Should A Notary Communicate with the Signer?

Written by cathy. Posted in General Notarizations, Mortgage Loan Signings, Realtors/Mortgage Brokers Accommodator

I received a phone call asking about mobile notary service to a local Silicon Valley hospital. During our phone conversation the caller mentioned the signer only speaks Portuguese. I informed her that unfortunately, I do not speak Portuguese. She would need to find a notary who speaks Portuguese to communicate with the signer. She found this frustrating and wanted me to still notarize the documents using an interpreter, their niece. I shared that notaries must be able to communicate directly with the signer. It is important as the notary must determine if the signer understands what they are signing and is signing of their own free will (no duress). Our state law requires notaries communicate directly with a signer. Otherwise, notaries may face penalties.

“The completion of a certificate of acknowledgment that contains statements that the notary public knows to be false not only may cause the notary public to be liable for civil penalties and administrative action, but is also a criminal offense. The notary public who willfully states as true any material fact known to be false is subject to a civil penalty not exceeding $10,000.”
California Secretary of State Handbook 2010

I encouraged her to find a notary who speaks Portuguese to complete the notarizations.

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Videos & Photos Womens Pro/1/2/3 SJBC Memorial Day Crit Sponsored by Champion Mobile Notary

Written by cathy. Posted in Notary Public/Loan Signing Agent Fun

Champion Mobile Notary sponsored the women’s Pro/1/2/3 SJBC Memorial Day Criterium bicycle race with cash and schwag. Thank you to San Jose Bicycle Club for managing well organized Memorial Day Crit races!

I shot a few videos and several photos of the race and related to the race.

1. To view all race videos visit: http://www.youtube.com/user/ChampionMobileNotary

2. Womens Pro/1/2/3 finish

3. Post race interview with Shelley Evans (3rd place, Peanut Butter & Co. TWENTY12), Alison Starnes (2nd place, Team TIBCO II) and Katharine Carroll (1st place, Peanut Butter & Co. TWENTY12).Carroll.

4. Women Pro/1/2/3 collecting their prizes and having some fun, a great way to finish up the race day.

5. The women Pro/1/2/3 at the podium, which I wasn’t going to post it. I decided to go ahead as it shows great sportswomanship and camaraderie with competitors.

Some fun photos from the Womens Pro1/2/3 SJBC Memorial Day Crit sponsored by Champion Mobile Notary.

How is Cathy Wong of Champion Mobile Notary connected with competitive road bicycle racing? I competed in it a few years and retired to focus on growing Champion Mobile Notary. I am a retired United States Cycling Federation Coach. I managed and coached a women’s competitive cycling team. I trained at the fun, well organized SJBC Tuesday Twilight training races. The discipline, training, quick-thinking and problem-solving are what I transferred from bicycle racing to my business. Now, I am able to continue supporting women’s competitive cycling as a business owner.

Stay in touch, join my Facebook Page www.Facebook.com/ChampionMobileNotary. You will also learn more about the daily happenings of a mobile notary public and loan signing agent in the San Francisco Bay Area Peninsula and South Bay and Silicon Valley.

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Podium Womens Pro/1/2/3 SJBC Memorial Day Crit Sponsored by Champion Mobile Notary

Written by cathy. Posted in Notary Public/Loan Signing Agent Fun

Champion Mobile Notary sponsored the women’s Pro/1/2/3 SJBC Memorial Day Criterium bicycle race with cold cash and schwag. Here is a podium shot of the top five finishers and me. Thank you to Richard Hanke Photography for the photo and to San Jose Bicycle Club for well organized Memorial Day Crit races! Click on the photo for a larger view.

Photo left to right: Megan Guarnier (Team TIBCO/To the Top), Alison Starnes (Team TIBCO II), Katharine Carroll (Peanut Butter & Co. TWENTY12), Shelley Evans (Peanut Butter & Co. TWENTY12), Cathy Wong (race sponsor Champion Mobile Notary), and Ruth Winder (Peanut Butter & Co. TWENTY12).

