Why people in Lake Wales call
The requests I get most from this side of the county:
- Powers of attorney and advance directives prepared by an attorney.
- Estate and trust documents.
- Property transfers between family members.
- Affidavits for pensions, benefits and insurance.
- Closings for buyers and sellers in the retirement communities.
Getting to you in Lake Wales
Lake Wales is about thirty-five minutes southeast of Lakeland along Highway 27 or Highway 60, so appointments here are usually booked a day ahead rather than same-hour.
It is a town with many retirement and 55-plus communities, which means the work skews towards estate planning documents and powers of attorney, often with adult children joining by phone from another state.
Because of the distance, I will always tell you honestly when a remote online session would serve you better and cost less.
What a visit looks like
You tell me the address and a time, including evenings and weekends. I arrive with everything needed, check identification, witness the signatures and complete the certificates on the spot.
Home, office, hospital, care facility, a café or a parking lot — wherever suits the people signing.
Or skip the travel entirely
If the document is straightforward and the receiving office accepts electronic notarization, a remote online session takes about fifteen minutes and costs no travel fee. It is often the better answer for a single signature.
What to have ready
- The document, complete and unsigned.
- Current, government-issued photo ID for everyone signing.
- Witnesses, if the document requires them — I cannot act as both notary and witness.
- The correct notarial certificate, or a call to the receiving office to find out which one they want.
Frequently asked questions
- Do you charge extra to travel to Lake Wales?
- There is a travel fee based on distance and time of day, agreed with you before I set out. The notarial fee itself is capped by Florida law at $10 per act.
- Can you come today?
- Often yes, including evenings and weekends. Call rather than email if it is for today.
- Is it worth you driving out here for one document?
- Sometimes not. If the receiving office accepts electronic notarization, an online session is faster and has no travel fee, and I will say so.
- Can my children join from out of state?
- They can watch or join an online session. Only the people signing need to be verified.