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Can a company place a lien on a property if the work was never started

I am building a house. I signed a contract to have an air condition installed. The contract specifically stated that it was a RUUD unit. Two day later the air condition company wanted to install a unit sub standard to what was agreed and signed to. I told him no. Then one day letter a request for 900 more dollars was asked that he underbid the contract. i told him no. Everything was quiet for one week. I now get a letter saying he is placing a lien for 8300 dollars on my home. He said that he already bought the equipement. The company never installed it or even brought it on the property.

1 reply

Jun 22, 2020

Under these facts, it is likely that you would win a civil suit over this contract and lien if the type and size of unit was actually specified. The issue is that there's little you can do to prevent this contractor from actually filing a lien, however invalid that lien may be. And then to remove the lien, you would need to take the contractor to court and file a specific motion to allow a judge the opportunity to strike the lien, and maybe the entirety of the claim. One smart move to make early on is to retain an attorney to send a letter setting forth why the contractor would lose a lien claim and explaining to the contractor that you can recover attorney's fees against that contractor where you successfully strike his lien. Such a letter could convince him that this matter isn't worth the time or effort, and that he should just sell the equipment he bought for your home (if he actually did so) and move on. Feel free to reach out to me directly if you would like to discuss this matter further. Ben House 281-762-1377 ben@houseperron.com

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