we set up Final inspection on 8/30, Final inspection failed H/O not home. we finished the install on 07/29/2021 would we wait to start timeline to the deadline after inspection is compared and what if the Homeowner prevents us from completing that that step
Arizona's mechanics lien deadline is generally 120 days after the completion of the project. But, if a Notice of Completion gets recorded, then the deadline to file a mechanics lien drops to merely 60 days after that document was recorded.
Determining exactly when a project is considered complete can be challenging, as Levelset discusses here: Project Completion Date: When It Matters And Why. Luckily, the Arizona lien statute actually defines "completion" at A.R.S. § 33-993(C).
According to that section, "completion" occurs at the earliest of these two times:
According to A.R.S. § 33-993(D), if there's no building permit or final inspection with written final acceptances, then "completion" will be the last date when work was done on the property.
While the lien statute doesn't explicitly state what happens if the inspected work doesn't pass inspection due to an owner's failure to cooperate, it wouldn't make sense for that kind of an inspection failure to retroactively shorten the deadline to pursue a lien claim.
Still, the safest way to proceed is likely to assume that the last date of work on-site would begin the clock for the lien deadline. That way, there's no argument that a deadline was allegedly missed.