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you guys filed a lien for me. over a month ago.

The GC just told me he would give me $4000+ less than what is owed. He said take it or he would "bond out" and give me nothing. My account is under Dallas Curb Appeal inc. According to the your representative, you guys have it as a commercial property and not as a city project, where as he might not have the option to "bond out". I need to know if this is true or not; in order to figure out if I want to accept it or not. I rather tell him to eat shit and die and that I will file foreclosure instead. But I am not sure what that really means. Is that something they care about if they do not plan to sell the property. And if I foreclose how much can i expect to recover.

1 reply

Oct 11, 2018

While I'm glad your lien has helped spur payment conversations, I'm sorry to hear that the payment dispute continues. The term "bond" can take many forms when it comes to lien law, and it's definitely a confusing aspect of the law, but it sounds like this contractor is alleging that they will "bond off" the lien (or, discharge the lien by filing a bond) - not that the lien is improper and that a bond claim should have been filed. This article provides a great look at what it means when someone threatens to bond off a lien: Don’t Be Afraid Of Threats To Bond Off Your Mechanics Lien: Explaining Mechanics Lien Bonds. But, basically, when a lien is bonded, the lien claim is transferred to the bond - instead of payment being secured by the lien, it will be secured against the bond (which, for all intents and purposes, can be seen as a pile of money). The claim does not just disappear. Rather, recovery will change a bit. If the lien is bonded off, a lawsuit would be brought against the bond rather than a foreclosure suit - and in Texas, action must be taken against the bond within 1 year after the date on which the notice is served that the lien has been bonded off. As for filing a foreclosure - a foreclosure action is actually a lawsuit to enforce the mechanics lien claim that has been filed. Considering the time, expense, and risk that litigation poses, most claimants, property owners, and contractors prefer to resolve lien claims well before this happens. Since litigation is heavily based on the relevant documents, requirements, and circumstances, it's hard to say what might be recovered through a foreclosure suit. But, considering a foreclosure would likely require the assistance of a local construction attorney, it might be helpful to reach out to an attorney about the potential for bringing a foreclosure action - and they might be able to give you a clearer picture about the chances and extent of recovery. Nobody likes liens, but everyone really hates lawsuits - so the mere threat to foreclose a lien can be effective to compel payment. Specifically, sending a document like a Notice of Intent to Foreclose could be helpful in compelling payment. You can learn more about this document here: Construction Payment: What Is a Notice of Intent to Foreclose?

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