We delivered by registered mail, constructive notice to owner, and filed Lien at County Court. Lien has been in place for 18 months. This is we are. How to foreclose the Lien.
1 reply
Jan 28, 2019
That's a good question. Georgia, like other states, has a very strict deadline by which a mechanics lien must be enforced or foreclosed. In Georgia, once a mechanics lien is filed, the party who filed the lien will have 365 days from the date on which the lien was filed to enforce/foreclose their lien. If this deadline comes and goes, the lien will very likely become invalid and unenforceable. However, just because a lien enforcement deadline has come and gone does not mean that there's no way to recover payment. For one, the mere threat of foreclosing a mechanics lien can still be effective, even when the actual foreclosure of that lien might not be an option. Because the mechanics lien remedy is such a drastic one - property owners might not be willing to call the bluff. You can learn more about the threat of foreclosure as a recovery option here: What is a Notice of Intent to Foreclose? Outside of the mechanics lien process, there are other remedies that could be fruitful too - such as a demand letter threatening specific legal action, or actually pursuing litigation (under breach of contract, unjust enrichment, or prompt payment, to name a few potential options). zlien discusses those ideas in the following post: Other Options Outside of A Mechanics Lien. Of course, if a claimant did wish to foreclose their filed mechanics lien, that would require filing a lawsuit to enforce and foreclose the lien claim - and that'd very likely require hiring a local construction attorney. Regardless of whether the lien will be foreclosed upon or whether some other option will be pursued, it'd be wise to consult with a local construction attorney to decide on how best to proceed.