What’s the Deal with Mobile Notaries?

Hello friends,

I am going to start posting some title and escrow explanations, stories, and helpful knowledge about our business. In my past 40 years, I’ve learned a thing or two, so if you have a question or don’t understand some of our practices and procedures, send us a note and I will explain.

Our first question is: why do we insist on using a mobile notary when we are dealing with a party who can’t attend the closing in person?

There are two documents that are extremely important to a real estate transaction, and both are required to be notarized and recorded in the county Recorder of Deeds office. The first is the warranty deed, or another version such as a trustee’s deed or corporate warranty deed. This document is signed by the seller, who is referred to as the grantor, and is conveyed to the buyer, referred to as the grantee.

The second is a deed of trust, which is signed by the buyer, who is also the borrower, to secure the loan made for the purchase of the property.

Both documents must be notarized and recorded. As a title company, we are paid to insure that the buyer has a “good” title, which is based on the seller properly signing the deed. We are also asked to insure the deed of trust for the lender.

Because of this, it is important that we use a vetted notary service to confirm the signing is legitimate and that the notary is currently authorized to notarize documents.

All notary services we use for remote signings have also been approved by our underwriters.

Got a question? You know where to find me,

Keith