Home>Levelset Community>Legal Help>We are located in texas and have two customers that have not paid us for work done almost a year ago. Is it too late to file a lien?
We are located in texas and have two customers that have not paid us for work done almost a year ago. Is it too late to file a lien?
Water mitigation company that dried out two homes and performed labor and mitigation services.
1 reply
Feb 15, 2018
Texas has a very peculiar mechanics lien statute, and with it comes strict deadlines and confusing notice requirements for statutory liens. When work is performed on residential property, these requirements are taken a step further. Regarding the deadline to file a statutory mechanics lien on residential property, a lien must be filed no later than the 15th day of the 3rd month following the month in which a claimant last furnished labor and/or materials to the project. Further, for a homestead, even more requirements will apply - such as executing the contract prior to furnishing any labor or materials, being sure both spouses have signed the contract (if the owner is married), and filing the contract with the county clerk.
A constitutional lien may also be an available remedy, however. Constitutional liens are available in Texas only to those parties who directly contract with a property owner. One big advantage of the constitutional mechanics lien as opposed to the statutory mechanics lien is that no filing or notice is technically required. The lien arises by virtue of the work performed with no subsequent action required by the lien claimant. As a practical matter, though, filing a constitutional lien in the same manner as a statutory lien is generally a good idea.
Of course, filing a lien is not the only mode of recovery available after going unpaid - sending a demand letter through an attorney, merely threatening to file a mechanics lien, or pursuing an action in court/small claims court could all help speed up payment.