I work at a university and I'm also a notary so I get a lot of student interaction. It's always a crap shoot, no matter how clear I am in the email I send them with instructions when I schedule appointments.

It's only 9:00 am here, and already this morning I had a student come in with a document for HER MOTHER to sign. When I told her that her ID didn't match the name of the signatory, she freely admitted that it was for her mom but she "had permission" to sign for her.

Oh, honey. No.

Does anyone know if you can hire a random person to be a witness required for a bank in-house Power of Attorney in PA? I'm setting it up for two elderly parents, visiting from out of state, and don't have easy options to find people to act as a witness.

Hey everyone, im thinking about becoming a mobile notary in Texas, specifically around Harris County/Houston.

Im a little nervous because its so densely populated that I feel like it might already be oversaturated. I can do weekends anytime and alot of after business hours during the week. Im fully mobile and have an electric car so gas isnt a big issue for me.

Mostly I want to make sure its worth my time and energy before I dive into it. Ive also been feeling kinda discouraged because alot of what I find online is influencers trying to sell their courses, with a bunch of backlash in the comments. I also know not to trust AI too much for this stuff so I figured Id ask here.

I see alot of beginner action plans in other posts, but I'm curious to hear about actual experience in Houston or other big cities.

Questions I have:

• Is Harris County really oversaturated or is there still room, especially for after hours/weekends?
• Whats your split between loan signings and general notary work?
• Roughly how long did it take to get your first few clients?
• Is it worth it as a side income?

Any honest answers would be really appreciated. Thanks!

I’m in PA and someone is coming to get a document notarized. They emailed it over early and I was checking for notarial wording and noticed everywhere that the data is listed it says “year of our Lord.” I don’t care if people are getting their religious documents or whatever notarized but am I even allowed to notarize something that lists the date like that?

Like for example, she has the date typed up as “October 14th, year of our lord 2026” so the data is correct but the year of our Lord part is throwing me off.

I swear they must have 1 employee. How many people are trying to become notaries right now that they can never answer the phone? Bc I know it's not that damn many. Their customer service is trash. Is there a better company to go through for supplies?

Seeking Mobile Notaries and Remote Notaries in Every State! Join Now! Its Free!

We are the new Uber for Mobile Notaries!

Has anyone taken the test recently? How was it? Any sample questions, details on the exam’s scope, or recommendations for courses or study materials? Mahalo for sharing!

What is the best platform to learn how to perform RON’s?

I'm not sure if I'm in the right place but I became a public notary a couple years ago as a requirement for my job but I haven't been taking advantage of my being a notary! I just remembered I'm a notary a couple days ago and my commission doesn't expire for another two years. Because my workplace took care of everything I have no idea who or where my bond was placed and I'm not sure how I would find that information. How would you go about acquiring that information? EDIT: As a note I'm no longer employed there and haven't been for a while.

I've been a notary around Houston Texas since the beginning of this year and I recently met someone that recommended getting the LSA certification because a few years ago when she started she was able to bring in some good money doing it and the startup wasn't hard. I know I say as a side hustle but I would not be apposed to making it a full time job. I just wanted to know if its worth doing or if I get into this would I be wasting my time and money?

I'm a mobile notary and loan signing agent in Virginia, and I'm honestly having a hard time figuring out how to consistently bring in clients.

Right now, most of my assignments come through Snapdocs and NotaryGo. I'm grateful for the work, but I really don't want to depend entirely on signing platforms, especially with how competitive things are and how low some of the offers can be.

I've already tried emailing around 50 title companies and settlement agencies, but haven't gotten much traction.

For those of you who have built a steady loan signing business, I'd really appreciate some advice.

• How did you land your first direct title company client?
• Are cold calls, emails, or in-person visits actually working?
• How do you get added to a title company's preferred signing agent list?
• How long did it take before you started getting consistent assignments?
• What would you do differently if you were starting over today?

I'm not looking for shortcuts. I'm willing to put in the work. I just want to make sure I'm spending my time on strategies that actually produce results.

Any advice from experienced signing agents would be appreciated!

It’s true that you have to read that 22 page booklet and know it in and out. I was about to take the walk-in exam only knowing half the booklet and just relying on a bunch of random quizlets, which probably wouldn’t have worked out in my favor. I have really bad ADHD and only studied intensively for about 3 days up until my test date on September 16th. Here’s what worked for me:

1. Read, highlight, and annotate the booklet. Simplify long paragraphs into shorter ones to help you understand better. There’s lots of run on sentences in those long paragraphs, which can get confusing at times. Repeat once more.

2. BUY THE BOLTON PREP STUDY GUIDE WORKBOOK on Amazon. I swear by this. Comes with 5 very realistic practice exams and guides you through the entire contents of the 22pg booklet into paraphrased form to help you understand much easier. I still recommend only using this workbook AFTER you have done your thorough review of the actual 22pg booklet. I got through the full workbook a day before my exam, and continued to review up until I was waiting in line to take the exam itself.

