Legal Question in Construction Law in Massachusetts
Lien on house?
I recently built a new house and the contractor ran into financial problems. I paid him all the money that we agreed to but ultimately he did not pay a bunch of the sub-contractors. We have been living in the house for 7 months now and there is a few thousand dollars worth of stuff that I will need to complete on my own as the builder is now declaring personal bankruptcy. Bottom line and my question is; can any of the sub-contractors actually put a lien on my house? It is my understanding that they had an agreement (verbal only) with the contractor and not with me, and that more than 90 days has passed. Does this bar them from entering a mechanics lien on the property? Thanks for any help provided!
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Lien on house?
A subcontractor CAN file a lien against the property he worked on, even though the sub did not have a contract directly with the property owner. This is precisely how the mechanics lien statute is designed to work. However, there are rigid requirements for the lien filing to be valid. Generally, the work must have been performed pursuant to a written contract, and liens filed more than 90 days after the sub last worked on the project pursuant to his contract are generally considered untimely and invalid.
A subcontractor may still try to file an invalid lien (based on oral contract; more than 90 days old, etc.). While that lien may ultimately not be enforceable by a court, it still appears on the owner's title and needs to be dealt with. There are ways to get such invalid liens dissolved by the court. Contact me directly if you need help dealing with this.
Re: Lien on house?
Under MA law, if you can show that at the time a lien was filed there were no monies due or to become due to your Genral Contractor at the time the liens were recorded against the property then you may have a basis to remove the liens from the property. Also, there may be a basis to remove the liens if you can show that there was some defect in the lien documents themselves or other defect such as missing a filing deadline.
Please feel free to contact me at my office if you wish to discuss the matter further. Good luck.
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