Mechanics Lien: How It Works, Who Can File and Deadlines by State

A mechanics lien works in three stages: notice, claim, and enforcement. The details differ by state, but the pattern is the same.

First, many states require a notice before the claim. Florida requires a person who is not in direct contract with the owner to serve a notice to owner, and the claim of lien must state the date and method of service (Fla. Stat. 713.08, Online Sunshine). Arizona requires a preliminary twenty day notice from those covered by its rule, and says a person who must give it can enforce the lien only if the notice was given and proof of service was made (A.R.S. 33-981, Arizona Legislature).

Second, the claimant records a sworn claim with the county. In Florida, that is the clerk. In Arizona, it is the county recorder. In Texas, it is an affidavit filed with the county clerk in the county where the improvements are located.

Third, the claim has to be enforced in court, or it lapses. Florida's statutory warning on the claim form says the lien may remain valid for one year from the date of recording and then expires unless legal proceedings have begun to foreclose or discharge it. The lien is not a payment. It is a right to ask a court to order the property sold to satisfy the debt.

People who add labor, materials or professional services to the improvement can usually file, provided they follow the notice and licensing rules in their state. The rules for who qualifies are narrower than most people expect.

Texas gives a lien to a person who, under a contract with the owner or the owner's agent, trustee, receiver, contractor or subcontractor, labors or furnishes labor or materials for construction or repair of an improvement. It also covers a person who specially fabricates material, even if it is never delivered, and licensed architects, engineers and surveyors preparing plans (Tex. Prop. Code 53.021).

Arizona gives a lien to every person who labors or furnishes professional services, materials, machinery, fixtures or tools in constructing, altering or repairing a building or other improvement. It adds two conditions: a person required to be licensed as a contractor who is not licensed has no lien rights, and a person furnishing professional services must hold the required registration (A.R.S. 33-981).

Florida's claim of lien statute says "every lienor, including laborers and persons in privity" records a claim, and it treats a lienor not in privity with the owner differently by requiring proof of the notice to owner. A lienor in privity is one who contracted directly with the owner. Whether a given person qualifies is a legal question, and a lawyer in the state should answer it.

Texas counts by calendar month, Florida counts days from the last day of furnishing, and Arizona counts days from completion with an option for the owner to shorten the clock. The same project can produce three different last days.

In Texas, the original contractor on a non-residential job has until the 15th day of the fourth month after the month the work was completed, terminated or abandoned. If a job ends on January 10, the fourth month after January is May, so the date is May 15. On a residential job the window is a month shorter, to the 15th day of the third month (Tex. Prop. Code 53.052). A subcontractor or supplier counts from the month it last provided labor or materials.

In Florida, the claim of lien may be recorded during the work or afterward, but not later than 90 days after the final furnishing (Fla. Stat. 713.08). The owner's side of the clock is the notice of commencement, covered in our guide to the notice of commencement in Florida.

In Arizona, completion is defined by the statute as the earlier of 30 days after final inspection and written final acceptance by the permitting body, or 60 consecutive days without labor, with exceptions for a strike, a materials shortage or an act of God. If there is no permit or final inspection, completion is the last date labor, materials, fixtures or tools were furnished (A.R.S. 33-993). Our Maricopa County lien search guide shows how that window looks on the record.

We could not read the Illinois statute, so this article does not state an Illinois deadline. The rule belongs in the statute itself and in advice from an Illinois attorney, not in a summary written from memory.

A recorded mechanics lien is a public document in the county clerk or recorder's index, filed under the names of the claimant and the owner. Search the property's owner name and parcel number, and look for document types such as claim of lien, notice of lien, mechanics lien or lien affidavit. Terms vary by county.

Texas requires the clerk to index the affidavit in the names of the claimant, the original contractor and the owner, and says a clerk's failure to properly record or index a filed affidavit does not invalidate the lien. That means a lien can be valid even if a name search misses it, so search by parcel and by every party name, not only the owner.

Recorded liens also show up late. Because a claim can be recorded after the work ends, a search done the day before closing can miss a claim recorded the week after. Check back through the whole deadline window for the work done on the property. For the steps in a county search, see how to check for liens on a property.

A lien that has been paid should be followed by a recorded release. The record then shows the original claim and the release together, which is the subject of our release of lien guide.

HeritageDeed searches county records and reports what it found: the Current Owner Search is $49, the Two Owner Search is $79 and the 30-Year Search is $129, in the counties on the title search coverage page, including Harris County, Texas, Duval County, Florida and Maricopa County, Arizona. A report states which records were searched and what lies outside that scope.