Florida Mechanics Lien
File a Florida construction lien to secure payment. Learn the 90-day recording deadline, the 45-day Notice to Owner, and the one-year enforcement window.
Introduction
A Florida mechanics lien, called a construction lien, is a legal claim recorded against real property by a contractor, subcontractor, or material supplier who improved the property and was not paid. Once recorded, the lien attaches to the property, clouds the title, and can be enforced by a court-ordered sale to collect the debt. That security is what gives the lien its leverage, and Chapter 713 of the Florida Statutes protects the right to it. The lien only works if you perfect it on time. A subcontractor or supplier who is not in privity with the owner must serve a Notice to Owner before commencing or within 45 days of first furnishing. Every claimant must then record the claim of lien within 90 days after final furnishing labor, services, or materials, and file suit to enforce it within one year after recording. DocDraft prepares a Florida construction lien and its notices from your project details, and attorney review is available before you record.
0/5000
Key Things to Know
- 1
A Florida construction lien secures payment against the improved property. Contractors, subcontractors, sub-subcontractors, material suppliers, and laborers who furnished work under Chapter 713 and were not paid can claim one, though privity with the owner changes the notice steps required.
- 2
A lienor not in privity with the owner must serve a Notice to Owner. Under Fla. Stat. 713.06(2)(a) it is due before commencing, or not later than 45 days after first furnishing labor, services, or materials. A contractor in privity with the owner is exempt.
- 3
The recording deadline is 90 days after final furnishing. Fla. Stat. 713.08(5) requires every claimant, contractor or subcontractor alike, to record the claim of lien not later than 90 days after last furnishing labor, services, or materials to the property.
- 4
You must sue to enforce within one year of recording. Fla. Stat. 713.22(1) provides that the lien does not continue longer than one year after the claim of lien is recorded unless an action to enforce it is commenced within that time.
- 5
Florida reads the lien statutes strictly. Missing the Notice to Owner, the 90-day recording window, or the one-year suit deadline generally forfeits the lien, though a separate contract claim for the unpaid debt may still survive.
- 6
The claim of lien must follow the statutory form. Fla. Stat. 713.08(3) prescribes the contents, including the lienor's name, the labor or materials furnished, a property description, the amount owed, and the dates of first and final furnishing.
- 7
Residential work carries an extra step. Under Fla. Stat. 713.015, a contractor's direct written contract to improve property that is or will be the owner's residence must include a prescribed statutory lien-law disclosure warning the owner.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Mechanics Lien in Florida, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Mechanics Lien guide walks through them.
Open the Mechanics Lien guideCustomize your Mechanics Lien Template with DocDraft
Florida Requirements for Mechanics Lien
Florida Filing Deadline and Office
File the Florida mechanics lien in the correct office, a county recorder or court as Florida requires, within the state's deadline after you last furnish labor or materials. Florida applies the deadline strictly, so filing late or in the wrong office can void the lien.