what their state’s standards are. I have not heard of a state prohibiting the use of seals and or journals, although many make it optional. If you need to query a critical record for a Deed for a million dollar property, that will be impossible if you don’t keep a sequential journal!

Some states allow the use of a secondary non-inked embosser. Ask your state notary division if your state allows this. California allowed the use of an inked seal, and supplemental use of a non-inked embosser when I was a California Notary Public. As a general rule, if you are allowed to use an embosser as a primary seal, it must be inked. However, I recommend using it as a secondary seal because it doesn’t fit in small places, the text is round and hence harder to read, etc.

(2) Embossers help to deter fraud.
The correct use of an embosser as a secondary notary seal is to emboss each page of every document you notarize. That way frauds will think twice about switching pages after the fact which is a common crime.

(3) Embossers help to identify fraud
If someone is stupid and decides to commit fraud by Xeroxing a notarized document, the embosser’s three dimensional raised impression will not show up in the photocopy. Additionally, if a page is swapped, you can easily identify that page by its lack of an embossed impression

(4) Embossers don’t deter fraud unless you use them on every page of every document you notarize. If you get an embosser later in your career, make a notation in your journal of the date when you started using it, and keep notes in subsequent journals of when you started using it. The notes go in the COVER of the journal where you can’t miss it. That way, if any of your notarizations are investigated, you will have easy to query records of when you were using an embosser and when you weren’t. And remember, if you only use it on some documents, if a fraud is committed, you won’t remember if you used your embosser or not, so use it on every document and on all pages, no matter how many pages.

(5) Some people like to put the embosser through all the pages of a document all at once at a particular part of the document. This technique would make it obvious if someone used a forged embosser after the fact. The location and nature of the impression of the embosser would be different and lighter on each page that it went through. I didn’t use this technique because the impression would not be legible if it went through more than several pages. I did each page separately. Some notaries even put the embosser at the edge of the paperwork so only half of the embosser’s seal goes through the paper and the other half goes through air.

(6) The NNA and other notary supply companies can help you purchase an embosser. They cost around $30 when I was a Notary. They might be more now. You might need a letter of authorization from your state notary division to purchase one. Good luck!

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July 26, 2015

10 tight points on Loose certificates

Filed under: Comprehensive Guides,Notary Acts & Certificates,Popular on Linked In,Popular Overall — Tags: , , , — admin @ 10:31 pm

I have not written about this topic for a long time because I take for granted that Notaries are experts on the topic. In real life, it is possible that many Notaries do not know how what to do with a loose certificate. So, here are the correct steps to take.

(1) Purchase Certificate Pads from the NNA
Why the NNA? In my experience, they are the best source of 1-stop shopping for Notary supplies. They have great journals and pads. You cannot attach a loose certificate if you don’t have one, so keep them in stock and guard them with your life. Your career as a Notary rests on having the correct forms. You need Acknowledgment Forms, Jurat forms, and perhaps Copy Certificate by Document Custodian forms. Make sure the wording is acceptable according to the current laws of your state!

(2) Keep the Pads in your Notary Bag
Having the right forms is no good if you don’t keep them with you. Clients don’t want to hear the old, “I left it at home” routine. It sounds like your dog ate it. We are not in junior high anymore! Keep your law primers, journal, pads, seal, and anything else you need on you at all times and remember to keep your journal and seal under lock and key when not in use!

(3) When to use Loose Acknowledgments
If you need to notarize a document and the document doesn’t have notorial wording, it is time to use a loose certificate! If a document has incorrect notary wording for your state, you need to consult your state laws to see if they will allow out of state wording. Most states will allow out of state wording providing that the wording isn’t substantially different. If the venue or the name of the signer(s) is wrong or has an extra signer, or leaves the name of a signer out — you might want to attach a loose form.

Also See: Do you Notarize loose certificates as a Notary?

(4) Fill Out the Form
Filling out forms is not rocket science, but more than 50% of notaries omit crossing out the he/she/they and the capacity(ies), etc. If Joe signed the document, then cross out the she/they unless you know more about Joe than we do. You might cross ou the (ies) too. Don’t forget to fill out the venue, stamp, and sign the form. If your state doesn’t require a stamp, consider moving to a better state!

