Do Notary Signing Agents Actually Need a Dual Tray Printer? The Honest Answer

The dual tray printer question comes up constantly in notary forums. It's one of the highest-traffic threads on Notary Cafe, one of the most-searched equipment questions among new and experienced signing agents alike, and the source of more conflicting opinions than almost any other topic in the industry.

Here's the honest answer, without the manufacturer bias or the "I just want to justify the purchase I already made" reasoning that shapes a lot of the discussion.

What a Dual Tray Printer Actually Does — And Why It Matters for Notaries

A dual tray laser printer has two separate paper trays — typically one for standard 8.5" x 11" paper and one for legal-size 8.5" x 14" paper. You can switch between paper sizes automatically without manually swapping paper in and out mid-print job.

For notary signing agents, this matters because loan packages include both letter and legal size documents. A standard mortgage package typically contains letter-size documents for most of the package and legal-size documents for the note, deed of trust, and sometimes the closing disclosure, depending on the lender.

With a single-tray printer, printing a mixed package requires you to pause the print job, swap paper, resume printing, swap back, and resume again — multiple times for a large package. This adds 10–20 minutes to your print preparation time and creates significant opportunity for printing the wrong document on the wrong paper size, which can result in rejection.

With a dual tray printer, you load both paper sizes once and the printer selects the correct tray automatically based on the document specifications. You print the entire package without touching the printer.

Who Actually Needs One

The honest answer is: most full-time loan signing agents doing meaningful monthly volume benefit from a dual tray printer. Here's the breakdown:

You should have a dual tray printer if:

• You're doing 15+ signings per month and print documents regularly
• You work with lenders or signing services that frequently include legal-size documents in their packages
• Print preparation time is a meaningful bottleneck in your workflow
• You've had packages rejected or questioned because of paper size errors

You can likely get by without one if:

• You're just starting out and doing fewer than 8–10 signings per month
• The majority of your signing services send packages formatted entirely for letter paper
• You're doing primarily general notary work rather than loan signings
• You're evaluating whether to continue in the business before making a larger equipment investment

The equipment decision should follow the business reality, not lead it. Don't buy a $400–$600 printer on the assumption that you'll build volume. Buy it when the volume makes the math work.

The Math on Whether It's Worth It

Let's run the actual numbers. A dual tray laser printer suitable for professional loan signing work runs $350–$600 new, $150–$300 refurbished from a reputable source.

If switching to a dual tray printer saves you 15 minutes per signing — a conservative estimate for agents currently doing manual paper swaps — and you do 20 signings per month, that's 5 hours per month saved. At an effective hourly rate of $40–$60 for your signing business, that's $200–$300 in recovered time value per month.

Payback period on a $400 printer: 1–2 months at that volume. After that, it's pure time savings.

At 8 signings per month, the time savings are $80–$120/month. Payback period: 3–5 months. Still defensible, but less urgent.

At 3–4 signings per month, the time savings are marginal and the manual paper swap, while annoying, doesn't justify the capital expenditure right now.

What to Actually Buy — The Printers That Hold Up in the Field

This is where forum discussions get heated. Here's what matters for a notary signing agent: laser (not inkjet — many lenders and signing services won't accept inkjet-printed documents, and some explicitly reject them), reliable dual tray functionality, and print speed adequate for a 150+ page package.

The printers that appear most consistently in experienced notary discussions:

Brother HL-L6200DWT — One of the most common recommendations among experienced signing agents. Dual tray standard, fast print speed, reliable, and parts/toner are widely available. Runs around $400–$450 new.

HP LaserJet Pro M404dw with additional tray — The base HP LaserJet is popular, and adding the optional second tray creates an effective dual tray setup. Slightly more expensive when configured for dual tray but HP's service network is extensive if something goes wrong.

Refurbished commercial-grade lasers — Many experienced notaries swear by refurbished HP or Xerox commercial printers available through business equipment resellers. These machines were built for office environments printing thousands of pages per month — they're massively overbuilt for notary use and often available for $150–$250 with a warranty. The trade-off is size (they're larger) and finding a reliable reseller.

What to avoid: consumer-grade inkjet printers (not accepted by many lenders), cheap single-function laser printers without expandable tray capacity, and any printer where toner cartridges are expensive or hard to source — toner cost is a real operational expense at scale.

The Toner Cost Calculation That Most Notaries Miss

Printer purchase price is only part of the equipment cost equation. Toner cost per page — which you can calculate from the manufacturer's stated page yield and the cartridge price — matters more over the life of the printer.

A signing agent doing 20 signings per month and printing 150 pages per package is printing 3,000 pages per month. At 2 cents per page (a realistic figure for many Brother and HP laser cartridges), that's $60/month in toner alone. At 4 cents per page, it's $120/month. The difference in toner cost between printer models can easily exceed the difference in purchase price over a single year of operation.

Before buying, calculate the cost per page for each model you're considering — manufacturer page yield estimates divided into the cost of replacement cartridges. It takes five minutes and can save you hundreds of dollars annually.

Track Your Print Costs as a Business Expense

Paper, toner, and equipment depreciation are all legitimate business expenses for notary signing agents. If you're not tracking them, you're not getting the full tax benefit of your equipment investment.

CloseWise's free income and expense tracking makes it straightforward to log print-related expenses and see exactly what your supplies cost per month. Combined with mileage tracking (Pro tier) and the full post-completion workflow, you have the complete picture of what each signing actually costs you — not just what it pays you.

Start your free CloseWise account — expense tracking included at no cost from day one.

FAQ

Will lenders reject my documents if I print them on an inkjet printer?

Some will. Inkjet printing can smear when wet, produces lower-contrast output than laser printing, and is explicitly rejected by certain lenders and signing services in their instructions. The professional standard for loan signing is laser printing — it's expected, it's more reliable, and it protects you from document rejection issues. If you're serious about the business, a laser printer is not optional equipment.

Can I use a single-tray printer and just swap paper manually?

Yes, and many notaries do — especially when starting out. The trade-off is print preparation time and the risk of paper size errors on large packages. If your packages are consistently letter-only, a single-tray laser printer is adequate and there's no reason to pay for dual tray capability you won't use. If your packages regularly include legal-size documents, the manual swap process is genuinely time-consuming at scale and the dual tray printer pays for itself quickly.

Should I buy new or refurbished?

Both can be good choices depending on the source. New printers come with manufacturer warranty and known condition. Refurbished commercial printers from reputable dealers — not random eBay listings — are often significantly cheaper and built to much higher durability standards than consumer printers. If you go refurbished, buy from a business equipment dealer who offers a warranty and can support the printer if something goes wrong. The "savings" on a no-warranty refurbished printer that fails after 60 days are not savings at all.