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Can a property owner withhold undisputed amounts to gain leverage on disputed amounts?

Massachusetts

I have $54K in unpaid bills from a property owner. He is alleging $34K in counterclaims of which we disputed substantially all of them. $20K is undisputed. Is he obligated under MA law to pay me the undisputed amounts without delay? Do I have a 93A cause of action against him if he doesn't?

4 replies

Mar 13, 2021

In your position I would hire an attorney authorized to practice law in Massachusetts and I would send that email letter to the owner. Ask whether under Massachusetts law there are any particular provisions for construction liens. I believe levelset has very interesting information about construction liens in most states. the homeowner is not authorized to retain the undisputed part of the funds. Good luck. César Mejía-Dueñas, Esq

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Mar 13, 2021

We are a property management company and we have liens on the properties where we did improvements. I will need a MA lawyer if we can't settle this, but for now, he is talking to us, so I need to make sure what I say is accurate. I don't want to posture, as it won't get me paid and will only make me look ill-informed. I keep looking in MA gen. laws to find something, but it isn't easy. Any idea where I should look?

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Mar 13, 2021

I agree with you. You are right in that you are hesitant to bring an attorney if the parties are still trying to solve this matter amicably. Also kudos to you for educating yourself regarding these specific laws, it will definitively pay off. I did a brief research and I found the following websites with information that might be useful to you: Commonwealth of Massachusets - with regulations and caselaw regarding mechanic liens. https://www.mass.gov/info-details/massachusetts-law-about-mechanics-liens Levelset- with very simple and straightforward information regarding mechanic liens in Massachusets: https://www.levelset.com/mechanics-lien/massachusetts-lien-law-faqs/ I wish I could be more helpful but the mechanic/construction liens provisions vary from State to State. Good luck!

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Mar 14, 2021

This reply didn't really answer my question, but it did refer me to an interesting article. The article didn't help me much because the circumstances didn't match up, though.

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