Posted on April 15, 2011 by Jennifer Gallagher

Today we’ll explore exactly what you need to do to become a notary in Birmingham, Alabama.  Don’t worry – the process isn’t as tedious as you might think.  In fact, I’m sure you’ll be off and running your new business as a mobile notary public in no time after reading through this concise tutorial.

The first thing on our list of to-dos is to make sure you meet some minimum qualifications.  These are:

  • You must be at least 18 years old.
  • You must be a resident in Jefferson County, Alabama.
  • You must know how to read and write English.

Now that we have those simple items taken care of, we can move on to the good stuff.  First off, if you’re not already, you’ll want to register to vote in Jefferson County.  Even though this is not technically a mandatory step towards becoming a notary, the Judge of Probate office requires that your signature on your notary application match the signature on your voter registration, so this is a logical step.

Second comes the application process.  The application is in pdf format and can be downloaded here.  There are a few requirements for the application:

  1. As noted before, your signature on the application must match that of the signature on your voter registration form.
  2. Include your home address and all other pertinent information as it appears on your driver’s license.
  3. Any and all references must sign the application in their own handwriting. They must be residents of Jefferson County and must include their home address.
  4. You must obtain a $10,000.00 surety bond (which protects the public in the event that you make an error during your term as notary) and have that bond notarized by a licensed notary public.  This bond can be obtained at most insurance agencies and must be submitted with your application no later than 30 days after obtaining it.

After completing all of the application steps, mail or bring your application, along with the notarized surety bond and an $18.00 filing fee made out to “The Judge of Probate” to:

Probate Court – Jefferson County
Record Room
Jefferson County Courthouse
716 Richard Arrington Jr. Blvd North
Birmingham, AL 35203

As soon as your application is approved, your commission will be sent to you in the mail and is good for four years.

Now that you’re officially a notary, you’ll need some supplies.  You are required by Alabama State Law to purchase a notary journal and a notary stamp.  These can be purchased at most office supply stores or online.  Check your local yellow pages or your favorite internet search engine for office supply stores that carry these items.

And that’s it! Once you have your commission and supplies in hand, you are ready to start your business as a notary public! Is that great?  Congratulations, and be sure to come back and let us know how the process went.  We always love hearing from you!

Don't forget to setup your free public profile on NotaryCRM.

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Mobile Notary Calendar Software

Posted on March 25, 2011 by Roy Rasmussen

Effective calendar management can save you tons of time, which translates into more money. But poor calendar management can be one of the biggest wastes dragging your business down. To help you save time and earn more, NotaryCRM provides mobile notary calendar software for both individual notaries and loan signing companies.

NotaryCRM integrates calendar tools with the Internet and your cell phone to easily let you manage individual and group signing schedules, financial tracking, and payment collection. In the process, NotaryCRM coordinates your calendar data with client contact list data, driving directions, and document management.

You or members of your loan signing team can sign up for NotaryCRM in both free and premium packages. Signing up for a NotaryCRM account provides instant access to these calendar management features:

  • Mobile calendar management capability: NotaryCRM uses iCalendar to integrate with mobile phone technology so that notaries can manage their signing schedule from their cell phone as well as their laptop.
  • Automated calendar scheduling: Entering a signing into the NotaryCRM system automatically displays the assignment in quick-glance calendar form.
  • Manage your group calendar: Loan signing company managers can coordinate your team’s signing schedules from one central location, without having to open additional calendar software. You can select the plan that fits the size of your team: manage up to three notaries with a Pro account, or an unlimited number with a Max account.

NotaryCRM’s calendar features integrate with these other handy features:

  • Virtual data entry assistance: NotaryCRM staff are available to save notaries and notary teams time by entering emailed assignment data and sending email updates on the status of signings.
  • Automated pay slip generation: Loan signing managers can save time processing staff payments.
  • Automated invoice generation: NotaryCRM’s payment tracking features include automated invoicing that lets notaries know when a signing’s status is complete and awaiting payment, and automatically creates an invoice.
  • Automatic tracking of outstanding payments: NotaryCRM shows at a glance how much is owed in outstanding payments in total and from individual clients.
  • Automated financial tracking: NotaryCRM’s financial tracking features include monthly reports and mileage totals, providing information that’s handy for tax time.
  • Automated client contact data management: NotaryCRM automatically integrates client contact data with scheduling information, financial information, and driving directions.
  • Automated driving directions: NotaryCRM uses client contact data to look up Internet map data and automatically display driving directions.
  • Virtual document handling: NotaryCRM’s premium packages provide virtual storage space for notary documents for easy access from anywhere, along with portable email and fax capability, allowing documents to be sent at the push of a button from a mobile phone or laptop.

