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Question About Lien

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Hi. I have a lien that was filed on October 14, 2019 for work that a landscaping company claims they did, but did not do. They did do some work for which I paid them, but what they are currently putting the lien on for is for work that they did not do. I have pictures, receipts that I paid for the materials to do the work myself, and a witness. My question is (per the Florida law information below) should I file a Contest of Lien that I found on your website or should I just wait and a few months to see if it drops off? The only problem with this question is that I would like to buy another house in Michigan in a few months and I am not sure how it will affect that. Thank you very much. :) A lien is valid for one year, unless a lienor files a lawsuit to enforce the lien prior to the expiration of the year. An owner has a right to file a Notice of Contest of Lien during the one-year period. Upon the filing of a Notice of Contest of Lien, a lienor must file a lawsuit to enforce the lien within 60 days.May 15, 2017 Florida's Construction Lien Law - MyFloridaLicense.comwww.myfloridalicense.com › cil

1 reply

Jun 5, 2020
A Florida Notice of Contest of Lien is a great tactic to expedite the process of getting the mechanics lien claim resolved. By shortening the deadline to 60 days, it essentially calls the claimant's bluff. Either pay to file a lawsuit to enforce the lien, or the court will enter a default judgment and release the claim. This is a relatively cheap option, as the recording fees won't be much more than $20 or so. You could also just wait it out for a year until the claim expires and is no longer enforceable. But it may be better to resolve the issue now, than wait. As far as the effect it will have on your purchase of the Michigan property, there isn't a clear cut answer here. The lien attaches to the property, not the individual. And the act of a lien being filed won't necessarily appear on an individual's credit report. However, it's not completely out of the realm of possibility, as a lien filing is a public record. It ultimately depends on how the county reports the filing, and if the credit check includes a review of the Florida county's specific property records. In any case, it may not hold much bearing as just because a lien is filed, doesn't mean it's actually valid. Now, if the foreclosure action is initiated and the lien claimant is successful, then it will definitely appear on a credit report. Just another reason why, if you think the claim is bogus, to accelerate the timeline to deal with the lien now.
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