Latest / The Side Hustle Career Podcast with Fexingo: Second Income, Freelancing While Employed / How a Bank Teller Built a 7000 Monthly Side Hustle in Loan Signing
Transcript
- Lucas: So yesterday I was talking to a friend who works at a title company, and she mentioned something that made me stop — she said their most reliable mobile notary is a former bank teller who now clears about seven thousand dollars a month just driving around and watching people sign documents. Luna: Wait — seven thousand a month from loan signings? That's not a side hustle, that's a full-time income. Lucas: Exactly. And she's not even doing it full-time hours. She works about twenty to twenty-five signings a week, each one takes maybe twenty minutes at the kitchen table, plus drive time. The certification is under two hundred bucks, and there's no inventory, no product, no client retainer. Luna: So walk me through this. What does a loan signing agent actually do? I always thought you just need to be a notary public. Lucas: Right — there's a distinction. A standard notary public handles affidavits, acknowledgments, that kind of thing. A loan signing agent is a notary who specializes in real estate closing documents. You show up at the borrower's home or a coffee shop, you verify their ID, you walk them through the stack of papers — the promissory note, the deed of trust, the closing disclosure — and you make sure every signature goes in the right box. Luna: And the liability there is serious. If a borrower signs in the wrong spot, the whole funding can get delayed. Lucas: Exactly. That's why title companies pay a premium for someone who's certified specifically for loan signings. The National Notary Association offers a Loan Signing Agent certification for about one hundred and seventy-nine dollars. It's a self-paced course, maybe ten hours total, then you take an exam. Once you pass, you get listed in their directory. Luna: And from there, how do you actually get assignments? Because I imagine the competition varies a lot by market. Lucas: It does. But there are platforms that connect signing agents with title companies and escrow officers. The biggest one is Snapdocs — it's basically Uber for loan signings. You create a profile, upload your certification, set your service radius, and you start getting offers. You can also join SigningAgent dot com and Notary Rotary. Luna: And what's the typical fee per signing? I've heard numbers all over the place. Lucas: It depends on the complexity and the distance. A standard refinance signing — which is the most common type right now, given where mortgage rates are — usually pays between seventy-five and one hundred and fifty dollars per signing. A purchase closing can go higher, sometimes two hundred to three hundred, because there are more documents and often a longer appointment. Luna: So our teller doing twenty-five signings a week at, say, a hundred dollars average — that's two thousand five hundred a week. But she's netting seven thousand a month, which is closer to seventeen fifty a week. So maybe some signings pay less, or she's not doing twenty-five every week. Lucas: Right. She told me her average is about eighty-five dollars per signing, and she does about twenty-two a week on a good week. That's about eighteen seventy a week, or seven thousand five hundred a month gross. But you have to subtract expenses — gas, car maintenance, the cost of printing documents if you don't have a portable printer, and the annual notary commission renewal. Luna: Still, the math holds. And she came from a bank teller role — how did that background help? I imagine handling cash gives you a certain attention to detail. Lucas: That's exactly what she told me. Bank tellers are trained to verify signatures, check IDs, follow procedures to the letter. That's basically the entire loan signing job. She also already knew the terminology — escrow, title, notarization — so the learning curve was really just about the specific closing documents and the software platforms. Luna: And the certification itself — is it a one-and-done, or do you need continuing education? Lucas: The NNA certification is valid for one year, but you can renew it with a shorter refresher course. Your state notary commission typically lasts four years, and you need to renew that with your state's Secretary of State office. Some states require a bond, some require an exam. But overall, the ongoing costs are minimal — maybe a couple hundred bucks a year. Luna: So the barrier to entry is low, but the risk of a mistake is high. What happens if you mess up a signing? Lucas: It depends how bad. If you miss a signature or notarize an incomplete document, the title company might refuse to pay you, and you could be reported to the state. In extreme cases, if a borrower later claims they didn't understand what they signed and it goes to court, the notary can be deposed. That's why the training emphasizes the 'guardian of the signing' role — you're not there to give advice, just to ensure the process is lawful. Luna: And the demand — is this something that works in any market, or does it depend on housing activity? Lucas: It's tied to refinance and purchase volume, which fluctuates with interest rates. Right now in mid-2026, rates are still relatively elevated compared to 2020 and 2021, so refinance volume is lower than peak, but purchase transactions are steady. Also, there's a growing niche for reverse mortgage signings and commercial loan signings. And even when rates are high, there are always people moving — weddings, divorces, relocations, downsizing. Luna: So it's not a 'get rich quick' thing, but it's a legitimate skill-based side hustle with a clear path. Let me ask the practical question — what's the first step for someone listening who thinks this could work for them? Lucas: First, check your state's notary requirements. If you're not already a commissioned notary, you'll need to become one. That's typically a one-time fee under a hundred dollars, plus a background check. Then take the NCA's Loan Signing Agent course and exam. While you're doing that, set up profiles on Snapdocs and Notary Rotary. Once you pass, start accepting low-fee signings to build your reputation. The key is reliability — show up on time, don't make errors, and title companies will start requesting you directly. Luna: And the earning potential caps out? Or can you scale beyond driving around? Lucas: You can scale by hiring other notaries. Some signing agents build a small team — they take the booking, then dispatch a sub-agent to the signing and split the fee. That way you can handle multiple signings at the same time. A few agents I've read about are doing thirty to forty signings a day through a network of ten to fifteen notaries, netting around fifteen to twenty thousand a month. Luna: That's a different business model entirely. But for someone starting out, the bar is low. And it's a great example of turning a procedural skill — something you might already do in your day job — into a standalone income stream. Lucas: Exactly. And that's really the theme of a lot of these episodes. You don't need to invent something from scratch. You just need to identify a process you're already good at and find a market that will pay for it. Luna: So if you're a bank teller, a paralegal, an escrow assistant, a loan officer — this could be a natural next step. Or even if you're just someone who's meticulous and comfortable driving. Lucas: And on that note, I want to say something genuine. If you've been listening to this show and it's helped you think through a career move or given you a concrete idea you've actually pursued — a couple of dollars a month is genuinely what keeps these episodes going. You can find us at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It's that simple, and it makes a real difference. Luna: It does. And we keep the show ad-free specifically because of that support. So thank you to anyone who's contributed. Lucas: Alright, back to the signing. One thing I want to mention — there's a certification upgrade called the Certified Signing Specialist, or CSS, from the NNA. It requires twenty signings and a more advanced exam. Agents with that designation can charge premium fees, sometimes up to two hundred per signing. Luna: So after the first few months, you can invest in that upgrade and increase your rate. Lucas: Right. And the typical trajectory is: first month, maybe three to five signings as you learn the ropes. By month three, if you're actively networking with local title companies, you can hit ten to fifteen per week. By month six, you're at twenty or more. That's when the income really kicks in. Luna: And networking — I imagine that's more effective than just relying on platforms. Lucas: Absolutely. Drop off business cards at title companies. Join your local notary association. Some agents even create simple one-page flyers with their certification number and service area and fax them to every escrow officer in town. It's old-school but it works. Luna: Sounds like the kind of hustle that rewards consistency over flashiness. Lucas: That's exactly it. And for our teller friend, that consistency is now paying her a second income that rivals her full-time salary. She's actually thinking about going full-time as a signing agent later this year. Luna: That's the dream, right? Turning a side hustle into your main gig. Lucas: It is. And the path is clearer than most people think.