NotaryCRM’s calendar features combine with these other features to provide you with a fully integrated calendar tool to save time for you or your notary team.

Individual notaries or individual members of notary teams can sign up for a free NotaryCRM account at http://notarycrm.com/.

Loan signing company managers can sign up for a free trial of either Pro or Max by going to the same link to first sign up for a free account:

http://notarycrm.com/

Then after you sign up, you’ll see an “Upgrade” menu link on the top right of your screen when you’re logged in, which takes you to this link where you can upgrade to a free trial of Pro or Max:

http://notarycrm.com/account/upgrade

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Loan Signing Agent Team Management Software Solutions

Posted on March 23, 2011 by Roy Rasmussen

If you manage a loan signing company, managing your staff takes up a lot of your time. It takes time to schedule assignments, confirm signings, process payments, pay your staff, and track your financial bottom line. The less time you can spend on these mundane tasks required to run your business, the more time you have to focus on growing your business. That’s why NotaryCRM was designed to help you automate these processes by providing you with loan signing agent team management software.

Both you and members of your loan signing team can sign up for NotaryCRM, available in both free and premium packages. When one of your notary agents signs up for a NotaryCRM account, they can get access to these time-saving features:

  • Mobile management capability: NotaryCRM integrates with mobile phone technology so that notaries can manage their signings from their cell phone as well as their laptop.
  • Automated client contact information management: NotaryCRM automatically integrates client contact information with other important data like calendar scheduling, driving directions, and payment status information.
  • Virtual data entry assistance: NotaryCRM staff are available to save notaries time by entering emailed assignment data and providing email updates on signing status.
  • Automated calendar scheduling: Signings entered into the NotaryCRM system are automatically displayed in calendar form.
  • Automated driving directions: NotaryCRM integrates client contact data with Internet map data to automatically generate driving directions.
  • Virtual document handling: NotaryCRM’s premium packages provide virtual storage space for notary documents for virtual access from anywhere, along with portable email and fax capability that allows documents to be sent from a mobile phone or laptop with the push of a button.
  • Automated invoice generation: NotaryCRM’s payment tracking feature includes automated invoicing that lets notaries know when a signing is complete and awaiting payment, and automatically generates an invoice.
  • Automatic tracking of outstanding payments: NotaryCRM displays at a glance who owes how much in outstanding payments.
  • Automated financial tracking: NotaryCRM’s financial tracking features include monthly reports and mileage totals, providing information that’s handy to have available at tax time.

In addition to these features, the manager of your notary team can coordinate your team using these additional features:

  • Manage your group calendar: Coordinate your team’s signing schedules from one central location, without having to open additional calendar software.
  • Generate pay slips for your notaries: Save time processing your staff payments.
  • Select the plan that fits your team size: Manage up to three notaries with a Pro account, or an unlimited number with a Max account.

These additional team features are available to NotaryCRM customers signed up for the Pro and Max packages.

To get your team members signed up for a free NotaryCRM account, have them sign up at http://notarycrm.com/.

To sign up for your own free trial of either Pro or Max, go to the same link to sign up for a free account:

http://notarycrm.com/

Then after you sign up, you’ll see an “Upgrade” menu link on the top right of your screen when you’re logged in, which takes you to this link where you can upgrade to a free trial of Pro or Max:

http://notarycrm.com/account/upgrade

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Mobile Notary Invoice Software Makes Getting Paid Easier

Posted on March 21, 2011 by Roy Rasmussen

Failing to automate your invoicing process creates extra work, paperwork problems, and misunderstandings with clients, which can lead to payment collection problems and lost income. Unfortunately many small business owners and independent contractors forget to automate their invoicing process when setting up their business. That’s why NotaryCRM mobile notary invoice software is designed to make automated invoicing easy for you, to make collecting payments smooth and hassle-free.

NotaryCRM automates your invoicing process by providing:

  • Automatic billing. When you schedule a new signing in NotaryCRM, the scheduling screen includes a set of fields where you enter billing information, including the price of the signing. This automatically initiates the billing process.
  • Automatic invoice generation. Once a signing has been scheduled with NotaryCRM, it goes through four stages: Scheduled, In Progress, Awaiting Payment, and Paid. The signing enters the Scheduled stage as soon as you enter an appointment. It passes into the “In Progress” stage once the appointment date has passed. At this point, you will be prompted to mark a signing as “Complete” to indicate that youʼve finished all tasks on this signing and are now waiting for payment. Marking the signing as “Complete” moves it into the “Awaiting Payment” stage. When a signing is in this stage, you will see a “send invoice” button appear to its top right. Just press this button to automatically generate your invoice.
  • Automatic outstanding payment tracking. NotaryCRM automatically displays how much each client owes you and how much you are owned in total by all your clients.

