“Can I put a lien on the house if they don’t pay?” Often, yes. But a mechanics’ lien is not something you decide to use when the money is late. It is a right you either kept or lost by what you did at the contract, during the job and in the weeks after it, and every state sets its own steps. This article walks through those steps with California, Florida and Texas as examples. What to do first about a late invoice, before any lien, is in Collecting an Unpaid Invoice.
What a lien is, and what it does
California’s Contractors State License Board describes a mechanics lien as “a legal claim against, or security interest in, your property that, if unpaid, allows a foreclosure action, forcing the sale of your home to satisfy any project debts,” filed in a county recorder’s or clerk-recorder’s office. Recording it is not the same as being paid. The notice California requires to be served with a lien tells the owner that a lien “may affect your ability to borrow against, refinance, or sell the property until the mechanics lien is released” (Civ. Code §8416(a)(8)). That pressure is the point; the lawsuit behind it is the teeth.
One condition comes before everything else: your license. In Florida, if a contract is unenforceable because the contractor was unlicensed, “no lien or bond claim shall exist in favor of the unlicensed contractor” (Fla. Stat. §489.128(2)). California’s bar on suits by an unlicensed contractor is covered in the collecting article linked above.
Before and during the job: the notices
Lien laws treat the contractor hired directly by the owner differently from the subcontractors and suppliers below it.
California. A claimant must give preliminary notice before recording a lien, but “a claimant with a direct contractual relationship with an owner” must give it “only to the construction lender or reputed construction lender, if any” (Civ. Code §8200(e)(2)). Subcontractors and suppliers give it to the owner, the direct contractor and any lender within 20 days after first furnishing work; a late notice limits the lien to work done within the 20 days before it and after (§8204(a)). For the direct contractor on a home improvement job, the lien paperwork starts in the contract itself, which must carry the state’s “Mechanics Lien Warning” (Bus. & Prof. Code §7159(e)(4)); see What a Home Improvement Contract Must Say.
Florida. A contractor in privity with the owner is not required to serve a notice to owner (Fla. Stat. §713.05). But a direct contract over $2,500 for a dwelling of up to four units must carry the construction lien notice the statute prints (§713.015(1)), which the contract article linked above covers; leaving it out does not bar enforcing a lien “against a person who has not been adversely affected” (§713.015(2)(b)). Subcontractors and suppliers serve a notice to owner before, or within 45 days after, they start (§713.06(2)(a)).
Texas. Before a residential construction contract is signed, the original contractor must deliver the disclosure statement the Property Code prints, which begins “KNOW YOUR RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES UNDER THE LAW” (Tex. Prop. Code §53.255). Subcontractors and suppliers on a residential project send a notice of claim for unpaid work by the 15th day of the second month after the month the work was provided (§53.056(a-1)). Every Texas section cited here was amended by H.B. 2237, effective January 1, 2022, so a form or a habit from before then may be wrong.
The homestead question
Owner-occupied homes get extra protection in some states, and Texas spells out its own rule. To fix a lien on a homestead, the contractor and owner “must execute a written contract setting forth the terms of the agreement” before the material is furnished or the labor performed; if the owner is married, both spouses must sign; and the contract must be filed with the county clerk (Tex. Prop. Code §53.254(a) to (e)). A lien affidavit on a homestead must carry, at the top, “NOTICE: THIS IS NOT A LIEN. THIS IS ONLY AN AFFIDAVIT CLAIMING A LIEN.” (§53.254(f)). Miss the contract signed before work starts and no amount of paperwork afterwards puts it back.
Florida’s constitution protects a homestead from forced sale, but lists exceptions, among them “obligations contracted for the purchase, improvement or repair thereof” (Art. X, §4(a)). The lien notice Florida requires in the contract tells owners plainly: “IF YOU FAIL TO PAY YOUR CONTRACTOR, YOUR CONTRACTOR MAY ALSO HAVE A LIEN ON YOUR PROPERTY.” It also warns that if a lien is filed, “YOUR PROPERTY COULD BE SOLD AGAINST YOUR WILL” to pay for labor, materials or services that the contractor or a subcontractor failed to pay for (§713.015(1)).
After the job: the deadlines
| State | Record or file the lien | Sue to enforce it |
|---|---|---|
| California | After completing your contract, and before the earlier of 90 days after completion of the work or 60 days after the owner records a notice of completion or cessation (Civ. Code §8412) | Within 90 days after recording, or the lien “expires and is unenforceable” (§8460(a)) |
| Florida | No later than 90 days after your final furnishing of labor, services or materials (Fla. Stat. §713.08(5)) | Within 1 year after recording (§713.22(1)), or 60 days after the owner serves a notice of contest (§713.22(2)) |
| Texas, residential | By the 15th day of the third month after the month your work was completed, terminated or abandoned (Tex. Prop. Code §53.052(a)(2)) | By the first anniversary of the last day you could file the affidavit (§53.158(a)) |
The small print around those dates matters as much as the dates:
Claim only what is owed
A lien is not a bargaining chip to pad. California requires the claim to state your demand “after deducting all just credits and offsets” (Civ. Code §8416(a)(1)). Florida goes further: a lien with a willfully exaggerated amount, or one that includes work not performed, is a fraudulent lien; a court that finds one must declare it unenforceable, and the lienor forfeits the lien (Fla. Stat. §713.31(2)). A minor mistake or a good-faith dispute about the amount does not count as fraud under that section. Claim the contract balance plus signed change orders, less what was paid, and nothing else.
Is it worth it on a small job?
Say a painter is owed $3,800 on a California house. A recorded lien may get the owner’s attention, but if nothing happens the painter must file a foreclosure suit within 90 days of recording or lose the lien. That suit is a court action to foreclose on the property, and a lawyer is worth having for it. For a balance that size, a demand letter and a small claims case may be the simpler road, with the lien kept as an option by recording it on time. For a $40,000 remodel, the lien and the lawyer are more likely to be worth it. Run your own numbers with your lawyer.
A checklist you can use on every job
- Hold the right license for the work before you sign.
- Put your state’s required lien notices in the contract, and in Texas sign and file a homestead contract before you start, signed by both spouses if the owner is married.
- Keep the subcontractor and supplier notices you receive, and pay subs against lien releases.
- Write down the completion date the day you finish, and the lien deadline next to it.
- When an invoice goes unpaid, send the demand letter early enough to record on time.
- If you record, serve the owner the way the statute says, and calendar the lawsuit deadline the same day.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change and vary by state; check with the agency named above or a professional for your situation.