Can You Make Money as a Notary? Yes! Make an Extra $1,000 a Month

Many people are looking for ways to make easy money. But you need to understand that you’re going to have to work for it.

Can You Make Money as a Notary?

If you want an honest way of making a living without having to worry about the economy, you should consider becoming a notary public. You will be able to take advantage of many different opportunities through this profession because there is always demand for notaries.

Some of the opportunities that you’ll have as a notary include:

• you can secure your clients’ documents
• you can sell or provide your notary services as an independent contractor
• you can specialize in areas such as real estate law, loan signing, or surety bonds
• you will have the power to prepare legal documents
• you can help your clients with their estates in the event of death or incapacitation
• you can provide signing services for people who are going through divorces
• you will be able to assist business owners with various aspects regarding contracts and loan signing agreements

These opportunities will make it easier for you to generate extra money. In fact, you could make a lot more money as a signing agent than you ever thought possible.

However, let’s start by talking about why you shouldn’t become a notary.

Don’t Become a Notary If…

Becoming a signing agent isn’t for everyone. In fact, there are a few reasons why you shouldn’t become a signing agent.

Here they are.

Competition

First, you need to understand that you’re going to have plenty of competition when you start this profession. In fact, you’re going to have thousands of people who are competing for the same jobs. Most people will do this as a side business or a part-time job. If you’re not willing to work hard to stick out and find business, you might not make any money.

Reputation

Another reason you shouldn’t become a notary signing agent is because you need to think about your reputation. You’ll have a lot of clients who you’re working very closely with, and you’re going to be responsible for making sure that you provide excellent services. If you don’t take this profession seriously, you might end up ruining your reputation quickly.

Mega Money

Finally, if you’re looking to become a millionaire, you shouldn’t pursue this profession. It’s true you can make a lot of money, but you probably aren’t going to become a millionaire by doing it. Also, if you don’t want to work very hard and you’re just looking for some quick cash, you should probably look somewhere else.

Why You Should Become a Notary

Now that you know why you shouldn’t become a notary, let’s talk about two big reasons why you should pursue this profession and answer the question: Is being a notary worth it?

Money

As you may have guessed, you can earn money as a notary agent. But how much you make depends on your location, your clientele, and the number of hours you are willing to put into this endeavor.

You will likely be paid per signature or for completing certain tasks, such as authenticating a copy of a document. This means you will need to track your time accurately in order to ensure you get paid what you deserve for your work. If you’re good with numbers and can follow simple math procedures, you’ll do fine as long as you have an hour-tracking tool available to use (such as a spreadsheet).

Although you will likely not rake in the big bucks working part-time from home without any experience or education, you will be able to pay a bill here and there, or you could even save up enough money for a nice vacation or be smart and invest that in the stock market or invest in bitcoin.

According to Career Trend, notaries earned an average wage of $14.04 per hour. So how much does a notary make a year on average? This will vary a great deal depending on a number of different factors such as location, clients, and services that you offer. You might not make that much at first, but remember you are just getting your foot in the door by becoming a licensed notary.

Flexibility

One of the great things about becoming a notary is that you can make it as flexible as you want.

Many notaries work evenings and weekends since they have regular jobs during the day. In addition, you can work in different locations, such as at home (if you hate driving) or at a bank.

Whether you decide to take your chances working at the local bank or run your own business, you can expect to be busier when you become a commissioned notary. If you handle most of your business at the bank you will most likely only be doing signings during regular banking hours or you may have back-to-back assignments on occasion.

If you choose to go out on your own you can work anytime you want so long as you have access to a computer and printer, which is necessary if you earn your living signing documents for clients. You’ll need to remember that not everyone who wants their document signed is available during regular business hours, so you will likely end up with more weekend gigs than if you worked in a bank.

However you choose to operate your business you will still be able to enjoy the freedom of working from home, and you can even take on clerical projects part-time if you want extra income beyond your commissions. You may even find you prefer one over the other depending on your current schedule or you could end up juggling both. Whatever you decide, keep in mind that your income as a notary is ultimately determined by how much time you put into this profession.

How much you make as a commissioned notary is ultimately determined by how many hours (and documents such as loan signings) you decide to handle, so it’s up to you where and when you work. You don’t necessarily have to dedicate yourself full-time if that isn’t really your thing; just be aware that the more time you spend on this profession, the more you will make.

Do You Have What it Takes?