NotaryCRM does virtually everything except actually collect your payment for you. And if we can figure out how to do that, we’ll let you know!

To get your free account along with a free profile listing, go to http://notarycrm.com/.

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How Notary Accounting Software Can Earn More Money For You

Posted on March 18, 2011 by Roy Rasmussen

You might think notary accounting software is just for tracking what you earn, but it can also help you earn more. Here’s how NotaryCRM software is designed to help you do that.

When you get your free NotaryCRM account and go to your Home page tab, on top you’ll see a row with some vital monthly financial statistics that are key to earning you more money:

Signings: How many signings you made so far that month

Revenue: How much you earned so far that month

Average Signing: The average you earned per signing

Your Reports tab further lets you compare how your monthly numbers in each of these categories compare from one month to the next.

What’s so obvious that it’s easy to miss here is that there is an important relationship between these numbers, namely:

Signings x Average Signing = Revenue

What this means is that you can increase your monthly revenue by increasing:

  • The number of signings you do per month
  • The average you earn per signing
  • Both

Now this is obvious when you think about it, but the fact is, most small business owners don’t track these types of numbers closely, so they don’t notice how they’re doing in these categories. As a result, they don’t have a strategy for systematically setting their revenue goals and increasing their monthly revenue. By tracking these numbers, you can decide how much you want to earn and adjust your planning accordingly. Once you set a target monthly revenue goal, you can take action steps such as asking yourself things like:

  • Can I increase the number of signings I do per month by budgeting more time for my notary work?
  • Can I increase the number of signings I do per month by targeting a different market?
  • Can I increase the number of signings I do per month by spending more time on promotion?
  • Can I increase the number of signings I do per month by using different promotional methods?
  • Can I increase the number of signings I do per month by focusing on repeat business?
  • Can I increase the number of signings I do per month by soliciting referrals?
  • Can I increase the average I earn per signing by offering an additional service?
  • Can I increase the average I earn per signing by targeting a different market?
  • Can I increase the average I earn per signing by raising my prices?

When you start asking yourself questions like this, you’ll see why it pays off to track your key financial statistics. That’s why those statistics are the first thing you see when you go to your NotaryCRM Home page, and why NotaryCRM tracks those stats for you.

To get your free NotaryCRM account along with a free profile listing, go to http://notarycrm.com/.

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Time Management Software Tips for Mobile Notaries

Posted on March 16, 2011 by Roy Rasmussen

Mobile notaries can save time and money by automating routine tasks with time management software like NotaryCRM. NotaryCRM is specially designed to help mobile notary and loan signing agents save time on tasks like calendar management, client data management, scheduling assignments, document management, payment collection, bookkeeping, and managing teams of notaries. Here are some time management software tips for mobile notaries that you can apply by using NotaryCRM:

  • Budget your time with NotaryCRM’s calendar view: Time budgeting is a key to effective time management. There are 168 hours in a week. Most people spend 100 hours a week on non-work activity, leaving 68 hours left for your mobile notary work and any other work. NotaryCRM’s calendar feature lets you see at a glance how your scheduled notary assignments fit into the rest of your schedule, so you can calculate your time budget more quickly and easily. And if you have a cell phone that uses Apple iCal, Mozilla Calendar, or another program that supports the iCalendar format, you can view your calendar right from your cell phone: just subscribe to your NotaryCRM calendar on your iCal-enabled phone. You can also subscribe on your desktop calendar program.
  • Save time managing client data: NotaryCRM lets you easily enter and retrieve all information about your clients from one central location. Instead of searching through spreadsheets and using multiple software tools, just pull up the record for your client and you can immediately see their contact information, scheduled signings, driving directions to their location, documents, and financial data.
  • Save time scheduling assignments: NotaryCRM has interactive fields set up to let you easily enter and adjust scheduling information, without scrolling through hard-to-see rows and columns.
  • Save time entering assignment data: To save you time entering data, NotaryCRM’s premium Solo, Max, and Pro packages allow you the option of forwarding emailed signing assignments to our support team so we can enter your data for you. We also save you time following up by sending you an automatic update alert when the signing is complete, usually within a few minutes if it’s during the business day.
  • Save time looking up directions: NotaryCRM automatically uses your client’s contact information to pull up a map with driving directions for you.
  • Document handling: NotaryCRM’s premium packages give you virtual storage space to store your notary documents so you can access them from anywhere. You also get portable email and fax capability so you can send documents from your cell phone or laptop with the push of a button, without having to spend hours waiting for a fax machine.
  • Save time sending invoices: NotaryCRM’s payment tracking feature includes automated invoicing that lets you know when a signing is complete and awaiting payment, and automatically generates an invoice for you.
  • Send time tracking outstanding payments: NotaryCRM tells you at a glance how much you’re owed in outstanding payments and who you need to collect from.
  • Save time calculating taxes: NotaryCRM’s financial tracking features include monthly reports and mileage totals, providing you with a handy record of information you’ll need at tax time.
  • Save time managing teams of notaries: NotaryCRM’s Max and Pro packages are designed for companies that manage teams of notaries. The Max package lets you manage up to three notaries, generate notary pay slips, and manage a group calendar for your team. The Pro upgrade does all this for an unlimited number of notaries.

