Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Re: Mechanic's lien

check into the bond the roofer had.

Re: Mechanic's lien

The threshold issue is whether or not the supplier served a 20-Day Preliminary Notice on you. By law, any subcontractor or supplier who does not have a direct contract with the owner must serve this notice on the owner within 20 days of first providing labor or materials. The notice identifies the sub/supplier, the property in question, and an estimate of the value of work or materials involved. It is usually served by mail. It MUST be served on the owner, the original contractor (in this case the roofer) and the construction lender if any.

Serving the 20-Day Prelim is a prerequisite to enforcement of the lien. If not served, any subsequent lien is invalid. If you didn't get that Notice, you should write the supplier and request that they release the lien for failure to give the notice required by Cal. Civil Code Sec 3097.

If they did serve the 20-Day Prelim, you next need to determine whether they recorded their claim of mechanics lien in the time required by law. That time varies according to specific circumstances. You should contact a lawyer well versed in mechanics lien law and, with the lawyer's help, determine if the lien was recorded within the time required by law. If not, again, the lien is invalid.

Assuming the 20-Day Prelim was served and the lien recorded in time, the supplier's next obligation is to file suit to foreclose within 90 days of recordation. If suit is not filed within that time frame, the lien is void, and may be removed through court action if the supplier will not voluntarily release. Unless you have a burning need to have clear title to the property, i.e., a pending sale or refinance, you might want to wait and see if the supplier does file within the 90 day period.

If they do, you'll need to defend the lien. At this point you have very little wiggle room - the most you can do is make sure that the amount claimed in the lien is in fact the value of the materials for which they weren't paid.

As Mr. Selik mentioned, you should make a demand on the roofers License Bond surety. By law, all licensed contractors are required to post a bond in the amount of at least $7,500.00. This bond is available to owners who are damaged by a contractor's violation of disciplinary provisions of the Contractors License Law. The Contractor's State License Board has a web site that gives information on licensed contractors, including the name and address of the contractor's license bond surety. You can access that information at http://www.cslb.ca.gov.

Finally, you always have the option to file a complaint against the roofer with the License Board. They may be able to locate the roofer and bring an administrative proceeding. Be forewarned, though, that the License Board is often slow and not always very effective.

I hope this helps.

Re: Mechanic's lien

The lien may be attacked if it did not meet the filing and notice requirements. The previous replies were accurate and good advice. If you require assistance in determining the validity of the lien or negotiating a settlement, please call me directly at (619) 222-3504.