There are a number of situations where, if you’re having trouble collecting a payment you’re owed, you may need to put a lien on a property. Placing a lien is one option that allows you to secure your debt and hopefully, eventually get paid. Two common types of liens are mechanics liens and judgment liens and the process to place each type of lien varies from state to state. How to put a lien on property can be confusing so it is important you know how to do it correctly or seek help from a professional lien filing service.
What Are Mechanics Liens? And What happens when you File a lien on a property?
Mechanics liens are filed by companies and individuals that provide labor or materials to a construction project on a piece of property. Check your state to see if you’re eligible to file a mechanics lien by reviewing our Guidebooks, but generally, people who are contractors or subcontractors such as roofers, plumbers, electricians, architects, and more can file a mechanics lien.
There are many steps that precede the actual filing of a lien on a property and they differ from state to state. Your first step on all construction jobs should be to collect information about the project, property and owner as soon as you receive the work. You’ll use this information to send invoices and file liens if necessary.
Before you begin work
Some states will require you to provide a notice to the owner and others that you’re starting work or beginning to provide goods to a project. This is often referred to as a “preliminary notice” or notice of right to file lien. If you skip this step or fail to meet the state’s notice laws, you can lose your right to file a mechanics lien.
What happens when your payment doesn’t show?
If you’ve sent an invoice, but you only receive a fraction of the amount you’re owed or no payment at all, you’ll start the process of filing a mechanics lien. Many states require you serve a notice of intent to file a lien on the property owner before you are allowed to file your lien. Failure to property file this notice can may any lien you file unenforceable.
What should You pay attention to when filing the lien?
The lien itself is a document filed in the county clerk or recorder’s office on a specific project or the county you’re working in. Research state laws to determine what specific information the lien needs to contain and call the county office to make sure you meet and local rules on formatting, copies, and fees. Be sure to pay attention to the timeline for this as they can be fairly short and missing the filing date may mean your forfeit your rights to file the lien.
After filing the lien, you need to send a copy of the lien on a property to it’s owner, which you can do by dropping it in the mail as certified or registered mail, return receipt requested. You may also want to attach copies of your invoices and any other relevant supporting documents.
Once you’ve completed each of these steps required by your state’s lien laws, you have secured a lien on a property. This doesn’t mean your work is done! You need to pay attention to the timeline for the lien and either file a lien extension, cancel the lien, or take an appropriate action to collect on the debt.
Judgement Lien
A judgment lien, unlike a mechanics lien, is not limited to securing payment for construction work. Anyone who receives a judgment from a court can file a judgment lien against the property of the party who the judgment is against. However, in the context of the construction industry, a judgment lien can give you a second chance at placing a lien against the property to secure your debt.
If for some reason you don’t file a mechanics lien on a property, you can still sue for the money you are owed. If you win, the court will enter a judgment for the debt, which can be filed against the debtor’s property. Again, this type of lien will have laws that vary from state to state, so be sure to research the rules or consult an attorney to correctly put the judgment lien on the property.
In addition to obtaining a judgment, mechanics lien holders may also begin an action to foreclose on a piece of property. In this case, you may want to see what other liens are outstanding on the property and what the precedence of the liens are to determine if such action is likely to result in a payment to you.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Who can put a mechanics lien on a property?
Mechanics lien rights belong to anyone who furnishes labor, services, equipment, or materials to a construction project — including general contractors, subcontractors at every tier, material suppliers, equipment lessors, design professionals (architects, engineers, surveyors), and in some states, even laborers and certain consultants. The lien attaches to the real property where the work was performed, not to the contracting party personally. Every state's mechanics lien statute defines the eligible claimant categories slightly differently, and some states require pre-lien notices that vary by claimant type. National Lien & Bond verifies lien eligibility before filing.
What pre-lien notices are required before I can file a lien?