These items might sound like small time consumers individually, but add them up, and multiply them by how many times you perform these tasks every week, and you’ll soon see why putting these tips into practice can be a huge time saver.

You can easily put all these time management tips into practice by signing up for a free account with NotaryCRM. To get your free account along with a free profile listing, http://notarycrm.com/.

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Is Mobile Notary Gas Mileage Tax Deductible?

Posted on March 14, 2011 by Roy Rasmussen

If you’re a mobile notary, you’ve probably wondered whether your gas mileage is tax deductible. The answer is yes, but you must be careful to follow the applicable rules, keep good records, and choose the best deduction method.

1. Know the Rules

Federal and state tax regulations both apply, and you should be aware of both. For federal taxes, the IRS provides information in Publication 463: Travel, Entertainment, Gift, and Car Expenses and Topic 510 – Business Use of Car. For state regulations, check with your individual state publications or representatives, or talk to your tax consultant.

The IRS specifies that if you use your car only for business, you can deduct all associated expenses (under certain restrictions discussed more fully in the publications referenced above). Otherwise, if you use your car for both personal and business use, you can only deduct business-related expenses. In the latter case, you can use one of two methods to calculate your deduction: the standard mileage rate method and the actual expenses method, described in more detail below and more complete in the referenced IRS publications.

Briefly, the standard mileage rate is based on mileage, uses a variable annual rate, and requires less paperwork; while the actual expenses method allows you to deduct other car-related expenses, is based on the percentage of time you use your car for business, and requires more paperwork. Ideally you should calculate using both methods to see which gives you a greater deduction.

The standard mileage rate varies annually. You can find the current rate in Publication 463: Travel, Entertainment, Gift, and Car Expenses. For the official announcement of the 2010 rate, see “IRS Announces 2010 Standard Mileage Rates”.

2. Keep Good Records

Both for calculations and for auditing, you should keep good records. Relevant records include:

  • A record of how much you use your car for business purposes, in the form of a mileage log that records where you went, the business purpose of your trip, and how many miles you traveled. NotaryCRM software helps you automate tracking of this information, though it does not directly perform tax calculations.
  • Receipts for car-related expenses, including gas, repairs, parking, and tolls.

You should maintain these records up to ten years in case you are audited.

3. Choose the Best Deduction Method

You should calculate your deductions using both methods, and then compare the results:

  • Standard Mileage Rate Method: Add up how many business miles you drove during the year, and multiply them by the standard mileage rate for that year. The rate varies annually. You can find the current rate in Publication 463: Travel, Entertainment, Gift, and Car Expenses. If you use the standard mileage rate, you can add to your deduction any parking fees and tolls incurred for business purposes.
  • Actual Expenses Method: Add up all the costs of owning and operating your car, including gas, oil, repairs, tires, insurance, registration fees, licenses, and depreciation (or lease payments). Divide the total by the percentage of time you use your car for business purposes. You can further subtract parking fees and tolls attributable to business use.

For the specific details about how to calculate using these methods, consult an official publication or your tax consultant.

After calculating using both methods, compare the results to see which deduction will save you more money on taxes, taking into account any situational regulations.

For more information, consult the referenced IRS publications or your tax consultant. NotaryCRM does not render tax advice and provides this summary for your convenience, for information only. We hope it helps save you some time and money. Don’t forget to use NotaryCRM to track your mileage!