(5) If the Glove Don’t Match, you Must Attach!
Certificate forms must be attached to corresponding documents by law in many states. This means by staple, otherwise it will most likely be detached which could lead to a lot of confusion and potentially to law suits. You should also indicate the document name, date and length on the certificate as well as any other pertinent and identifying information about the document just in case the certificate gets separated. Many Title companies detach certificates which is completely illegal, but they don’t care because they are above the law — or think they are — or never got caught — yet…

(6) NEVER Send a Loose Jurat in the Mail
You can go to jail and lose your commission if you send a loose certificate in the mail. Lenders often ask you to just send a loose “Jurat” in the mail if the one you sent is not acceptable for one reason or another. You can request that the original document is sent back to you. That way you can destroy the original Acknowledgment or Jurat and add another one and staple it to the document. If you send a loose one, it could be attached to a different document and used for fraud, and you might end up in court.

(7) Some People Create Their Own
Some notaries who are penny foolish create their own Acknowledgment pads. You could put company branding on it to gain attention for your company. Just make sure you don’t goof as this is a legal document.

(8) Thumbprints?
Most Notaries only put thumbprints in their journals if they thumbprint at all. But, the NNA’s certificates have, or used to have (I’ve been out of the loop for a while) room for thumbprints. It looks more official for really critical documents if you get that extra thumbprint. For documents going overseas, I recommend this as foreigners think you are the best Notary in town if you give thumbprints — and embossing looks really official too!

(9) Two Certificates?
Sometimes you might need to attach multiple certificates for a single document. This is fine. One for his, and one for hers. They might even be notarized at different times. The custodian or recipient of the document might or might not like that, but it is all perfectly legal! You might have a lot of staples if you attach them at different times, but that is how the Notary business works.

(10) Jurats with Oaths
Sometimes if you are administering an Oath on a short statement, you can write the statement right on the Jurat form. In this case, you don’t need to staple the form to a document as the form includes the contents of the document as well as the Notarization. Don’t forget to have them raise their right hands and swear under Oath!

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April 22, 2015

30 Point Quiz — Jeopardy

Filed under: Loan Signing 101 — Tags: — admin @ 11:28 pm

In this section, we will test you on some, but not all of the concepts in the 30 point course. Once you feel you are ready, you can email us at info@123notary.com to schedule a time for your over the phone course. If you do extremely well on our test, we might either give you the certification icon, or offer you the certification icon at a discounted price if you didn’t purchase the certification course or loan signing combos in the past. However, we will not reveal how many points you need to earn this certification. Additionally, the content similar to the certification exam would be reflected more in the first 15 questions on the test rather than the last ones!

(1) Other than his loose-lipped girlfriend — The first place you should look for the Lender’s contact information.
What is the ________________ ?

(2) The first place you should query to find Poisoned Prepayment Penalty info without asking the wicked Escrow Officer.
What is the ________________ ?

(3) This type of holiday (mercifully missing meter maids) isn’t factored in to the 3 days a borrower has to cancel their refinance.
What are ___________________ ?

(4) This Mortgage term is similar to The Rate
(batteries, certain fees & closing costs not included; only available at participating locations, restrictions apply; must be 18 or over to enter)
What is _______________?

(5) This is the fee documented in the HUD that can help you get something on the value menu.
What is ___________________?

(6) This Deed lets you take your name off of Title; Think of it as the “Name off Title Affidavit” although you’d be “off” if you thought such a document existed.
What is __________________ ?

(7) This document proves that you reside in the subject property. An if you live in an elevator you’ll need 12 of them.
What is ____________________?

(8) This document is an identity thief’s biggest nightmare as it will have your social security number typed incorrectly and claim that you graduated from Harvard when in reality you went to school online at the University of Phoenix.
What is _______________________ ?

(9) This document makes the borrower agree that they’ll cooperate if clerical changes need to be made in the documents. But it won’t change your loan amount from $200,000 to $20,000,000; so don’t buy the private jet quite yet.
What is _______________________ ?

