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In some cases, general contractors must submit notice to owner on private projects.
Model Disclosure Statement due before work begins on all residential projects of over $1,000; and commercial projects between $1,000 and $60,000.
General contractors are not required to send notice on public projects.
Since GCs will not make a claim against their own bond for non-payment, they do not have bond claim rights, and have no preliminary notice requirement.
Subcontractors and suppliers must send notice of right to claim lien on private projects.
On the new construction of a single-family home, the Notice to Owner should be delivered within 10 days of first providing labor or materials to the project.
Subcontractors and suppliers must send notice on public projects.
Notice to contractor must be sent to the prime contractor within 10 days if contracted with a sub or sub-sub.
If you did not contract directly with the owner on a Washington construction project, you are required to provide the owner with a Notice to Owner.
Note that if you are only furnishing labor, sub-tier parties are not technically required to send a Washington preliminary notice. However, if there is any material component to the contract or furnishing, preliminary notice is required to protect your full mechanics lien rights. In the circumstance when you are providing labor and materials, it may be possible to file a lien for the labor portion of the work without a preliminary notice. However, it is a best practice to send preliminary notice on every Washington project in order to avoid this need.
Direct contractors (e.g. General Contractors) must send a Model Disclosure statement if the project meets certain requirements:
If you did not contract directly with the owner, the “Notice to Owner” can be sent at any time, but it only protects your rights to claim a lien for a limited period of time prior to delivery of the notice. To fully preserve your lien rights, the Notice to Owner must be delivered within 60 days of the date labor or materials were first furnished to the property for all commercial cases, and on a remodel, alteration, or repair of an owner-occupied single-family residence. If your work was the new construction of a single-family home, the Notice to Owner should be delivered within 10 days of first providing labor or materials to the project.
Read the Ultimate Guide to Washington’s Notice to Owner.
If you contracted directly with the Owner, the Model Disclosure Statement form must be delivered prior to the initiation of work. The statement must be signed by the Owner, and you must retain a copy of the signed document for at least three years. Learn more about how Washington’s Model Disclosure Statement works.
If you miss the required date and deliver the Notice to Owner late, all is not necessarily lost.
Learn more about the protection provided by Washington’s preliminary notice.
In the case of direct contractors, failing to provide a Model Disclosure Statement before the project begins will lose their lien rights.
If you are delivering a “Notice to Owner”, it may either be sent to the owner via certified or registered mail, or personally delivered to, or served on, the owner. If the notice is personally delivered or served to the owner, a signed receipt from the owner or an affidavit of service is required.
Keep in mind when calculating deadlines that in Washington a preliminary notice is considered served 3 days after mailing – not upon delivery.
If you did not contract directly with the prime contractor, notice must also be given to the prime contractor. Download a free Washington Notice to Contractor form.
An interesting situation arises when working on condominium projects in Washington state. At the start of a condo project, it’s possible that the entire facility is owned by a single development company. However, this may not be the case, and if work is being performed on common elements after the units have already been sold, the condominium project may be owned by an assortment of different parties. This creates a complicated legal question about who must receive the preliminary notice. Learn more about providing preliminary notices on condominium projects in Washington.
If sent by registered or certified mail, the notice is considered delivered three days after mailing, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays.
It depends. Washington requires any party furnishing materials, supplies, or provisions to any subcontractor to send preliminary notice to the general contractor to preserve the right to make a bond claim in Washington.
Notice generally won’t be required for those who merely supply labor to the project (and no materials).
When required, the preliminary notice must be delivered or mailed to the general contractor no later than 10 days from the date of claimant’s first furnishing of labor and/or materials to the project.
When required, failure to give the preliminary notice timely is fatal to a bond claim in Washington.
Washington statutes provide no concrete answer to how the preliminary notice must be sent on public projects. However, it appears that actual receipt is necessary. It is likely advisable to send the notice via certified or registered mail. If you have it served personally, it’s always a good idea to get a record of the receipt.
The preliminary notice, when required, must be delivered to the general contractor.
Preliminary notice is required, but the particular notice required depends on the project type and participant role in Washington.
Project participants who did contract directly with the property owner are required to provide the owner a Model Disclosure Statement:
Failure to send a Model Disclosure Statement can have significant consequences. A required party who fails to send this document can lose their lien rights and be subject to a fine.
Parties that did not contract directly with the property owner are generally required to serve a Washington Notice to Owner in order to protect their lien rights.
Note that parties who only furnish labor are not specifically required to send a preliminary notice in Washington (though a Model Disclosure statement will still be required for those parties contracting directly with the owner).
Washington’s “labor only” exception is a bit less known, which is that it protects at least some work performed by subcontractors who should have sent off a preliminary notice, but didn’t. So, here is the deal:
However, if there is any material component to the contract or furnishing, preliminary notice is required to protect the ability to later file a mechanics lien if one becomes necessary. In a circumstance in which project participant is providing labor and materials, it may be possible to file a lien for the labor portion of the work (and exclude the materials cost) without a preliminary notice…however, it is a best practice to avoid this need. It’s best practice to send preliminary notice to owner on every construction project in Washington.
As you can see, Washington’s statute contains some interesting nuances that affect preliminary notice requirements. Understand when you are required to send preliminary notice on a Washington construction project.
First, download a notice to owner or a notice to contractor form. Washington has strict regulations for the language and formatting on preliminary notice forms. Levelset’s free forms were created by construction attorneys to meet those requirements, making this part easy for you to get right.
Next, fill out your notice form. It’s important to make sure you get this part right because making a mistake on the form could invalidate your right to file a Washington mechanics lien if you’re left unpaid. Check the information your include multiple times to make sure it’s 100% accurate.
The last step is to deliver your Washington preliminary notice. You can deliver your notice via registered mail, personal delivery, or certified mail, return receipt requested.
Keep in mind that a preliminary notice in Washington is considered served 3 days after mailing, not upon delivery.
Select Preliminary Notice document.
Provide basic job information.
Levelset sends the document for you. Postage included!