The top ten finishers:
1. Katharine Carroll, Peanut Butter & Co. TWENTY12
2. Alison Starnes, Team TIBCO II
3. Shelley Evans, Peanut Butter & Co. TWENTY12
4. Megan Guarnier, Team TIBCO/To the Top
5. Ruth Winder, Peanut Butter & Co. TWENTY12
6. Jasmin Hurikino, Third Pillar
7. Starla Teddergreen, Vanderkitten Racing
8. Vanessa Drigo, Touchstone Climbing
9. Carol Irving, Touchstone Climbing
10. Mary Elizabeth Maroon, Touchstone Climbing

Congratulations to Katharine Carroll and her teammates of Peanut Butter & Company TWENTY12 Pro Women’s Cycling Team for winning the race! It’s a team sport. Great job to Team TIBCO Women’s Pro Cycling & Peanut Butter & Company TWENTY12 for controlling the race. Katharine Carroll of Peanut Butter & Co. TWENTY12 and Alison Starnes of Team TIBCO were off the front most of the race.

How is Cathy Wong of Champion Mobile Notary connected with competitive road bicycle racing? I competed in road bicycle racing for a few years and retired in 2007 to focus on my Champion Mobile Notary business. I am a retired USCF Coach. I co-coached cycling clinics. I trained at the fun, well organized SJBC Tuesday Twilight training races. The discipline, training, quick-thinking and problem-solving are what I transferred from bicycle racing to my business.

Join my Facebook Page, www.Facebook.com/ChampionMobileNotary to learn more about the daily happenings of a mobile notary public & loan signing agent in the San Francisco Bay Area Peninsula and South Bay.

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Notary Public Oath

Written by cathy. Posted in General Notarizations, Mortgage Loan Signings, Realtors/Mortgage Brokers Accommodator

I just renewed my notary public commission. Well, according to the Secretary of State, “You are appointed for another term. There are no renewals of commissions.” The final step in this process is filing and taking an oath of office and filing official bond with the County Clerk’s office where my principal place of business is located. For me this is the Santa Clara County Clerk’s Office. After submitting my various paperwork and paying my dues, the County Clerk Recorder asked me to sign the Notary Public Oath and Certification of Filing Forms. Then, she asked me to raise my right hand. I stated my name and she stated from memory the following oath:

“do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of California against all enemies, foreign and domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of California; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties upon which I am about to enter.”

I responded, “Yes, I do”.

Wow, I wondered if I signed up for the military, CIA or FBI. This is the oath for California Notary Public’s. I wonder what the oaths are for the military, CIA or FBI.

I thought you might find the Notary Public of California oath interesting. Starting June 5, 2010, I officially start my new notary public appointment term.

Is there an oath you have for your profession?

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Employer ID: What is Acceptable to Notarize Documents?

Written by cathy. Posted in General Notarizations, Mortgage Loan Signings, Security/Privacy

Recently, I communicated extensively with a family who is trying to have a Police Clearance letter notarized for their son who is teaching English in a foreign country. Some police departments have policies that do not allow their employees to show their driver’s licenses for identification. They only allow their employees to use their employer issued identification cards. The California Secretary of State, the governing body for notary public’s in California, has specific policies too for identifying a person who is notarized. In other words, the Secretary of State is the boss for notary publics. The penalty fee for improperly identifying a person is $10,000 (Civil Code 1189(a)(2)). This penalty was passed in 2008 due to mortgage fraud that occurred in the years previously.

An employee identification card issued by an agency or office of the State of California, or an agency or office of a city or county in California can be used as identification ONLY if it includes the following items:

1. Photo
2. Physical description
3. Identification number
4. Issue date and/or expiration date
5. Signature of the person (not anyone else)

These are specific requirements issued by the Secretary of State of California. They are non-negotiable. If you give $10,000 to the notary public, maybe the notary public will be willing to notarize your document. That will cover their penalty (Civil Code 1189(a)(2)). It won’t cover the negative mark from it on their record for the violation.