You may wonder if you should launch a business of your own or put in applications at local banks. Answer these questions first before you decide:

1) Can you follow simple instructions and learn new tasks quickly? If you can’t you’ll probably want to work for someone else instead of handling on-the-job training all by yourself.

2) Are you detail oriented? You won’t get very far as a commissioned notary if you don’t pay attention to detail and can get frustrated when things aren’t perfect. Try your hand at something that doesn’t involve so much fine tuning like painting, crafting, knitting, sewing , walking dogs, etc. Then you’ll know you have the patience you need – not to mention you can turn your hobby into a legit money-making business.

3) Are you comfortable with public speaking? Even though you will most likely be the one behind the counter, you will still have to make phone calls or field questions that come in from clients. Although you may dread this aspect of your job, you should at least be able to speak clearly and effectively over the phone. Remember, people are paying for your service when they sign documents so you must put forth that extra effort if you expect them to return.

4) Can you keep records? If you’ve done some research on how to become a commissioned signing agent you know you’ll need to keep meticulous records of all your business transactions as well as all your expenses. If you can’t find a way to organize these tasks you may want to reconsider going into business for yourself.

5) Are you organized? You need to be on top of things if you plan on making money as a commissioned notary. This includes bookkeeping, organizing your workspace, following up with clients, and keeping up with industry news in order to stay current on changes to things like loan signing requirements. And when you do get into the swing of things you’ll enjoy having a little extra income coming in sporadically.

6) Are you goal-oriented and willing to put forth the effort necessary to achieve your goals? If you’re just trying to make ends meet you may want to reconsider this road because you won’t make a lot of money unless you really work at it, but you will be laying down some good groundwork for what could potentially turn into a very lucrative business.

On the other hand if you’re making money as a notary in your spare time or you are using this profession as a springboard for an entirely new career path, then you might want to forge ahead with your plans.

How to Become a Notary Public Successfully

If you want to be very successful with your career as a notary, you need to go above and beyond when you start it out.

You should work hard at building your brand through social media outlets like Twitter and Facebook. These two sites can help you reach the highest number of people in the shortest amount of time.

In addition, you’ll have an opportunity to gain recommendations from clients that you’ve helped in the past. When you create good relationships with them, they’ll be likely to recommend your services such as loan signing to others.

To give yourself an edge over your competitors, you should consider getting certified by the National Notary Association (NNA). This way, you’ll know what you’re doing before starting out on your own. By taking classes you can learn about the proper application of notary laws and you’ll have a support system in place to help you grow your career.

You may want to consider joining an organization like NNA even if you don’t intend on actually getting certified, because you’ll be able to network with other people in your profession as well as make a few business contacts who you can call upon for advice when you need it.

Make sure you’re 100% comfortable with all the legal aspects of being a commissioned notary before you start offering your services. If you know what you’re doing, chances are good that you won’t come across any problems but it’s best if you have a full understanding of the law just in case something should arise.

You should also take courses on business or accounting and you may want to check out the notary classes offered at your local community college or you can even find what you need online.

Where Will You Get Your Clients?

If you’re wondering where you’ll be able to find all of your clients you have a few options available to you:

1) Start networking with people in your community who might be interested in hiring you as a notary. Start by contacting your local chamber of commerce and see if they know anyone that would benefit from the services you provide (they might even put you in direct contact with them).

Contacting your friends and family might also get you started down the right path because they will probably be happy help you out.

2) Put together a business card and include your name and your contact information and you should probably throw a website URL on there as well. If you don’t have a website you might want to consider using sites like SquareSpace and Weebly since they make it really simple for you to get up and running with your own site without any prior knowledge of how the internet works.

Currently these services are free but you may need to pay extra fees if you opt for web hosting later on. And when you do get started you might even want to look into other options that cost money, such as WordPress.

3) Start traveling around town handing out your business cards to everyone you meet. This will be a great way for you to get your brand out there in front of the right kind of clients you want as your customers. You may even want to consider putting up fliers that you’ve created yourself and you can hand those out as well.

Getting Started With Your Own Website

If you do plan on launching your own website you should make sure it’s very professional looking because you want people who are seriously interested in hiring you to actually contact you.

If they look at your page and they don’t feel like you’re an expert, then chances are good that they won’t bother calling you and this could literally cost you a lot in terms of lost business opportunities.

