San Juan County Recorder Mechanics Lien Filing

You can file your mechanic liens in person at the San Juan County Auditor’s Office located at:

350 Court Street
1st Floor
Friday Harbor, WA 98250

Phone: 360-378-2161
Fax: 360-378-6256

The San Juan County Auditor’s Office does not publicly disclose information on recording backlog.

If your construction project is located in San Juan County, then yes, you should file your lien here.

The San Juan County Auditor’s recording requirements are as follows:

Revised Code of Washington (RCW) Section 65.04 mandates minimum requirements as far as format and information needed for all recorded documents. The purpose of this law is to ensure:

That the document can be read, scanned and copied.
That the document contains the minimum amount of information for indexing.

If the first page of a document does not contain the minimum information required for recording, a cover sheet may be prepared which contains the required information. The cover sheet must have a three inch top margin, and must contain the document title, grantor, grantee, tax parcel number, abbreviated legal description, and any referencing Auditor File Numbers (AFN).

Conformance Criteria
Per RCW 65.04, documents may be returned to the submitter for conformance to any of the following criteria:
First page requirements:

1. The names of the grantor(s) and grantee(s), with reference to the page number where additional names are listed, if applicable.

2. Abbreviated legal description (lot number and plat name OR quarter, section, township and range), with reference to the page number where the full legal description is included, if applicable.

3. Assessor’s tax parcel number.

4. Reference Auditor File Number (AFN) of documents assigned, released or amended with reference to the page number where additional references can be found, if applicable.

5. A top margin of at least three inches and a one-inch margin on the bottom and sides.

6. The title or titles of the instrument to be recorded indicating the kind or kinds of documents or transactions contained therein. The Auditor or recording officer shall only be required to index the title or titles captioned on the first page.

7. The top left-hand side of the page shall contain, within the three-inch margin, the name and address to whom the instrument will be returned. The top right-hand side of the page shall contain the recorder’s stamp.

Additional Requirements

Additional page requirements:

1. All additional pages (pages after page 1) must have a one-inch margin on the top, bottom and sides, and be prepared in an ink color capable of being imaged with type no smaller than 8 point. All seals must be legible and capable of being imaged.

2. All pages must be on paper of a weight and color capable of producing a legible image and not be larger than 8.5″ wide by 14″ long.

3. All text, maps and drawings must be readable and dark enough to be legible after scanning.

4. No attachments may be affixed to the pages of any document.

5. Pages are scanned as black-and-white TIF images. This means that colors and highlighting have no meaning in the public record.

6. Photographs cannot be imaged. This means that photographs have no meaning in the public record.

7. Only original or certified copies are recorded.
Documents submitted for recording must conform to all these formatting
requirements or have an attached indexing cover sheet. A fee of $50 may be charged to record non-conforming documents.

If you have your own computerized forms feel free to send them to the office for review.

All pages must be on paper of a weight and color capable of producing a legible image and not be larger than 8.5″ wide by 14″ long.

The first page must have a top margin of at least three inches and a one-inch margin on the bottom and sides.

The top left-hand side of the page shall contain, within the three-inch margin, the name and address to whom the instrument will be returned.

The top right-hand side of the page shall contain the recorder’s stamp.

All additional pages (pages after page 1) must have a one-inch margin on the top, bottom and sides, and be prepared in an ink color capable of being imaged with type no smaller than 8 point.

The San Juan County Washington’s recording fee is $103.50 for the first page and $1.00 for each additional page.

Additional Recording Fees

Non-Standard Document Fee: $50.00

Multiple Documents

First page, includes first document title: $103.50
Each additional title: $103.50
Each additional page: $1.00

Lien Fees

Employment Security Liens: $36.00 for the first page and $1.00 for each additional page

Copy Fees

Certified Copy: $3.00 for the first page and $1.00 for each additional page
Uncertified Copy: $1.00 per page

You can obtain a recorded copy of your lien in person at the San Juan County Auditor’s Office located at:

350 Court Street
1st Floor
Friday Harbor, WA 98250

Phone: 360-378-2161
Fax: 360-378-6256

Copy fees are as follows:

Certified Copy: $3.00 for the first page and $1.00 for each additional page
Uncertified Copy: $1.00 per page

You can also search San Juan County Auditor’s recorded documents online at: https://www.sanjuanco.com/171/Recorded-Document-Search

You can get the property’s legal description from the San Juan County Auditor’s office in person.

You can search San Juan County Auditor’s recorded documents online at: https://www.sanjuanco.com/171/Recorded-Document-Search

You can also search for property legal descriptions online with the
San Juan County Assessor at:

https://parcel.sanjuanco.com/PropertyAccess/?cid=0