Notary Accessories - 4 Must Have Items in your Bag

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A mobile notary is always on the go! We're running from one appointment to another, helping people work through the long process of signing mortgage documents, or running to an escrow office to pick up documents, or running home to take care of scanning paperwork or filing documents. No matter how busy I get I always make sure that I have a few notary accessories in my bag that will keep me going throughout the day!

Extra Pens - Can't Sign Without Em!

Pens seem so innocent and easy to forget. It seems like we're always tossing out pens in our lives! Well as a loan signing agent, my love affair with pens has taken on a level that I never believed imaginable! Whenever you get an assignment to complete a real estate transaction, a loan signing service will give instructions which likely have originated from an escrow office. In nearly every single loan signing, they specify exactly what color ink they need the documents to be signed in! Most of the time they say blue ink, sometimes they say black ink, and sometimes they don't indicate one way or another.

No matter what notary accessories you carry, you need the best education to be a loan signing agent. Click here for more information about the Loan Signing System!

Regardless, if you have multiple appointments throughout the day, and leave a pen with a client here or there, you might end up showing to an appointment with no pens in your bag, which could be devastating! You don't want something simple like pens cause a delay in closing a loan. You could put your reputation at risk and it's just not worth it.
I always order the same pens in bulk from Amazon, so that I can have a fresh supply in my bag as I start each day.

I like this brand Zebra, and usually get this dual pack of 12 each blue and black pens
Be sure to stay away from Gel pens because they tend to smear!

Stamp Ink Refill - But Be Careful Carrying it Around!

Another accessory that I carry is a stamp ink refill. When I first got my notary stamp, I have to admit, I messed around with it quite a bit, stamping a bunch of papers and shredding them, showing off to the kids. But after I did about 25 stamps, I started thinking, I wonder how long it'll be before this ink runs out? If it ran out in the middle of a loan signing, that could be bad news! So I did some research on ink refills, and ended up liking this one:

MaxMark Premium Refill Ink for Self-Inking Stamps
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But please take care with this product! As I read through reviews about other ink bottles I noticed that there were many people indicating that their ink refill had leaked, or exploded! That is one of the reasons I chose this refill - I didn't see one complaint about an exploding refill in someone's notary bag! I'll still keep mine in a seal able plastic bag for extra comfort.

Health Items - Even More Important Now!

As I write this, we're nearly a year into the COVID-19 pandemic. It's been a long tiring lifestyle change to try to protect ourselves and our loved ones. With my large group of 5 kids, and the number of other kids we visited with, even before the pandemic, I always carried around a bottle of hand sanitizer just to keep the germs at bay. With loan signing, you're face to face with clients that you have no idea what exposure they've had recently and I feel it's our personal responsibility to protect ourselves and anyone that we come in contact with.

So in addition to the Purell Advanced Hand Sanitizer that I got in a Variety pack here

I also always am following the Centers for Disease Control's recommendations and wearing a double layer cotton mask like this one but I'm also doing my part to keep socially distanced and limit the number of people that I'm associating with that live outside of my household.
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I'm so glad that there is a light at the end of the tunnel and we're looking forward to these pandemic recommendations lifting as soon as possible. Please to your part to slow the spread! 

My Most Fashionable Accessory, my Bag

Well when we talk about accessories, of course you have to cover the thing that this whole post is centered around, my bag! Just like any woman who wants to look professional but cute, I shopped around quite a bit to find a bag that I think meets all the right criteria for my needs.

I really wanted my bag to be cute, but professional looking. I found this bag with a classic brown leather look that will match nearly any outfit I choose for work. I feel like I dress on the higher end of business casual, attempting to be more businesslike in most situations.

It also needed to have enough length to accommodate legal sized documents without damaging them, and be able to hold multiple loan document packets. Loan document packets can be in excess of 100 pages, so with an original copy and a copy for the client, the volume of paperwork can add up fast.

This bag also has a few pockets inside so I can stay organized with the supplies I mentioned above, and also be able to carry my standard notary equipment such as my journal, my stamp, clipboards and folders.
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I'm still not sure if this bag is going to work long term for me. It feels secure, but there have been a couple times when I've tried to close it that I've kind of struggled to get the snaps to lock right. I'm hoping to give it a little time to break in before I make a decision. I'll also plan on writing up a full review of this bag and why I love it or not after I spend a bit more time using it in the field.

In Conclusion

No matter what you chose to carry for notary accessories, there are things that you must to in order to be the best notary public or loan signing agent you can, and that all centers around education and experience. Without experience, you won't be able to be flexible in situations and be able to get the job done, the documents signed, and the loans closed on time.

But of course the foundation of getting experience is education. Without education there are too many rabbit holes to get lost in and to be a successful notary signing agent you need focus. That's why I took Mark Will's Loan Signing System Course, and I recommended it to my husband, who has started successfully notarizing loans too, and I also recommend it to my closest friends who have come along with me on this journey.
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As your friend and mentor I have to recommend you check out the Loan Signing System too if you want the best education to be successful in my favorite side hustle ever!
Thanks!