If you would like to learn more about these matters, you can review the 2010 Notary Public Handbook.

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Local Community Sponsor of Women’s Road Bicycle Racing

Written by cathy. Posted in Notary Public/Loan Signing Agent Fun

Cathy Wong, owner of Champion Mobile Notary, is pleased to announce that her company will sponsor the women’s category Pro/Elite 1/2/3 Memorial Day Criterium race on May 31, 2010. This is the second year that Champion Mobile Notary is sponsoring the race. It is a qualifying race for amateur competitive road bicycle racers to race with the pros at the Nature Valley Grand Prix (5 day stage race). This is a way she can invest in the local community and stay connected with women’s road bicycle racing.

She is a retired United States Cycling Federation road bicycle racer and USCF Coach and former manager and founder of a women’s bicycling club. She competed for several years and wanted to involve more women in the male dominated sport so she coached and managed a women’s bicycle club. She participated in the fun, well organized San Jose Bicycle Club Tuesday Night Criterium races which helped her improve her bicycle racing fitness and skills.

In the summer of 2006, she founded Champion Mobile Notary. The discipline and skills she developed with competitive road bicycle racing has helped her with her business. In a bicycle race your plan and what actually happens are usually different. Problem-solving, quick thinking and being goal oriented are a couple of bicycle racing skills that she uses with her mobile notary business. Clients include estate planning and family law attorneys; small business owners; small and medium businesses; wealth management companies; legal document services; Realtors; title companies; mortgage brokers; individuals adopting international children, home bound, in healthcare facilities and doing their own estate planning; and more.

To learn more about Cathy Wong, Champion Mobile Notary and her background visit: http://www.memorialdaycriterium.com/sponsors/champion-mobile-notary.php.

For more information about the races and categories for the Memorial Day Criterium, read the USCF race flyer.

Here are a couple of photos from last year’s Memorial Day Criterium Women’s 1/2/3 race:

Here are a couple of race photos of Cathy Wong:

Stay in touch, join her Facebook Fan Page www.Facebook.com/ChampionMobileNotary. You will also learn more about the daily happenings of a mobile notary public and loan signing agent in the San Francisco Bay Area Peninsula, South Bay and Silicon Valley.

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What Type of Identification Is Acceptable for Notarizations?

Written by cathy. Posted in General Notarizations, Mortgage Loan Signings, Realtors/Mortgage Brokers Accommodator, Security/Privacy

Sometimes people who have documents that require notarization are unaware of the proper photo identification they need. The governing body that regulates California notary publics is the Secretary of State. They determine what forms of photo identification are allowed. Following are acceptable forms of current identification (or issued within five years) to notarize documents according to the Secretary of State’s Notary Public Handbook 2010 (some wording modified for easier reading):

1. US passport;
2. California Identification Card (is similar to California Driver’s license. It states “Identification Card” instead of “Driver License”)
3. California Senior Citizen Identification Card (same as above);
4. A passport issued by a foreign government that is stamped by the US Immigration and Naturalization Service or the US Citizenship and Immigration Services;
5. A driver’s license issued by another state or by a Canadian or Mexican public agency authorized to issue driver’s licenses;
6. An identification card issued by another state;
7. A US military identification card with a photo, physical description, signature, and identifying number;
8. An inmate identification card issued by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation;
9. An employee identification card issued by an agency or office of the State of California, or an agency or office of a city or county in California;

Please note the original photo identifications must be presented to the notary public before your documents are notarized. Copies of your photo identification or expired original photo identifications are not acceptable. The fine for notary public’s not properly identifying someone is up to $10,000. In addition, it is to protect you. Please understand the responsibility notary public’s have in identifying you before they notarize your documents.

