When I started searching, 35 years ago, the county charged 25 cents per copy. I charged 50 cents. Now the county charges 10 cents so I charge 35 cents. My feeling is that I was charging 25 cents to make a copy before so why shouldn't I still charge the same?
I only charge for "extra copies". With a current owner I do not charge. For a full search I usually charge 35 cents a page. For master deeds etc. I charge 35 cents. On the full searches the copy cost is to make up for the fact that I cannot afford to do a full search for $100.
I would not accept work from a company that refuses to pay me to make a copy. If they want copies for the price that is charged by the county clerk then they can come to my county and make their own copies.
This business is being destroyed by price cutting. I get companies offering me a lower fee for a current owner search than I was charging 35 years ago. Please find another profession that charges the same or a lower fee that they charged 35 years ago.
I recently told a prospective client that I would charge $80 for a current owner search. He laughed at me and told me that was much too high. I checked his website and found that his charge for a current owner search was $95. So he, who basically just gets the order, orders the search from a searcher and then sends it to his client, is hoping to make more than the person who actually does the work and passes off the liability to me. Companies like this rarely ask about my experience, my accuracy, etc. They want to know how quickly I can do the search, how much I charge and, most importantly, do I carry insurance.
I keep trying to hold on but it appears that title searching is no longer a viable profession.

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