(10) This loan document takes jazz musicians half an hour to sign in 12 places. About the length of the world’s most annoying drum solo.
What is _____________________?

(11) Many Notaries complete signings incorrectly because they didn’t read this document or the Lender’s mind.
What is _____________________ ?

(12) If you do this on a document, you render it null, void or prohibited by law.
What is ________________ ?

(13) If the names don’t match, you must attach!
If the names on an ID and the documents are inconsistent, or you are doing a Power of Attorney signing, you might need to do this.
What is ___________________ ?

(14) If the borrower introduces you to his girlfriend, ________ you are the Notary. If your borrower introduces you to his girlfriend who is completely naked, call the Lender
What is ___________________ ?

(15) More than once, a secretary in a Title company lost a cashier’s check and the borrower lost their loan. Here is what the Notary should have done to prevent this situation from happening. And don’t get me started on how she misplaced the vanilla hazelnut creamer. Are we being sexist? No. At least a female secretary knows how to make coffee!
What is __________________ ?

(16) This how Samuel Edward Xavier, Jr. would initial.
What is _____________________ ?

(17) This document discloses the APR, and that ain’t no lie.
What is _____________________ ?

(18) The name on the drivers license was Tom Smith, but the Notary refused to notarize because his middle initial and middle finger were somewhere else.
What is __________________ ?

(19) The type of the Notary act must be recorded in the Journal. But, I swear this type of Notary act has no accompanying paperwork.
What is _______________ ?

(20) If black is the new green, this date in January is officially celebrated when St. Patty’s is not. Maybe this question is insensitive, but let’s make a Federal holiday, but not a Federal case out of it.
What is ____________ ?

(21) This type of Notary act can be used to get a university degree officially copied and notarized using a certified copy by document custodian form. It’s almost as easy as getting a fake college degree, or going to the University of Phoenix!
What is ________________?

(22) This type of Notary procedure is used to help elderly people who can’t sign their real name, or remember your name.
What is ___________________ ?

(23) This is a court appointed official that can sign over property when the owner refuses to cooperate in court. When your Quitclaim Deed quits, use one of these.
What is ___________________ ?

(24) This type of Notary seal leaves a raised impression, but not necessarily a good first impression in a piece of paper.
What is __________________ ?

(25) This type of witness is critical in assisting you if you are notarizing someone in jail who has no ID. Whereas your mother in law is just critical.
What is _____________ ?

(26) This section in an Acknowledgment form had a problem because an incorrect county was inscribed. Consequently, the Notary had to use a fresh Acknowledgment form and start all over again.
What is __________________ ?

(27) This action was committed when a signer swapped pages in a document that had already been notarized. The one time a guy chooses to be good at commitment.
What is _____________ ?

(28) This term describes the condition when a Notary will gain financially or in any other way from a document being signed.
What is _________________ ?

(29) This is a state of being where you fail to administer an Oath, omit a thumbprint (assuming you’re not a shop teacher), or forget to identify someone before notarizing them.
What is ________________ ?

(30) E&O insurance protects the Notary if they make an honest mistake during a notarization. But, doesn’t protect the Notary from being sued if they made a non-Notary error during the signing or if this other party made a mistake affecting the loan.
What is __________________________ ?

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Point (28-30) Beneficial Interest; Negligence; E&O;

Filed under: (2) Technical and Legal — Tags: — admin @ 10:53 pm

Marcy had to go back to the hospital to notarize Esmerelda, the old lady who could barely talk. Her family assured Marcy that it would be okay this time. Marcy wanted her travel fee in cash at the door. She explained that if the signer was not fit to be notarized, she would legally have to decline notarization, but didn’t want to have any issue getting her travel fee should she decline. A month back, she drove an hour to a jail, waited for another hour only to be told that the inmate had been moved. The client who met her there didn’t want to pay a travel fee because Marcy “didn’t do anything.” Additionally, Marcy would have a beneficial interest in getting the document signed if she didn’t collect her travel fee at the door. She would want it to be signed so she could collect her $30. In any case, they paid Marcy her travel fee. Esmerelda was able to communicate and actually did understand the document. She summarized it. Marcy was able to do the Signature by X procedure and get her notarized that evening.