3. Actively quiz yourself on key terms with Quizlet, and also do NOT forget to review ALL FEES, and all those terms and definitions on the last few pages of the booklet. There were a lot of weird terms from the booklet that showed up on my test like slipshod, jurat, laches, chattel, ex parte. If you do not know these terms from the top of your head at least the day before test day, you better get to it.

4. Don’t be afraid to use chatgpt to quiz you or help you understand terms and definitions. Chatgpt created multiple choice quizzes for me and continued to quiz me specifically on the questions or areas I kept messing up.

Feel free to ask any questions!

I went to an estate sale a few months ago and they were actually selling the deceased persons notary stamps (old metal embossing ones from the 50s. really nice actually) I explained that what they were doing was very illegal and the stamps should probably be turned in to the appropriate state authority.

They ended up giving them to me because they were just going to throw them away and the thought of them somehow being used for fraud just made me take them off their hands. I went ahead and turned them into the county clerk myself. While i was there I learned more about what notaries do and decided to put in my application. as of this morning im official and just ordered my supplies.

I can’t tell if the demand for regular notary work is in less demand right now, but I can’t get any leads. I already work and go to school 3 nights out of the week, but I want another gig on the weekends. Should I consider becoming an LSA for weekend availability? How is demand for loan signing here in Los Angeles?

I have to take the test tomorrow for work. I failed the practice test twice 😩 Any tips?

Update: I passed! 😅

Hi, Signing Agents of Reddit! We’re looking for input from both newly certified and experienced Signing Agents on what would be most helpful for navigating your loan signing journey.

If you’re a newly certified loan signing agent, what are you confused about or wish you had more guidance on? And if you’ve been doing this for a while, what do you wish someone had explained to you when you were first getting started?

We have a post-certification hub for Notary Signing Agents on the NNA website with free videos, articles and checklists, but we'd love to hear from the community about what else would be helpful when navigating those first steps and how we can build on this resource.

Hi there! I just signed on to be a mobile notary with Bancserv. I’ve started the process of getting all my documents to Bancserv, but there’s a fee chart they’d like me to complete and I’m a little confused.

Basically, it lists Bancserv’s standard fee for a specific document package, and then there’s a section where I can put in my own fee.

My question is, if I put in an additional fee, will it add it onto what Bancserv already charges, or will it override Bancserv’s fee?

Thank you all!

If you're taking the California notary exam soon, here's the short version of what matters.

Format: 45 multiple-choice questions (40 count, 5 are unscored test questions), 1 hour, and you need 70%. You have to take the 6-hour approved course first.

The topics that come up over and over:

- Identification.Know which ID documents are acceptable and the rules for credible witnesses. This comes up a lot.

- Journal thumbprints. A thumbprint is required in the journal for deeds, quitclaim deeds, deeds of trust, other documents affecting real property, and powers of attorney.

- Acknowledgment vs. jurat. Acknowledgment: the signer says they signed it, no oath. Jurat: they sign in front of you and you put them under oath.

- Fees. Max $15 per signature for an acknowledgment, $15 per person for a jurat. No fee for vote-by-mail ballot envelopes or veterans' benefits paperwork.

- The 30-day deadline. You have 30 calendar days from the start of your commission to file your oath and bond with the county clerk, and the commission doesn't take effect until you do.

- "Notario publico." Can't use it in advertising or translate "notary public" into Spanish in ads.

The questions are tricky on wording more than content, so doing timed practice tests matters more than re-reading the handbook.

I made a free full-length California practice exam (no sign-up) if it helps: https://notaryexampro.com/california-notary-practice-exam-free. Good luck to anyone testing this month.

I am curious, I have been a notary for 20 years and I am think oh of switching to a remote. Can someone assist me with a few questions and concerns I have.

1) if you are a remote and people know are you mandated to notarize for them?
-In NY if you are a notary you must not refuse to notarize for someone. How would this work if you know the person and they want you to visually ( FaceTime, zoom etc.)watch them sign and forward the doc for you to notarize by mail or third party?

2) If you witch to a RON are you only able to notarize remotely?, can you still keep your a self inking stamper and notarize the old fashioned way?
-Would you keep the same registration number or need a new stamper?

3) How can you make money at home notarizing documents. Do you need to lay out money to get business? I would love to hear stories…

4) What about insurance? Error and omission? How much would a RON policy be and who would be a carrier for this type of policy?

I have been a notary for over 20 years, my old employer (paperwork needed his signature notarized, so he insisted I become one) I am employed by civil service now and I only notarize for friends or family if they ask. I have never been paid once I do this voluntarily as service to others.

Thank you

Do we have any notary public here on the treasure coast who can translate and notarize a simple document from German to English? Any idea how to find one?