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Home>Levelset Community>Legal Help>Do I need to file the lien in the county where the work was done or where I live? Steps for the preliminary notice?

Do I need to file the lien in the county where the work was done or where I live? Steps for the preliminary notice?

CaliforniaMechanics LienPreliminary Notice

Hi, I am in California. I am a landscape designer and gardener that has not been paid, as well as my worker, after many attempts. I have sent the invoice over email multiple times. He claimed the check was stolen from the mail and he would resend it but has stopped responding to my emails since. I have added a late fee and let him know I would have to proceed with a lien if we were not paid. Do I need to file the lien in the county where the work was done- Sonoma, or where I live- Mendocino? Also I was reading I need to file a preliminary notice. Where I did the work was the clients vacation home, how do I find out their primary residence in order to send the preliminary by certified mail? Do I and my co-worker need to file separate liens since we are both self-employed?

1 reply

Jul 19, 2021
If you have direct contract with the owner, you don't need to serve a 20-day preliminary notice, unless there is a lender, which I doubt is the case here. As for the where to record, do it at the County Recorder's Office where you did the work.
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