An hour after the hospital notarization, Marcy had a loan signing. At the signing, the borrower asked about the pre-payment penalty. Marcy found it in a snap since she had been studying what information is in what document (like all good Notaries should.) But, Marcy started to read the pre-payment penalty to the borrower and even explain what the terms of that part of the agreement meant. Marcy had overstepped her bounds. She knew she couldn’t give legal advice, but she wasn’t aware that explaining a prepayment penalty could be construed as legal advice. Luckily for Marcy, the Lender gave her a quick lecture on not giving legal advice, and Marcy was very careful from that moment onwards.

After Marcy’s two jobs, she came home only to find Patricia waiting for her on the front porch. Patricia had something urgent to tell her. One of Patricia’s other friends who was a Notary was getting sued, and her E&O insurance wouldn’t help. Marcy asked why. Patricia said that the error was not a Notary error, and that E&O only insures you against Notary errors or omissions. It was the Lender who made an error, and the borrower was suing everyone in sight. Even the Notary who had nothing to do with it. It would have cost this Notary $30,000 in legal fees to defend herself from this angry borrower. Then Patricia told Marcy what a Hold Harmless Agreement is. The Lender has their documents, but if you make the borrower sign a Hold Harmless, that can prevent them from suing the Notary as they agree not to hold the Notary responsible should anything go wrong with their loan. Patricia was a great source of knowledge tonight. So, Marcy consulted an Attorney and got a quick Hold Harmless Agreement written out, and she kept a stack of them in her car so she would be sure to have one for every loan signing form that day forward. She didn’t want to end up like that other Notary! Good God!

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Point (28) Beneficial Interest
It is illegal to notarize a document that you have a Beneficial Interest in. But, what constitutes Beneficial Interest? If you or a close family member is named in the document as someone who will receive money, or privileges, then you could be said to have Beneficial Interest. If you would gain in any way from the document being signed, you have Beneficial Interest.

One interesting twist on this concept is that Notaries who get a travel fee don’t always collect the fee in advance. If you are in front of the signer who doesn’t have proper ID, and they ask you to notarize them anyway or you won’t get your travel fee, then you have Beneficial Interest. You won’t get your $35 if you don’t comply with their illegal requests. As a Notary, you are expected to uphold the law, and if your travel fee rests on you bending the law for someone, you are not only encouraging yourself to do something questionable, but you have Beneficial Interest in the document being signed which is purely illegal.

Financial Interest means that you will benefit financially from a document being signed, while Beneficial Interest means that you will benefit in one way or the other — perhaps financially, or perhaps in some other way.

Point (29) Negligence
What constitutes Notary negligence?

Failure to administer an Oath
Failure to take a thumbprint in your journal for a deed or Power of Attorney
Failure to identify the signers
Failure to inspect signatures
Failure to make sure signer signs in front of you for a Jurat
Failure to completely fill out a journal entry

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Point (30) E&O insurance

Many companies want to hire Notaries with E&O insurance. It makes the Notary look more professional and covered. In real life, it protects you only from honest mistakes on notarizations. Most of what you are doing involves overseeing large business deals that get sent back to the lender via courier. Most of the problems you could encounter might include signing the wrong way (even though it might be notarized correctly), getting documents back late, a missing bank check, cross-outs, no-shows, or other mistakes. Notary errors on notarized documents might account only for 25% of the problems that occur in signings that could lead to damages.

If the Lender makes a mistake that causes the borrower damages, you could get sued, and E&O will not cover you since YOU were not the one who made a mistake AND because it is not a Notary mistake. One of our Notaries dropped out because she got sued for more than $100,000, because of some fraud that the Lender was accused of committing. The borrower was so angry that they want to sue everyone in sight regardless of fault. Unbelievable!
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Additionally, in 2013 Notaries who had enormous E&O packages were being sued on a regular basis. You are like a guy in a Mercedes driving around a slum. You have the word “Target” written on your forehead and taped to your back. Sooner or later you will get mugged. Think like a Ninja. You don’t get mugged — you mug THEM!

