Home>Levelset Community>Legal Help>How do I find out if a mechanic lien was filed for work done in a timely manner? Will it show up on a title search upon sale of the property if it is still in effect? Does the lienor have any rights if clear title was provided at the time of the sale?
How do I find out if a mechanic lien was filed for work done in a timely manner? Will it show up on a title search upon sale of the property if it is still in effect? Does the lienor have any rights if clear title was provided at the time of the sale?
I am trying to determine if I am being scammed by a collection agency.
1 reply
Oct 17, 2017
In Florida, a mechanics lien must be filed within 90 days of the date on which the lien claimant last provided labor or materials to a construction project. There are many strict rules and requirements (in addition to timing) that must be met in order for the lien to be valid, including potential preliminary notice requirements, form requirements, service requirements, etc.
Additionally, the mechanics lien must be recorded in the clerk's office. Unless mis-indexed, a filed lien would show up in a title search, in a general search of the property records of the county, or potentially by calling/visiting the clerk's office.
If an otherwise valid lien was filed prior to the closing and the title company just overlooked it, a lien claimant is generally allowed to proceed as s/he otherwise would, and could file an enforcement/foreclosure action against the property. In a successful suit, the new owner would be forced to pay (or the property would be sold) to satisfy the claim. However, the new property owner would likely have a claim against the title insurance company (and the previous owner), and would bring those parties into the suit - where they may be forced to pay instead of the current property owner.