Online Notarizations Take Another Hit

The State of New Jersey just released a statement regarding the practice of notarizing signatures online via a webcam.  Though many states (not Michigan) have issued statements prohibiting the use of webcams as a means of identifying a signer and notarizing a signature, the New Jersey statement is significant since the one company that claims to offer this service, Notary Now, is based in New Jersey.  Due to concerns over security and fraud issues, the notary community has been singularly united against the use of webcams for the purpose of notarizations.

The statement reads as follows:

The Division of Revenue requested legal guidance concerning the practice of online notarization services utilizing a webcam or other video in lieu of a personal appearance in front of a valid New Jersey Notary. It has been determined that New Jersey’s statutes do not allow for this type of notarization.



 

Prices Up, Sales Down

New home sales fall as home values begin to rise. 

A Devestating Day For All Of Us

Late yesterday evening the notary community lost one of its finest members.  Paul Williamson of PAW Notary Services in Florida passed away.  The news comes as a shock to so many of us.  Paul was a leader in the industry and an absolute gentleman.  He was as knowledgeable as anyone in the industry and was always willing and eager to offer his assistance to those who needed it.  As with so many others, I find it hard to express the sadness and devastation I feel over this immense loss.  Paul will be greatly missed.

You Can't Make This Stuff Up

Today I did a purchase signing for an out of state property with a title company that I've never dealt with before.  In their package is an I.D. form to fill out the borrower's information.  Under that, the title company wants me to notarize the form.  There is no place for the borrower to sign and the notary wording is improper as well.  So of course, since the borrower isn't signing it it shouldn't be notarized.  We notarize SIGNATURES, not DOCUMENTS.  So without the borrower signing anything, you can't notarize it.

But the best part of this form is that underneath the place where they want me to improperly notarize a document, in big bold letters, it states: IMPROPERLY NOTARIZING A DOCUMENT IS A VIOLATION OF STATE LAW.  ANY OCCURRENCE WILL BE REPORTED TO THE APPROPRIATE AUTHORITIES.  Oh the irony!  I'm not sure whether to laugh or drop my head in embarrassment. 

Lenders Continue Practice Of Robo-Signings

Anyone surprised?  Anyone?

You Really Should Refinance

The average 15 year rate is at a 2011 low (3.65%) while the 30 year rate average dropped to 4.51%.  What could you possibly be waiting for?  Other than for your credit score to improve...or for your house value to come back up...or for this MERS thing to be resolved...or for you to find employment again...

Where To Buy Paper

It's always a challenge trying to find the best bargain on bulk paper.  Right now Office Depot and Reliable Office Supplies are the best best prices I can find.  They seem to have specials almost every week.  Any other suggestions are welcome. 

Your Online Reputation

From the Kudzu Business Center: 10 tactics that could save your online business reputation:

1. Know your achilles heel
2. Assume everything will make it’s way to the web
3. Create a great online impression; dress to impress!
4. Choose your blog voice carefully
5. Hangout at the right social network
6. Send blogger’s love letters, not PR pitches
7. Build your Google reputation now, not later
8. Monitor your online reputation as often as your email
9. Ostriches are not great role-models
10. Three words to remember(sincerity, transparency, and consistency)

Are We There yet?

Have we REALLY hit the bottom of home prices?  Are we SURE this time?  HUD secretary Shaun Donovan says yes. 

OK Kids, Let's Review

The absolute essence of a notarization includes identifying the signer and verifying their signature.  So if you're at an attorney's office signing an important document (like I was this week) and no one asks for your I.D. and the person who's notarizing your signature is no where in the room, THAT'S ABSOFREAKINGLUTELY UNACCEPTABLE!  Which is why I asked their notary to come out from her back cubicle, handed her my I.D., asked her to copy it for their file, and made her witness my signature.  And I might have given her a gentle lecture as well.

Dear Title Companies...

If you're going to require the ENTIRE loan package, all 110 pages, faxed back after the closing, please take the time to mention this to your friendly neighborhood closer when you schedule the appointment with them.  Otherwise, we may no longer be so friendly.  Thank you.   

Drastic Change In Domain Names Coming

Internet domain names are about to get crazy.  Starting January 12th, 2012, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) will begin accepting applications for domains with new suffixes.  The new suffixes will be limited only by your imagination.  You can bank on lenders creating their own domains like .chase, .wellsfargo, .citibank, etc., but before you get any ideas about registering .notary, .closer, .signingagent, or any other such name, consider the cost.  The application fee for a new domain is $185,000.  

Currently, there are only 22 generic top level domain names (such as .com, .net, .org) and approximately 250 country level names (.us, .uk, etc.).

Listing Your Notary Service on Craigslist

I recently added a listing for my notary signing service on a free site called Thumbtack.  One of the things that Thumbtack offers is that they'll post your listing on Craigslist with a few clicks of your mouse, then send you a reminder every six weeks or so to re-post.

Here's what I've found: I haven't gotten any leads or any business from Craigslist for mortgage closings, but I've gotten several jobs and inquiries for general notary work.  The down side: despite the fact that I specifically state that I do NOT wish to be solicited by other businesses, I receive several emails a week to visit this site, or join this service, or list your business here.  You know the ones.  Emails that try to sound like they're from someone that knows you, "Hey friend, you should check this out!" and written by someone who's first language is clearly not English, "It is of this offer I am to share with you something important."  Ugh.