My advice is to think carefully before investing in a handsome E&O package. If it will land you a good account with Chicago Title, then do it. Otherwise, it might make sense to have a smaller E&O premium and have all of your borrowers, Lenders and signing companies sign a HOLD HARMLESS agreement. The agreement should be drafted by an Attorney and could state that if there are any damages by negligence or omissions by the Notary, that you (the Borrower or Signer) will not hold the Notary responsible.

You might also like:

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Posts about E&O Insurance
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Help, I’m being sued, and E&O insurance won’t help!
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April 21, 2015

Augmenting your skill set to make more money as an NSA!

Filed under: Business Tips,Popular on Linked In — Tags: , , , , , — admin @ 12:28 pm

Notaries are complaining that there isn’t enough work out there! But, what can these notaries do about it? The answer is that there are many avenues to make extra money without compromising your career as a mobile notary! Here are some ideas:

Get More NSA Certifications
Notaries are all over the boards stating opinions about having more certifications is not necessary and just makes money for those selling the certifications. Even some people who hire notaries don’t care about certifications as they care about skills, not badges. My experience has led me to believe that getting more certifications helps notaries to be more knowledgeable, and also helps them to prove their knowledge. If you rant and rave on the phone about how smart you are, nobody will believe it. But, if you can give smart answers to questions and show your badges, then you get real credibility! Otherwise, just studying up on your skills will help too even though it doesn’t get you a badge!

Reverse Mortgage Training
Signing Refinances is relatively easy. But, there are other specialty loan signings that require additional knowledge. Many people do Reverse Mortgages without any formal training. However, imagine how much more trust you would win if you were one of the few notaries who did have training and experience at it? The more you know…

TEA
The NNA offers a Trusted Enrollment Agent program. Those with TEA designation can do additional tasks that get additional jobs. TEA agents are trained to understand digital certificates which are used heavily in the biopharmaceutical industry. They also are trained to understand how to apply to obtain a digital certificate and do identity-proofing. They must also learn to identify and distinguish between different types of identification documents. Word on the street is that TEA jobs don’t always pay well. But, any designation you can get will help. Personally, I feel there should be a choice between an Earl Gray TEA, and an Oolong TEA.

NNA TEA Program
http://activerain.trulia.com/blogsview/445209/nna-trusted-enrollment-agent-program

123notary notaries share opinions about the TEA Program
http://www.123notary.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2416

More E&O?
In real life, E&O is mostly a fashion statement. Unfortunately, the more you have, the more you invite law-suits since the Plaintiff will know that they might be able to collect. Fancy clients such as some of the nation’s larger Title companies have higher standards for how much E&O a notary should have. So, how much is enough? The number keeps changing. In 2014, half a million was enough to please the most picky Title companies. But, many notaries preferred to have a million just to be a notch better than the others!

Background Screening
The NNA’s new Certification and Background Screening seem to be very necessary, but not for everyone. More seasoned notaries have told me that they get jobs because people know and trust them. But, for newer notaries, you might be missing out on work if you don’t pass their extensive background screening and testing! If you are serious about this business – just do it!

Inspections
Notaries claim that inspections don’t pay much. But, on the other hand, you can go when you like, take a few pictures, take some quick notes, and leave. It is not nearly as demanding as a loan signing which involves rigid scheduling, difficult borrowers, and tons of documents. If you want to augment your income, I suggest that you at least try out doing inspections. You never know — you might like it!

Weddings (I do)
Florida, South Carolina and Maine allow designated notaries to officiate at weddings. I don’t know if you need to be in the clergy to do this or not, but you can inquire. Many notaries get a lot of extra income doing weddings. Or maybe it is the other way around that Wedding Officiants make additional money being notaries.

Process Serving
Every time we write a blog about how notaries can make more money, process serving is always on the list. This is a slightly dangerous way to make extra money as you are serving court documents to criminals. But, if you have bills to pay, it is worth looking into. You can fit this into your schedule, and we all know that notaries have many holes in their schedule, especially during the beginning of the month!

