Note closings don’t always happen in an office. Sometimes the papers have to travel to the note seller. This is the true story of a Seattle cab driver hired as a courier for a day by a note-buying company, and what that day shows about getting signatures, notarizations and checks safely into the right hands.
An unusual courier job
The call came in early on a Monday morning. Seattle Yellow Cab’s central dispatcher snapped, “I have this all-day job here, Dennis. They have papers to be picked up from the courthouse, go get signatures, that kind of thing. Want it?”
“Sure,” I replied. “Work is work.”
“Okay, see the lady at Wall Street Brokers. Corner of Fifth and Wall Street.”
It was a nice uptown address. When I walked into the office, I instantly recognized the look on their faces. I’ll admit I’m a burly guy, and some people think I look like a cross between Santa Claus and a biker-bar regular. People stare at my shoulder-length hair and Indiana Jones hat. But I win them over.
“Hi!” I said brightly. “I’m Dennis Roberts, the singing taxi driver. I’m here to pick up those papers at the courthouse for you.”
The woman introduced herself as Lorelei Stevens, president of Wall Street Brokers. She did a pretty good job of not staring while she explained her business: buying seller-financed notes. I would be the courier for some very important deals that day.
Then she said I looked like a character actor in the movies. “Good guess,” I said. “I am a character actor. Ever see the television series Northern Exposure? I was in several episodes. And I’ve been a professional Santa Claus during the Christmas season for years.”
That went over well. Before she would map out the day, she wanted to know one more thing: “Are you really a singing cab driver? Sing me a song, then.” I gave her my best Elvis doing “Jingle Bells,” and the whole office applauded.
Collecting court records and legal papers
And what a day’s work it was. First I drove to the municipal courthouse and picked up certified copies of several judgments Lorelei needed, plus tapes of important testimony. Then I dropped them at a lawyer’s office, picked up other papers and brought them back to Lorelei.
Then came the surprise. The next stop was a town up north, where I would visit the homes of two elderly women, first Glenda and then Katie. Both were selling notes to Wall Street Brokers, and neither could get out of the house for business. Lorelei explained that Glenda’s note was a first lien and Katie’s was a second lien, and told me exactly what I needed to do with each.
Closing with the first note seller
I threaded my way through heavy traffic to Glenda’s house and knocked on the door with her papers, and her check, in my hands. Lorelei had called ahead to tell her about me. Glenda invited me in, played the piano for me, and accompanied me while I sang “Winter Wonderland.”
When the music died away, she turned to the business papers. “Everything looks in order,” she said. Then she whispered, “You know, Dennis, I was always taught never to trust anyone when it came to money. Take me to the bank so I can make sure Wall Street Brokers’ check is good.”
I kept from laughing and said, “Sure. We have to go there anyway to get the papers notarized, remember?”
At the bank we laid the papers out on a counter. I had all the details fresh in mind. Being a cabbie gives you a good memory for things like street names and routes to avoid. So I showed her the exact pages that needed her signature, and when she skipped one, I politely turned the page back and said, “This one, too, please.”
When all the signatures were done, I made sure a bank official notarized every paper, just as Lorelei had instructed. I gave Glenda her cashier’s check, she confirmed at the teller’s window that it was good, and she deposited it.
On the way out, she insisted on buying me a hamburger across the street to thank me. I got a deluxe with the works; she got a plain burger and bun. I felt a little guilty, but ate mine with gusto.
The second closing and the race to the title company
The second stop was Katie O’Brien’s. She is very old, and Lorelei had called ahead, so she was expecting the singing cab driver. Her grown children lived across the street, and my job was to have them come over so one of them could notarize the papers. So with a house full of people, I sang “When Irish Eyes Are Smiling.”
Katie signed all the papers and I gave her a cashier’s check. The O’Briens wanted me to stay and sing some more, but I had to rush the papers to the title insurance company. It was a race against time. They sent me to the wrong office first, and I reached the right desk just in the nick of time.
I got back to Wall Street Brokers with copies of everything, with every paper signed in the right places. “You did everything perfectly,” Lorelei said. “You’re good at this.”
What a note closing courier needs to get right
Strip away the songs and the hamburgers, and this one day covers the essentials of closing a note purchase with a seller who can’t come to you:
- Know the deal before you arrive. Lorelei briefed her courier on which note was a first lien and which was a second, and what had to happen with each.
- Call the seller ahead. Both sellers were expecting the courier, which put them at ease.
- Get every signature. The courier knew exactly which pages needed signing and caught the one that was skipped.
- Notarize everything. Each set of papers was notarized before the check changed hands.
- Pay with a check the seller can verify. A cashier’s check let a cautious seller confirm her money at the bank.
- Deliver the papers on time and keep copies. The signed papers went straight to the title insurance company, and copies went back to the buyer.
That was three months ago. Since then I’ve been the Wall Street Brokers courier many times. Lorelei took a special interest in me and talked me into getting a notary commission so I can do that part of the work myself. Every time I see her, she gives me a five-minute lesson about buying notes. I’m learning a lot, and I may buy some notes myself one day.
Hey, gotta go. The dispatcher just called with another Wall Street Brokers job.