So if you want more general notary work, Craigslist may work for you.  If you don't mind the spam.  Me?  I'm going to pass from now on.  

What Marketing Isn't

No, I do not need a merchant credit card account.  And if I did, I wouldn't obtain it from a company that auto-dials me, then bullies me with a headset phone jockey who pretends to be calling from my existing service provider and is so completely focused on reading from their script that I can't get a word in edgewise without having to scream "STOP TALKING" to get them to listen.

Yes, warm calls can be a successful and profitable marketing technique.  But newsflash, warm calls involve probing questions and actually listening to a potential customer's needs.  It involves having an outline of talking points tailored to your potential clients needs.  It does not involve a generic one size fits all don't take a breath until you're done we'll be stopping by tomorrow kamikaze sales pitch.  And it does not involve talking faster than an auctioneer on 12 cups of coffee.  Just saying...

Fame or Shame?

The MSN Money 2011 Customer Service Hall of Fame & Hall of Shame has been released.  How many lending institutions and credit card companies made the top 10 Hall of Fame?  Zero.  Zilch.  Zippo.  And how many made the Hall of Shame.  Four.  Chase, Citigroup, and Capital One (What's in your wallet?  Apparently their hand) all made the top (or bottom) 10. And at number 1 with a bullet, perennial stinker Bank of America, who managed to climb past AOL from last year's number 2 spot.  A whooping 41.4% of B of A customers give the banking Goliath a poor rating (up from last year's 34.6% figure).  Bank of America says they're trying.  In the words of that great Jedi Master & philosopher Yoda, "Do or do not.  There is no try."    

Grow Your Notary Business By Networking

The American Association of Notaries just came out with their May newsletter.  The main topic is something that's near and dear to my heart - Notary Signing Agent Networks.  The AAN newsletter talks about the advantages of networking with other quality notary signing agents in your state to share leads and marketing.  If you're looking to grow your notary signing agent business, this is a must read.  If you can't access the AAN article here, you may need to sign up here (it's free).  Or email me at alex@detroitnotary.com and I'll be glad to forward the article to you.   

Here in Michigan, the Michigan Notary Network has had a great deal of success with the model described in the AAN article.  We've all benefited from sharing leads with each other as well as marketing each other to our clients.  Our title and mortgage companies appreciate knowing that they can rely on the quality and experience of other notary signing agents in our Michigan network.     

Too Big To Fail Debuts Monday Night on HBO

Too Big to Fail chronicles the financial meltdown of 2008 centering on Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson. 

MERS Ruling Causes Closing Cancellations In Michigan

If you're a mobile notary signing agent in Michigan and you've had a rash of purchase closings cancel in the last week or two, here's why: The Michigan Court of Appeals has ruled that The Mortgage Electronic Registration Systems, also known as MERS, does not meet the requirements under state statute to foreclose by advertisement.  That ruling has caused many title companies to cancel closings due to concerns about insuring the title on a bank-owned home involving MERS.

MERS was developed as a way to keep track of the servicing rights on home loans. A property is registered with MERS which allows easier transfer and tracking of a mortgage to a mortgage servicer.  Lenders were foreclosing on homes in MERS name, but the Michigan court ruled that MERS does not own any interest in the debt and therefore does not meet the requirements under state statute to foreclose by advertisement (a foreclosure that goes through the courts is still valid).  The decision could void thousands of foreclosures in Michigan, including properties that have already been sold.  Yikes.  

Congress Aims To Limit Powers Of The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a federal agency in charge of financial, credit card, and mortgage oversight created as part of the Dodd Frank Financial Reform Act, may be toothless before it even gets started.  The CFPB was slated to start operations in July, but Congress is considering measures that may weaken it before it even starts.  Already last week, the House Financial Services Committee passed three bills that sought to take control of the CFPB.  Among other things, the bills created a bipartisan commission to oversee it and made it easier for other regulators to veto any new CFPB rules.

The CFPB is headed by Elizabeth Warren, a relentless critic of these powerful financial institutions (thus the big fat bulls-eye on her back).  The CFPB has already started working on regulating mortgage loan disclosures, with the "Know Before You Owe" project, designed to clearly spell out loan terms when a borrower applies for a mortgage.

More on the brewing battle from MSNBC.

Bank Of America Credit Card Holders - Beware

I just received a good news/bad news notice from Bank of America regarding my credit card (a card with a zero balance that I keep for emergencies only).  The good news in big bold print: We are not increasing your APR!  The bad news in not so bold print: We are adding a penalty APR to your account.  If you pay late we MAY (translation: we WILL) charge a penalty APR on new transactions.  Flip to the next page find out that the penalty APR if I'm late on a payment is UP TO (translation: WILL BE) 29.99%!!  Oh, and that can go up even higher if the Prime Rate rises.  Sweet deal B of A!  I'd love to see how you treat clients who AREN'T in good standing. 

Needless to say, my B of A card will be gathering moss from now on.  If you're a B of A credit card holder, I'd strongly suggest you review your credit card terms.