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my painting license expired before i new ,i did a job and they did not pay

i did a job while my license had lapsed, they did not pay and i told them if they did not pay i would put a lien on there home i worked on, they didn't pay .i put he lien on in fla in 2017 court told me i had to renew the lien every year or it was null and void, i renewed it for 2018 i was going to renew it in 2019 but i found out they were selling the house and i thought if you had a lien they could not sell it unless they paid me,but i found out there is a new law that they can sell it and they put a bond up for the money owed me,well 2019 rolled around and i went to lawyer about foreclosing on the lien,and my lawyer got a letter from there lawyer saying i filed an illegal lien because i was not actually licensed at the time i did the job is that true or can i still foreclose on the lien even though my license was not up to date and in affect when i did the job thanks Eddie

1 reply

Aug 12, 2019

Florida law specifically states that: "no lien shall exist in favor of any contractor, subcontractor, or sub-subcontractor who is unlicensed." And, that's just the tip of the issue. Unlicensed contractors can be subject to treble damages and attorney fees for negligent unlicensed construction. For a discussion about the timing of licensing with respect to the licensing requirement for mechanics lien protection, you can read more in the article "Florida Courts Determine What Constitutes Licensing." However, Florida statutes do provide an exception for "basic handyman services" - and there is no limit to the value of the services provided as a handyman as long as the work is not related to specific services for which a license is required. However, there may be other potential difficulties, as well. In Florida, mechanics lien must generally be enforced within one year of the date the lien was recorded. While this deadline may be slightly extended in some circumstances, these circumstances are limited to when the lien claimant supplied labor or materials after the original lien was recorded, and filed an amended claim of lien noting that later date. In that case, the one-year deadline runs from the date the amended claim as filed.

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