Most states require sub-tier claimants (anyone NOT in direct contract with the property owner) to serve some form of preliminary notice within a specific deadline after first furnishing labor or materials. California requires a 20-day Preliminary Notice (Cal. Civ. Code § 8200). Florida requires a 45-day Notice to Owner (Fla. Stat. § 713.06). Illinois requires a 90-day Notice of Lien (770 ILCS 60/24). Texas requires monthly fund-trapping notices (Tex. Prop. Code § 53.056). Missing the pre-lien notice deadline can permanently bar lien rights even if the later Claim of Lien is timely. National Lien & Bond serves pre-lien notices for unpaid contractors in all 50 states.
What information do I need to file a mechanics lien?
Filing a mechanics lien requires: (1) the legal description of the property (not just the street address — usually obtained from the county recorder or title company); (2) the name and address of the property owner of record; (3) the name and address of the party who hired the claimant; (4) the amount owed (after deducting just credits); (5) a general description of the labor, services, equipment, or materials furnished; (6) the date of first and last furnishing; (7) the claimant's verified signature under penalty of perjury. Defective Claims of Lien missing required information are unenforceable — statutory compliance is strict in most states.
Where do I file a mechanics lien?
Mechanics liens are recorded with the County Recorder (or in some states, Register of Deeds or Land Records office) in the county where the property is located. Recording is a public-records filing — the lien becomes part of the property's chain of title and clouds the owner's ability to sell, refinance, or obtain new construction financing. Recording fees vary by county and document length, typically $30-$150 for a standard Claim of Lien. After recording, most states require the claimant to serve a copy on the property owner within a short deadline (often 30 days) to preserve attorney's fees and full enforceability.
How long do I have to file a mechanics lien?
Mechanics lien filing deadlines vary dramatically by state. California: 90 days from completion (Cal. Civ. Code § 8412), shortened to 30 days from a Notice of Completion. Florida: 90 days from last furnishing (Fla. Stat. § 713.08). Illinois: 4 months from completion to record, 2 years to sue (770 ILCS 60/7). Texas: 15th day of the third month after the last month of work for residential, fourth month for commercial (Tex. Prop. Code § 53.052). New York: 4 months from completion for single-family residential, 8 months for commercial (N.Y. Lien Law § 10). National Lien & Bond's 50-state deadline-tracking system calculates the correct deadline for every project.
What happens after I file a mechanics lien?
Once the Claim of Lien is recorded, the property is encumbered — the owner cannot easily sell, refinance, or obtain new construction financing until the lien is satisfied or released. This creates strong leverage for settlement. However, the lien expires automatically by operation of law if the claimant does not commence a foreclosure action within the state's statutory deadline (90 days in California under § 8460, 2 years in Illinois under 770 ILCS 60/9, 1 year in Florida under § 713.22). Recording the lien is only the first step — disciplined deadline tracking and foreclosure suit filing are required to convert the lien into actual recovery.
Can I file a mechanics lien myself or do I need an attorney?
Some states allow contractors to record a Claim of Lien without an attorney — the recording office accepts any document that meets statutory content requirements. However, defective Claims of Lien (wrong owner name, wrong legal description, missing verification, wrong filing deadline, missing pre-lien notice) are unenforceable, and the contractor often does not learn the lien is defective until trying to foreclose months later, when the deadline to refile has passed. The foreclosure suit itself almost always requires an attorney — most states require licensed counsel for any judicial proceeding above small-claims. National Lien & Bond files mechanics liens correctly the first time.
How does National Lien & Bond help unpaid contractors file mechanics liens?
National Lien & Bond files mechanics liens for unpaid contractors, subcontractors, suppliers, and equipment lessors in all 50 states. For Illinois-licensed engagements, Hal Emalfarb's firm at Emalfarb Swan and Bain handles the entire filing and foreclosure process. For other states, NLB connects unpaid contractors with vetted construction-payment attorneys in the project's jurisdiction. NLB's 50-state deadline-tracking system calculates every pre-lien notice deadline, Claim of Lien recording deadline, and foreclosure suit deadline to prevent the missed-deadline forfeitures that cause most mechanics lien losses. Contact NLB for a free initial consultation.