Fingerprinting
The rules for fingerprinting keep changing. In my day (I’m sounding old) we used FBI fingerprint cards and rolled each finger, and then did flat impressions. If you made a mistake you had to do the entire card all over again. Live Scan became the norm in the early 2000’s. I don’t know what is used these days or how expensive it is to get into this, but many people make a good supplement to their income doing fingerprints. Plus it is fun. You get to meet interesting people and book them!

Hospitals & Jails
Many notaries are intimidated about going to a jail, and are not fond of going to hospitals. Newsflash — there’s money in muck. The desirable notary jobs include doing highly paid signings for Attorneys and $200 loan signings. But, honestly, how often do you get those types of jobs? In real life, the jobs that pay the most are often jail and hospital jobs. You need to read our blog’s hospital and jail signing sections to learn all of our free tips on the subject first. But, you can make $100 plus per assignment doing these less pleasant and more hairy notary jobs.

Being a Birthday Clown
If you choose this route, just don’t forget to completely remove your clown makeup before going to a notary job, otherwise the borrowers might get the wrong impression. “Hi, I’m Bozo the Notary!”

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http://blog.123notary.com/?p=16322

Trusted Enrollment Agent TEA
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=21417

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March 15, 2015

Point (11) Following Directions; Why Marcy Wouldn’t Make a Good GPS

Filed under: (2) Technical and Legal — Tags: — admin @ 12:23 am

Marcy’s Failure in Following Directions

Alternate Title: Why Marcy Wouldn’t Make a Good GPS; She Can’t Follow Directions!

Marcy yet again had another signing before she had finished her course. She knew it all now though. She found out what she had done wrong with the signature affidavit after calling Carmen. She knew not to have drinks on the table. She knew that the 1003 was always wrong. And she knew that Lenders always answer the phone, except during the critical moment when a borrower has a problem at the signing. So, what else could possibly go wrong?

MARCY: I keep making mistakes.

CLAUDIA: Well, I’m your friend, and I’m telling you — you’re going to just go out there, and keep working. You’ll get there.

MARCY: Thanks for the support. Without you I’d just sit home and mope. But, I probably wouldn’t get thrown in jail either.

CLAUDIA: You won’t get thrown in jail. Sued maybe, but not thrown in jail.

MARCY: Thanks… I’m going now… and I’ve learned my lesson the hard way for the third time now.

(at the signing)

MARCY: Hi, I’m Marcy, and I’ll be your notary for the evening.

CYNTHIA: Thanks for coming. Have you done this before? The last notary they sent had no experience.

MARCY: Well, I’ve done a few now, and I owe it all to my friend Claudia.

CYNTHIA: Oh good. So, you know what to watch out for.

MARCY: Yup. Take that glass of water OFF the table. That’s the worst thing to watch out for.

CYNTHIA: Okay, let me sign right here.

MARCY: You just cancelled your loan.

CYNTHIA: I did?

MARCY: Yes.. but, since I did my homework, I know what to do. I am going to go into your borrowers’ copies and get you a fresh Right to Cancel. Please sign right here. I’ll put my hand over where you are not supposed to sign so we don’t ruin this loan like the last.

CYNTHIA: The last?

MARCY: Well, the names didn’t match up and the Lender wasn’t answering his phone.

CYNTHIA: Oh, how confidence-inspiring. But, so far you have saved me from two huge blunders. Thanks!

(later on)

CYNTHIA: We are all done with the package except for this last document. The automatic payment disclosure. But, I won’t sign it without talking to my Lender. What now?

MARCY: Okay, let’s call. (ring-ring) As usual he isn’t there. Oh well. We can send in the rest of the paperwork and then send this one in once you’ve talked to the Lender.

CYNTHIA: I’m not sending anything in.

