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Hi all,
I have a quick question. We bought a new spec home. Title was clear. A few months after move in we get a letter threatening to put a lien on our house directed to builder for building supplies. Our closing lawyer tried to contact the lawyer and was never able to. He attempted to multiple times and since he said they can’t do it anyways we shouldn’t worry. Come to find out somehow they succeeded. Obviously we are protected and our lawyer is handling it but I’d like to know if this is enough to report the lawyer to the bar who placed the lien. Either he lied about documentation or the building supplier must have. They can’t put a lien on a house the builder doesn’t own against people who had nothing to do with the construction, right?
This is such a frustrating experience and I’m furious someone pulled this. To me it seems illegal.
Editing to add I just found that my state has a 6m after supplies delivered window in which a lien can be filed. We didn’t get the letter until 18m after the supposed delivery date. That alone should make this a violation right? I’m so angry and feel like they have taken advantage of people like this and don’t want them to continue to do so.
Last edited by saucystargazer; 08-03-2018 at 07:44 PM..
We had this happen some years ago. Concrete supplier put liens on all 200 homes in development. Long story short, they wanted the homeowners to pressure the builder into making good on payment. It worked.
Hi all,
I have a quick question. We bought a new spec home. Title was clear. A few months after move in we get a letter threatening to put a lien on our house directed to builder for building supplies. Our closing lawyer tried to contact the lawyer and was never able to. He attempted to multiple times and since he said they can’t do it anyways we shouldn’t worry. Come to find out somehow they succeeded. Obviously we are protected and our lawyer is handling it but I’d like to know if this is enough to report the lawyer to the bar who placed the lien. Either he lied about documentation or the building supplier must have. They can’t put a lien on a house the builder doesn’t own against people who had nothing to do with the construction, right?
This is such a frustrating experience and I’m furious someone pulled this. To me it seems illegal.
Editing to add I just found that my state has a 6m after supplies delivered window in which a lien can be filed. We didn’t get the letter until 18m after the supposed delivery date. That alone should make this a violation right? I’m so angry and feel like they have taken advantage of people like this and don’t want them to continue to do so.
I'm not an attorney. When I have bought houses I use a real estate attorney for the entire process including closing. As the buyer, my attorney had the seller sign a document that says there are no liens on the property, just to avoid a situation like this. If the attorney you used isn't being successful in getting this taken care of, then you should hire a more experienced real estate attorney to handle this.
Who do you want to report? Your attorney or the seller's attorney? Or the attorney who works for the construction company? I would be most concerned with attorney who was representing you first.
Look through your copy of all the closing documents signed. Is there any document there signed by the seller that says there is no lien on the property?
I'm also concerned that this will show up on your credit report until the matter is resolved. This sounds like it is becoming a mess and I think a better attorney needs to be consulted to make sure this is being handled properly.
I'm not an attorney. When I have bought houses I use a real estate attorney for the entire process including closing. As the buyer, my attorney had the seller sign a document that says there are no liens on the property, just to avoid a situation like this.
OK, but in the OP's example, the document would have been worthless because, at the date of signing, there would have been no existing liens. This is why buyers should purchase title insurance for themselves and not just for their lenders.
If the facts are as you state them, then someone likely signed a document containing a false statement that the requested lien was in compliance with applicable laws. Your lawyer should a demand letter seeking the filer to remove the lien. That action should have a short time requirement. If that is not done, then your lawyer should file suit against the signers of the document (including the lawyer involved) to get a court order removing the lien and reimbursement of any costs you incur to get it removed.
So you concluded that you didn't need title insurance... right?
We did a title check and do have title insurance but thanks for the snarky unhelpful remark..
Quote:
Originally Posted by jiminnm
If the facts are as you state them, then someone likely signed a document containing a false statement that the requested lien was in compliance with applicable laws. Your lawyer should a demand letter seeking the filer to remove the lien. That action should have a short time requirement. If that is not done, then your lawyer should file suit against the signers of the document (including the lawyer involved) to get a court order removing the lien and reimbursement of any costs you incur to get it removed.
That’s what I had assumed. I asked this question to make sure there was no obscure law I didn’t understand. I’m going to file a complaint against the builders supply company and their lawyer.
Hi all,
I have a quick question. We bought a new spec home. Title was clear. A few months after move in we get a letter threatening to put a lien on our house directed to builder for building supplies. Our closing lawyer tried to contact the lawyer and was never able to. He attempted to multiple times and since he said they can’t do it anyways we shouldn’t worry. Come to find out somehow they succeeded. Obviously we are protected and our lawyer is handling it but I’d like to know if this is enough to report the lawyer to the bar who placed the lien. Either he lied about documentation or the building supplier must have. They can’t put a lien on a house the builder doesn’t own against people who had nothing to do with the construction, right?
This is such a frustrating experience and I’m furious someone pulled this. To me it seems illegal.
Editing to add I just found that my state has a 6m after supplies delivered window in which a lien can be filed. We didn’t get the letter until 18m after the supposed delivery date. That alone should make this a violation right? I’m so angry and feel like they have taken advantage of people like this and don’t want them to continue to do so.
I believe you're talking about a Mechanic's Lien which would be recorded at the city/town hall. Whoever did the title search should have turned up that there is/was a lien on the property. Unless, the lien was placed on the property after the closing which in itself is not legal because you did not 'cause' a lien. A Notice of Lien has to be filed at city/town hall (in some states) with copies to builder before the actual lien is recorded at city hall. The lien must have been filed quite close to your closing date. Even so, when the paralegal or atty. goes to record your deed a quick search of title is done simply for the purpose of checking for a lien that could have been put on there in a similar situation as yours. By the way: What do you mean by '18m' -- 18 months ? That's a lot of months 'after move in' at the start of your above msg.
As far as getting in touch with the atty. or clerk who recorded a lien, your atty. should have no problem finding him/her. The dates are quite weird and you probably should not worry at all. Your attorney should be able to get an Order from the court to remove the lien and have you reimbursed for any costs you have incurred.
Last edited by QuilterChick; 08-04-2018 at 12:45 PM..
Reason: deleted a repetitive word
We did a title check and do have title insurance but thanks for the snarky unhelpful remark..
That’s what I had assumed. I asked this question to make sure there was no obscure law I didn’t understand. I’m going to file a complaint against the builders supply company and their lawyer.
you should let your closing attorney handle all of this for you, instead of going ballistic over the weekend. When Monday gets here, let the professionals handle it
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Your attorney should be able to get an Order from the court to remove the lien and have you reimbursed for any costs you have incurred.
