Colorado Springs Notary - Leon Austin

Of all the military bases in the Colorado Springs area, Fort Carson army base  is the most difficult to get onto.

Difficult ... but not impossible.

So if you're a notary signing agent / mobile notary, you don't need the skills of an Ethan Hunt or Jason Bourne in order to get past the guards. 

You just need a little patience.

The gate that I normally use is Gate 3.

If you're driving west on Academy Boulevard, it's the 'Fort Carson - Westmeadow Drive exit'.  Then you'll see this sign.  There's a traffic light at which you'll make a left turn.

Expect to be delayed for a few minutes while the security guards inspect your vehicle.  Usually the guard will have me open the hood, trunk, glove box, and all four doors. Have your driver's license, registration, and proof of insurance available to present it to them.  Even though I state the nature of my business, I also include my business card. 

The guards are very serious about these inspections, and they do a thorough job.  They are also very courteous and polite.  I'm always tempted to let them know that I was an enlisted man -- not an officer -- while I was in the army, so there's no need to call me 'Sir'.

Once I'm on the base, I'm able to go just about anywhere. Finding my way around is not difficult. Most of the streets on Fort Carson can be found using MapQuest, and GPS.  I have done notarizations in the housing area, and I did a closing in one of the barracks. 

There is a Burger King on Prussman Boulevard and Specker Avenue, if the soldier wants to meet there. 

Ironically, McDonald Street is one block north of Prussman, although there is no McDonald's restaurant there ... yet.

When I first became a notary signing agent, I wasn't sure if I would be able to perform notary services on Fort Carson.  But getting onto the base is not a problem once you know the routine.

I always thought that Calhan, Colorado is located in El Paso county.

It is. But it's also located in Elbert county.  That's what I discovered last week when I was assigned to do a closing in Calhan.

One of the first things I do when I get a closing assignment is find out where the borrowers are located.  I thought it was unusual that the trip would take me more than an hour and a half, according to Mapquest. 

Just where in Calhan is this?  Where in Colorado is this?  It was when I looked at the map view that I saw that it was in Elbert county.  Is this some kind of mistake?  Is that really Calhan?

After locating the borrowers on the map, I called them to confirm the appointment.

Sure enough, they are in Elbert county.

It was a pleasurable closing experience.  I actually like the long drives out into the rural areas of Colorado.  There is hardly any traffic.  Just miles and miles of open scenery.  You could probably stop in the middle of the road and have a picnic if you wanted to. 

Having GPS really came in handy.  There  were a lot of turns, and the road signs aren't easy to see.

Just in case the title company doubted that the closing was actually in Elbert county, and not El Paso county, I got photographic evidence:

I notarized a lease agreement a few weeks ago. I made an entry of it in my notary journal and asked the signers to sign it.

The person managing the transaction asked me if it was necessary to keep a journal.  I told him that Colorado law requires all notaries to keep a journal of notary acts that affect the title of real property. (CRS 12-55-111).  However I keep a journal of all notarizations, regardless of what they pertain to.

The law has been amended to read that every Colorado notary will be required to keep a journal of every notarial act, and will go into effect July 1, 2009.

There are some other changes to the law.  You can read about it at the Colorado Secretary of State website.

I just received a call from a signing service to do a loan modification.

I asked the caller to give me the name of the company handling the loan modification, and if I needed to collect any money.  The caller gave me the name of the company, and said that I would be collecting a cashiers check.

I told the caller that I can't do it.

That's my criteria: if I have to collect money from the homeowner -- NO.

I do loan modification signings as part of the work that I do as a notary signing agent.  I did one a couple of weeks ago.  It was through a well-established and reputable title company, and the loan modification agreement was coming from the borrower's lender.  There was no money to collect.

But I will decline any request to do a loan modification from a company that stipulates that the borrower has to pay an upfront fee.

One of the primary tools of a notary signing agent is a laser printer (and lots of paper).  It's how we get the loan documents printed for closings.  The method of delivering the documents may vary.  Most of the time they are sent to us as email attachments.  Sometimes we have to log in to a secure website to download them. 

Regardless of how we receive the documents, the end result is the same:

paper

The closing documents must be printed to paper so that the borrowers can sign them.

Notary signing agents didn't always require a laser printer to get the job done.  There was a time when the documents were sent to the notary signing agent via overnight delivery (i.e. FedEx, UPS).  Or they would be sent directly to the borrower.

The emergence of e-docs

Then came the shift to requiring the notary signing agent to print the loan documents themselves.  If notary signing agents wanted to continue to do loan closings, they would need to invest in a laser printer.  And they needed to learn how to print the documents. 

The name that is associated with this process of delivering documents is 'e-docs' (or 'edocs') -- short for 'electronic documents'.  Instead of receiving a package of paper documents, the notary signing agent receives the loan documents in digital format.

Regardless of whether the documents are sent via overnight delivery or sent as e-docs, the end result remains the same: paper.  Lots and lots of paper.

Electronic documents take on a new meaning

There is a shift occuring that is revolutionizing the way notary signing agents conduct remote closings. Notary signing agents still need laser printers to print documents.  But we are now being asked if we have a laptop computer and wireless modem.  The reason: loan closings are going paperless. And the way that we access the loan documents will be via the internet.

Instead of signing paper documents with an ink signature, borrowers view the documents on a computer screen and sign them with an electronic signature.

'Sign here.' is being replaced with 'Click here.'

Once again, notary signing agents find themselves at a crossroad.  At first they needed to invest in a laser printer.  Now they will need to invest in a new technology -- one that will enable them to take advantage of this new way of doing loan closings.

This morning I came across the article: FHA Preparing Electronic Loan Specifications, Bank Technology News, by Anthony Garritano, April 8, 2009

From the article:

"We know we need to work in a paperless environment, ... Our goal is to receive all mortgage documents electronically and update FHA systems with all required information so that manual input of information by lenders is not required." - Jo Ann Kuczma, director of the home mortgage insurance division at FHA

The writing is on the wall -- in digital format. 

Notary signing agents are going to receive more and more requests to do eSignings.  This doesn't mean that we can toss out our laser printers which have served us well for so many years to do e-docs.  But there is a new type of 'e-docs' on the horizon, and we have to place ourselves in a position to take advantage of this new way of doing loan closings.

For more information, see the eSigning section on my website.