If you’re not that good of a web designer you may want to consider hiring someone to create your site for you. Hiring a professional isn’t going to be cheap and you might have to pay up front but you’ll definitely get what you’re paying for because you won’t have any problems with people being able to read your content or seeing your website in general.

By making sure you’ve covered all bases you’ll be on the right track towards running a highly successful notary business.

How to Become a Mobile Notary

If you want you can become a mobile notary and you may even be able to do it in your spare time. For this you should make sure you have all the legal documents you need on board (a commission and other important paperwork) as well as keeping copies of everything in a safe place where you know you won’t lose it.

You’ll also need to get yourself a laptop or netbook so you can sign all of the necessary documentation no matter where you are.

How do You Become a Notary: 4 Easy Steps

There are several things you need to do in order to become a commissioned notary.

Step 1: Figure Out Where

The very first thing you’ll need to do is you’ll have to figure out the state you want to get certified in and you’ll also need to find out which documents you’re going going need. All states have their own rules about who can be a notary, so you may end up having a little bit more work on your hands than you initially thought.

You might be wondering:

• How much does a notary make in Georgia?
• How much does a notary make in Texas?
• How much does a notary make in Florida?

Which States Are Best?

Well, if you’re just getting started you might want to consider becoming a commissioned notary public in either California or Florida. Both of these states will help you make money as soon as possible since there’s an extremely high demand for people like us.

But if you want the best you’ll want to look into becoming a certified notary in California because you can start making money as soon as you complete your training. You could end up doing a lot of business if you become an official notary since there are so many people who need your services.

But you should talk to someone qualified before you make any decisions about whether you should pursue one state over another.

Here are the requirements for every state, (including Washington DC):

Alabama	Hawaii	Massachusetts	New Mexico	South Dakota
Alaska	Idaho	Michigan	New York	Tennessee
Arizona	Illinois	Minnesota	North Carolina	Texas
Arkansas	Indiana	Mississippi	North Dakota	Utah
California	Iowa	Missouri	Ohio	Vermont
Colorado	Kansas	Montana	Oklahoma	Virginia
Connecticut	Kentucky	Nebraska	Oregon	Washington
Delaware	Louisiana	Nevada	Pennsylvania	West Virginia
Florida	Maine	New Hampshire	Rhode Island	Wisconsin
Georgia	Maryland	New Jersey	South Carolina	Wyoming

Step 2: Review the Documents You Need

Once you decide where you’re going to become a notary, the next step is to figure out which documents you’ll need. In most cases you won’t need any documents, but you might have to file some paperwork in order to get your commission seal.

It’s usually just a matter of finding the right forms and you should have everything you need on the state website you’re dealing with.

You can find all this information on the Notary Public License Agreement page that you can find on their government site. This not only shows you exactly what you’ll need to become a commissioned notary public, it also tells you where you can send your applications.

Each state is different so make sure you’ve followed all instructions properly for your location or else you may end up waiting even longer than expected to receive your license.

Step 3: Take Oath of Office

Once you completed your training you’ll need to take the Oath of Office in order to make money as a notary. This is just part of the normal application you will have to fill out and you can find this information by going through your state’s website.

Step 4: Submit Relevant Documents

Once you’ve completed all the steps it will be time for you to submit your documents. Once you send them off you should receive your official commission seal within 10 business days or less, depending on how long it takes your county clerk to respond.

It’s important that you follow all instructions and apply at least 30 days before you plan on using your certificate for public use, so make sure you get everything in order first and then check back with the Notary Public License Agreement page on your respective state government site.

Article Takeaways

Notaries public are individuals who have been officially appointed by the state to perform certain duties, such as verifying documents.

To get started:

• Explore your state’s requirements for becoming a notary public
• Become certified in California since the pay is higher
• Look up where you need to apply and what you’ll need
• Apply for your commission seal after you’ve completed training and take the oath of office
• Send all your application materials in so you can start making money right away
• Wait for 10 business days before using your commission seal
• Follow the instructions you find on your state government website

Conclusion

If you’re ready to start making money you should consider pursuing a career in notary public. Once you’ve reached your goal you’ll be able to take some time off and you can continue working for as long as you want. It’s definitely worth it if you ask me, especially when you go through the training and get certified.

You could really have a blast with this type of job and I recommend that you give it a try. The more you make, the more likely you are going to become someone that’s able to have extra money through this legitimate side hustle. If you have any questions, leave a comment below.

FAQ – Make Money as a Notary