Services

Loan Signings

I'm an NNA-certified signing agent, background-screened annually, and familiar with the full range of residential loan packages — purchase, refinance, HELOC, reverse mortgage, construction loans, and loan modifications. Most signings are scheduled by an escrow officer or a notary-signing service; some come directly from a borrower or their realtor.

Packages I regularly sign

• Purchase — conventional, FHA, VA, jumbo. First-time buyers, second homes, investment properties.
• Refinance — both rate-and-term and cash-out. Rescission-period rules apply on owner-occupied refis.
• HELOC and home-equity loans — second liens, often with separate notarial requirements.
• Reverse mortgage — borrower-counseling certificates, longer signings, more careful pace.
• Construction loans — multi-stage signings; sometimes a single closing, sometimes draw-by-draw.
• Loan modifications and deeds in lieu — usually shorter packages, often time-sensitive.

How a typical signing goes

I receive the package digitally from the escrow officer or signing service, usually 2–24 hours before the appointment. I print it on letter and legal stock as required, tab the notarial pages, and confirm the meeting place and time with the borrower the day before.

At the signing I lay the package out so the borrower can see it, point out the three or four pages that almost always raise questions — the right of rescission notice, the closing disclosure, the note, and the deed of trust — and let the signer read at their own pace. I'll explain what's a notary question (identity, willingness, capacity) versus what's a loan question (rates, terms, escrow figures) so we both stay in our lanes; for loan questions the borrower should call the escrow officer, not me.

A standard refinance package runs 45–55 minutes. Reverse mortgages and purchases run 60–90. After signing, I triple-check every signature and initial — most signing-agent errors are missed initials, not missed signatures — then ship the package back via the prepaid label the same day.

What to have ready

• Current government photo ID for every borrower (driver's license, state ID, US or USCIS-stamped foreign passport).
• The closing disclosure — escrow should have sent it 3+ business days before signing on most consumer loans.
• A clean, well-lit signing surface and uninterrupted time. A dining table works better than a coffee-shop booth.
• Both borrowers present from the start if it's a joint application — having one show up partway through delays the package.

Working with escrow officers and lenders

Escrow officers can email me the package to my secure inbox; I print, tab, and bring it to the borrower. After the signing I scan the critical documents (right of rescission, deed of trust, note) and email them to escrow within an hour, then ship the originals same day. If a notarial certificate doesn't match California's required wording, I'll attach a California acknowledgment or jurat as a loose certificate so the deed records cleanly — that's a common fix that saves an extra signing.

Fees and travel

California caps the notary fee itself at $15 per signature. Loan-signing agents bill a separate signing fee that includes printing, travel, the signing itself, and document return. For a typical Bay Area refinance I quote a flat fee that escrow approves before the appointment — you'll know the full price up front.

Credentials

NNA Certified Signing Agent · CA Commission #2348546 · Background screened annually with the NNA · E&O insurance carried · References from escrow officers available on request.

Where I do the most loan signings

Loan-signing volume is heaviest in Sunnyvale, Mountain View, Campbell, and Cupertino, with steady refinance and HELOC work in Santa Clara and Milpitas.