To sign Trustee or not to sign Trustee, that is the Notary question of today!
You’re sitting with your borrower signing loan documents and you discover that your borrower holds Title in their Trust…how do they sign?
This question seems to arise regularly during a document signing service and the answer varies from Lender to Lender. If you come across this during regular business hours, please contact Central Signing Service to ensure all loan documents are signed properly. In the event you are at a loan document signing afterhours and have exhausted all attempts to reach Central Signing Service, Lisa on her cell, the Escrow Officer and the Loan Officer or Real Estate Agent, we would like to use this as a blanket rule of thumb: When in doubt, sign without!
The exception being you have two signature lines on the document: one signature line has their name as an individual and the second signature line has their name, followed by the word trustee or trustee verbiage. This is done intentionally and is not to be assumed repetitious. The intent is to have the borrowers sign twice: once with their name only and once with their names, followed by trustee, or the variation as the signature line indicates.
After conducting a quick survey to select Escrow Officers at different Title and Escrow Companies, we’ve discovered that it is best to sign without Trustee if there are no instructions noted in the loan document package, with the exception as listed above and when the Signing Agent is unable to reach anyone for instruction. It is much easier to add Trustee later, than to remove it.
When in Doubt, Sign Without!
As a Signing Agent, you can detect fraud using a black light!
Did you know there are hidden holograms in most government issued ID cards that can only be seen under UV lighting? In 2009, States started making changes on ID cards, including these holograms to help minimize identity theft. As you may have already noticed, some states have already changed the appearance of their ID cards and added hidden, additional security features that can be seen under a black light to increase difficulty in copying the new card. However, don’t forget anything made by man, can be duplicated by man. With today’s technology, it won’t be long before visibly believable copies of the new ID cards begin circulating.
It’s a great idea to carry a small UV black light when performing a document signing service as a way to detect counterfeit government issued ID cards, Driver’s Licenses, Passports or even Resident Alien/Green Cards. Over ten million American’s per year fall victim to Identity Theft. At this rate, owning a black light seems like a small price to pay to ensure security of not only your customer, but yourself as a Notary. You could become a hero! As a representative of your state and a Notary Public, do your part to fight fraud and decrease Identity theft by carrying a black light to your loan signings.
Read more about how UV lighting fights fraud.
Click here to see examples and read about holograms in different types of government issued ID’s.
Click here to check out this pocket sized UV flashlight on Amazon! What a steal!
Attorney’s now required to conduct all closings in Massachusetts
Posted by The Boston Globe at boston.com
Richard D. Vetstein discusses the long awaited ruling from the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court in case of Real Estate Bar Association (REBA) v. National Estate Information Services (NREIS) that came down yesterday.
The net effect of the Court’s ruling is to reaffirm Massachusetts attorneys’ long-standing involvement with all residential real estate transactions.
This case pits Massachusetts real estate closing attorneys vs. out of state non-attorney settlement service providers which are attempting to perform “witness or notary” closings here in Massachusetts. At stake is the billion dollar Massachusetts real estate closing industry. This entire article can be read here.
The ruling can be read here.
Can a Notary Public Notarize a Minor?
Yes, a Notary Public can notarize a minor as long as all the requirements for the notarization are met.
Here’s the problem: A Minor cannot enter into a contract. They cannot sign a Grant Deed, Deed of Trust or any other contractual agreements; therefore they can not execute loan or real estate documents.
What do you do? Always check the birth date on the parties identification to first verify that the age description matched the party appearing before you. If they are under the age of 18, immediately adjourn the signing and contact the appropriate parties.
No ID Numbers in Journals for Oregon Notary Publics
Personal identifying numbers may not be recorded in the Notary Journal: “If the notary public indentified (a) person by seeing indentification documents, then the (journal) descrition shall consist of, in the following order,
- the name of the organization that issued the document
- the type of document
- the document’s expiration date
For example: State of Oregon Drivers License 8-8-2008″ (OAC 160-100-0210[7][c]).
* published in the 2010-2011 Supplement to the U.S. Notary Reference Manual by the National Notary Association.
Fighting Fraud with the Red Flags Rule
On December 18, 2010, President Obama signed into law the Red Flag Program Clarification Act. The new law limits the circumstances in which creditors are covered by the Red Flags Rule.
Visit the Federal Trade Commission website for more updates and information.
No Journal Shortcuts for Notary Publics in California – Full Entries Required
California Notaries must complete full entry in the official journal for each notarial act performed. Use of “shortcuts” is no longer allowed, including affixing ditto marks to indicate repeated information or having the principal sign once along a diagonal line for multiple entries
“Government Code Section8206 requires that the notary public’s journal include all the information for ‘each official act.’ Therefore, each act would include the date, time, type of official act, character of Instrument, signature, type of identification, fee and thumbprint (if applicable) on a separate line for each act” (California Secretary of State Interpretation, Nov. 13, 2009).
* published in the 2010-2011 Supplement to the U.S. Notary Reference Manual by the National Notary Association.
Is the Notary Signing Agent responsible for the pre-dated dates of the loan documents?
Loan documents usually contain three dates: the dated date, which is usually the day the documents are drawn; the signing date, which can be the same as the dated date and is usually the same as the date being notarized; the recording date, which is the date the recordable documents are recorded in the proper county recorders office.
As a Notary Public, you are responsible for making sure the documents are completed, therefore, if a date is requested, it must be filled in. In many states, you must also record the dated dates of the documents in your notary journal. All Jurats and Acknowledgments must be dated the day that the parties are appearing before you … no exceptions !!!
What if the documents are post dated? What if the dated pre-dates of the documents are later than your signing date?
The Secretary of State of California and the National Notary Association have both stated very clearly that it is not illegal to notarize a document prior to its pre-dated date. As a Notary Public you are, in addition to other duties, responsible for the documents completeness, the borrower’s competency, identity, and that they appear before you on the date as shown on your Jurats or Acknowledgments. There is nothing that says you can not notarize a document prior to its pre-dated date.
From an escrow and lenders perspective, however a document signed prior to its dated date is unacceptable and can cause costly delays and even the loss of the entire loan.
What do you do? Always check the pre-dated date on the Note and Deed of Trust when you receive a loan package. If you notice the dates are for a later date, contact the signing service or escrow company that contracted your services. If you are already at a signing, adjourn the signing right away, contact the applicable parties and set up another appointment for the date that the documents have been dated. There is a significant difference between the pre-dated date and the effective date. If the documents say “effective” or opposed to “dated” a certain date then it is okay to proceed.
Are you a notary public who only points and signs, or are you a professional Signing Agent who specializes in the signing of real estate and loan documents? Look at the papers and know what you are asking the parties to sign and the consequences of not doing it correctly.
Rome wasn’t built in a day, but notaries have been recording it since the beginning.
Wikipedia has some fairly interesting information on the history of notaries; including that they date back to at least ancient Rome.
Notaries Public (also called “notaries”, “notarial officers”, or “public notaries”) hold an office which can trace its origins back to ancient Rome, when they were called scribae (“scribe”), tabellius (“writer”), or notarius (“notary”).
As a notary you are a member of what may be the oldest continuing branch of the legal profession. Read more excerpts about the history of notaries via the following link.
Changes to Arizona Notary Statutes
According to the Arizona Department of State and effective July 29, 2010, two notary statues have been changed for the state. Changes include the following excerpt:
“notaries public will no longer be required to affix the date of the notary’s commission expiration to documents on which the notary executes a notarial act”
There are also some changes to the list of acceptable documents as proof of an individual’s identity.
Read the full notice via the following link.
Arizona Secretary of State – Notary News
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