Stay in touch, join my Facebook Fan Page www.Facebook.com/ChampionMobileNotary. You will also learn more about the daily happenings of a mobile notary public and loan signing agent in the San Francisco Bay Area Peninsula and South Bay and Silicon Valley.

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The Importance of Using A Notary Public Up-To-Date on Notary Laws

Written by cathy. Posted in General Notarizations, Notary Public/Loan Signing Agent Fun

Recently I notarized a special power of attorney in Santa Clara, California with a homeowner. The power of attorney notary wording in the acknowledgement was out-of-date. If I used it the lender may have rejected it, which would delay the closing of purchasing their property. She was scheduled to leave town the next day. The following day loan documents for the purchase of their new house would be signed by her attorney in fact in another county at the escrow/title office. The seller, the movers and the borrowers were operating with the property closing on a specific date.

If I used the out-of-date notary acknowledgement and the lender rejected the power of attorney, there may have been some delay with the loan document execution. I would have to hand deliver the executed notary acknowledgement to their office immediately. If I was unable to hand deliver it immediately, there would be a delay in the closing of the property which would add more stress to the seller and borrowers by changing scheduled dates for items such as insurance, movers and utilities. In addition, there would be additional costs such as interest for the borrowers. There may be other costs involved.

In a different situation, I have seen this occur where another notary executed a power of attorney using the outdated notary acknowledgement. The bank rejected it because of the out-of-date notary acknowledgement. I was called to re-notarize the power of attorney using the correct notary acknowledgement. The additional stress is unfortunate when this happens to people, as usually they are already experiencing a lot of stress with why the person signing the power of attorney is unable to manage or handle financial themselves.

I am a member of the National Notary Association which keeps me up-to-date on new notary laws through their monthly publications. I am also a member of Notary Rotary, 123Notary.com and Golden State Notary which also keep me up-to-date on notary laws and industry changes. They also have notary forums where notaries from around the country share and discuss notary public matters. These organizations are focused on providing notary public education, supplies and platforms for notary publics to grow professionally.

When you have important documents such as a power of attorney requiring notarization, do you have a knowledgeable notary public you can call?

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A Notary Saving a Divorce?

Written by cathy. Posted in General Notarizations

Recently, a family law attorney in Santa Clara County contacted me in the late afternoon. Her client in Palo Alto is in the process of finalizing an ugly divorce. One of the last pieces is notarizing the Interspousal Transfer Deed. The attorney’s location is about 25 miles from her client. She wanted to have the deed notarized the following day. Within an hour or so after we spoke, she emailed me the documents. I reviewed them and noticed her client’s last name was spelled incorrectly. She was grateful that I caught the typo and was able to update it and send it to me.

Imagine if the document was notarized with the typo. If the error was caught at the County Clerk’s office when it was to record, they would reject the documents. This would delay finalizing the divorce which was to happen in a couple of days. Can you imagine the emotional stress? What if the error wasn’t caught at the County Clerk’s office? The spouse receiving the property (grantee) really would not have full ownership of the property. What challenges would that bring along since the divorce agreement wasn’t followed? Some level of stress would occur.

When you have important documents you need notarized do you have a detail-oriented professional mobile notary you can count on?

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My Blog Moved

Written by cathy. Posted in Notary Public/Loan Signing Agent Fun

Happy New Year!

My website designers highly suggested that my blog move to WordPress.org which is smoothly linked with my website http://www.ChampionMobileNotary.com and better organizes posts. Why not start the New Year off with the moved updated blog at WordPress.org? The direct link to my blog is www.ChampionMobileNotary.com/blog/.

I am excited about using WordPress.org and having the posts searchable and categorized. I look forward to sharing with you and learning from you!

You will notice multiple postings within a short time after this posting. They are postings moved from my blog with another blog site.

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To learn more about me visit www.ChampionMobileNotary.com/about.html.

Thank you for reading!

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