We had done a project last year and never got it signed off, she closed the door on us, never answered our calls Avoided us to sign on Hero to pay for project. We sent a Lien and we'd like to push forward with it. What are the steps?
Your lien is only valid if it was recorded within 90 days of project completion or if a notice of completion was filed, 60 days from that notice for direct contractors. If the project was never completed, completion occurs after a continuous cessation of labor for 60 days, so the lien must be recorded within 150 days of the last day of work unless a notice of cessation was recorded.
If your lien is valid, you must file a lawsuit to foreclose the lien within 90 days of the date it was recorded. If it is not valid, you can still file a lawsuit for breach of contract. The statute of limitations for a breach of written contract action is 4 years. For an oral contract it is 2 years. If you have time to do so, you might start with a demand letter before proceeding with legal action.
If you have further questions, email me at ryan@huntortmann.com to schedule a free consultation.
California liens, once filed, are valid for a period of 90 days from the date the lien was filed. If you are still within this timeframe, you can file a foreclosure action to enforce your claim. One final, optional, step you can take before iniating the lawsuit is to send a Notice of Intent to Foreclose. This is essentially a final warning letter that if you aren't paid, you are ready to enforce your rights in court. The threat of litigation is usually enough to get the ball moving on payment.
However, if there is still no response, then you may have to go to court. You should reach out to a local attorney to help you with this process. We have quite a few California-based attorneys in our Levelset Community that may be able to assist you. Good luck!
Assuming you timely recorded the lien you have 90 days to file a lawsuit to foreclose on it. Assuming you are in direct contract with the owner you would also sue for breach of contract. If it's been too long to foreclose on the lien you can still sue on the contract.