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Schedule Notary Signings Faster with Virtual Assistance

Posted on March 11, 2011 by Roy Rasmussen

NotaryCRM mobile notary software already saves you a lot of time managing your notary signings once the data is entered into our system, but some of you have asked us if it would be possible to save time entering the data in the first place. The answer is yes! NotaryCRM is now offering our Solo, Max, and Pro users a new time-saving support feature, that we’re calling “Virtual Scheduling Assistance” (at least until we can come up with a better name for it!).

Before, when it came time to schedule a signing assignment you had received via email, you had to manually enter the data into your account yourself. Not the worst thing in the world, but it does take time, and anytime you can save time, you’re saving money.

So now, to save you time and money, instead of entering your scheduling data yourself, you can just forward your email assignment to us, and our support team will enter the data for you! We’ll even send you an automatic update alert when the signing is complete, usually within minutes during the business day. It’s like having your own virtual secretary to schedule your appointments for you!

Have anything else you’d like to see added to NotaryCRM? Just let us know by posting your comments below or emailing us, and we’ll do our best to make it happen.

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Do You Have to Be a US Citizen to Be a Notary?

Posted on March 10, 2011 by Roy Rasmussen

Do you have to be a US citizen to become a notary? The question is more complicated than you might think, and the answer may surprise you.

Before 1984, most states required a notary to be a US citizen, a resident of the state where they were applying to be a notary, or both.

Then came the case of Bernal v. Fainter, 467 U.S. 216, 104 S. Ct. 2312, 81 L. Ed. 2d 175 (1984). In this case, the US Supreme Court ruled in favor of a resident alien whose application to become a notary in Texas had been denied on grounds of non-citizenship. The Supreme Court ruled that requiring US citizenship for notaries was unconstitutional under the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause, which extends equal protection of the law to all persons within the jurisdiction of a state. More specifically, the Court ruled that a notary’s duties do not require citizenship because they are essentially “clerical and ministerial,” only requiring the notary to follow applicable laws regarding document authorization, not requiring the notary to make policy or to execute judgment or discretion on behalf of the state the way certain types of public servants like police officers do.

Despite this ruling, many states’ statutes still list US citizenship requirements for notaries.

Confused? You’re not alone. When in doubt, your best bet is to check with your own state regulations, and a knowledgeable attorney.

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Can a Notary Perform a Marriage?

Posted on March 7, 2011 by Roy Rasmussen

Notaries are sometimes called upon to witness the signing of marriage documents, which is one market mobile notaries can specialize in. Can notaries also actually perform marriages? The answer is, it depends on where you are.

Marriage laws vary by location. There are currently three states and one county where notaries can perform (“solemnize”) marriages:

  • In Florida, notaries may solemnize marriages. See the Governor’s Reference Manual for Notaries for details about how Florida notaries must handle dealing with original marriage licenses vs. photocopied documents, obtaining a proper marriage license from a county court judge or clerk of the circuit court, performing a marriage ceremony, making and filing a certificate on a marriage license, fee limits, presiding over the marriage of relatives, verifying marriage license expiration dates, obtaining signatures from additional witnesses, dealing with situations where law officers are acting as notaries, recording marriage ceremonies in notary journals, and dealing with couples who have obtained their marriage license in another state, and other topics.
  • In Maine, notaries may perform marriage ceremonies. See Maine’s Notary Public Handbook and Resource Guide for details about how Maine notaries must handle advertising of marriage-performing services, obtaining a proper marriage license from a municipal office, dealing with original marriage licenses vs. photocopied documents, assembling witnesses for marriage ceremonies, using seals on marriage licenses, keeping records of marriage ceremonies, filing marriage licenses with municipal offices, advising couples of the distinction between marriage licenses and marriage certificates, and presiding over the marriage of relatives.
  • In South Carolina, notaries may perform marriage ceremonies. See the South Carolina Notary Public Reference Manual for details about how South Carolina notaries must handle marriage license certification, checking marriage license expiration dates, witnessing signatures, signing and dating marriage licenses, creating copies of marriage licenses, using seals on marriage licenses, filing marriage licenses, and conducting marriage ceremonies.
  • In Louisiana, West Feliciana County has special rules regarding notaries performing marriages. For details, contact the Louisiana Secretary of State Notary Division or the West Feliciana Parish Clerk of Court.

In places where notaries are not authorized to perform marriages, notaries should be careful to follow correct procedure when witnessing marriage document signings. Check your own state regulations for details.

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