Marcy overlooked to read the loan instructions. To make this story interesting, Marcy was instructed to call Title, The Signing Company, Escrow, and the Lender if anything went wrong during the signing. She was to call all four numbers. If she had, the Escrow agent always worked late and had alternate numbers for the Lender. Additionally, she could answer even the most difficult questions about the automatic payment disclosure since she was an expert at the topic. But, once again Marcy screwed up. She didn’t follow directions. She didn’t even read it. What if the directions had told her to sign in green ink? How would she know if she didn’t read. Fortunately, this blunder didn’t cost the borrower her loan, and it was the borrower’s fault for being stubborn about sending in the documents. Marcy was only lightly reprimanded for this error.

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Point (11) Following Directions

Notaries are expected to follow directions. (But male Notaries will never ask for directions.) However, each signing company and each Lender wants something different. It can be hard to keep track of each person’s unique instructions. But, you can get fired if you don’t. So pay attention!

Example (a)
Chad was assigned to sign a loan. He was instructed to call the Lender if anything went wrong. The signer didn’t want to sign with their middle initial Z. So, Chad called the signing company and they said the borrower didn’t have to use the Z. So, they signed the loan and sent it back. Chad got fired the next day. Why? Because he was instructed to call the Lender if there was trouble, and nobody else. Chad didn’t follow directions. He insisted, “But, I always call the signing company if something goes wrong.” Don’t do what you always do, do what you are asked to do!

Example (b)
On another loan, Chad was instructed to use blue ink. Since the signing company expected Chad to not follow directions unless they put it in his face, they taped several blue pens to the first page of the loan package. It was blatantly obvious that they wanted the loan signed in blue, because it was for a Florida property. This time Chad followed directions.

Example (c)
In our next example, Chad was instructed to leave a message for the Lender if anything went wrong during the signing.
Chad did a signing for Alex. The signing went well except that Alex didn’t like the HUD. Chad tried to call the Lender that night, but the Lender didn’t answer. So, Chad had Alex sign it anyway, and Chad held on to the documents so that he could reach the Lender the next day. The documents never arrived on time and Alex lost his loan. What did Chad do wrong?

Chad was supposed to leave a message. However, Chad only called the Lender, and gave up when the Lender didn’t answer. Chad never actually left a message. The next thing Chad did wrong was to hold the HUD. If Alex didn’t like the HUD, Alex should hold on to it, not the Notary. Next, Chad should have sent the documents that were signed back to the Lender or Title without delay. Chad forgot to call the Lender the next day because he had eight signings, and the documents never got back on time. The moral of the story is to follow directions to a T and to get the documents back on time.

Example (d)
Korey hires a notary to do a signing for Joe Shmoe. Korey tells the Chad notary that if there is a problem, the notary should call him, and only him, at this one number — otherwise the notary is fired. The notary goes to the signing and finds out that the borrower is named as a seller in the XYZ document. The notary calls Korey and gets, “Hi, this is Korey, I am not here right now…”.

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Q. What should the notary do now?
(a) Convince the borrower to sign and explain the right to cancel
(b) Tell the borrower that if he doesn’t sign, he won’t get his loan
(c) Cancel the signing
(d) Continue the signing
(e) Leave a message
(f) Call the Title Company
(g) Call the signing company

Only 10% get this question correct. The correct answer is to leave a message. You were not instructed to do anything other than that. After you leave a message, you might consider the other options, but leave a message first as that is what you were instructed to do.

Example (e)
The signing company tells Chad to go to the signing and call them when he is parked outside the house. So, Chad goes to the house, parks, goes inside, sits down at the dining room table, and then calls the signing company. Chad didn’t listen!

Example (f)
A Notary’s seal didn’t come out clearly. Title calls him and asks him to send a loose certificate in the mail. The Notary refuses. Did the Notary fail to follow instructions? The answer is that the Notary is obeying a higher authority which is the Secretary of State, which in most states if not all states, forbids Notaries from sending loose certificates that are not stapled to the original document as they might be used for fraud. However, the Notary could request that the original document & certificate be returned to him. The Notary could then destroy the original certificate (by shredding perhaps) and then create another certificate, staple it and send it back without seeing the signer. This would be legal as the certificate section is not required by law to be completed at the time of the notarization, and because the original was destroyed leaving only one certificate per notarization.

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You might also like:

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http://blog.123notary.com/?cat=3442

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