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Pennsylvania Mechanics Lien

File a Pennsylvania mechanics lien to secure payment for construction work. Learn the six-month filing deadline, the 30-day notice of intention, and enforcement.

Introduction

A Pennsylvania mechanics lien is a legal claim filed against real property by a contractor, subcontractor, or supplier who improved the property and was not paid. Once filed, the lien attaches to the property and clouds the title, and it can be enforced by a court judgment and sale. Pennsylvania grants the right under the Mechanics' Lien Law of 1963, but the lien only holds if you follow each step on time. A subcontractor must serve the owner a formal written Notice of Intention to file a claim at least 30 days before filing. The claim must be filed with the prothonotary within six months after your work is completed, and you must serve notice of filing on the owner within one month after filing. To keep the lien alive, you must then start a court action within two years of filing. DocDraft prepares a Pennsylvania mechanics lien and its notices from your project details, and attorney review is available before you file.

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Key Things to Know

  1. 1

    A Pennsylvania mechanics lien secures payment against the improved property. Contractors, subcontractors, and material suppliers who furnished labor or materials to erect, alter, or repair the property and were not paid can claim one under the Mechanics' Lien Law of 1963.

  2. 2

    Subcontractors must give the owner formal notice. Under 49 P.S. section 1501 a subcontractor must serve a formal written Notice of Intention to file at least 30 days before filing the claim; on alteration or repair jobs a preliminary notice is also due by completion.

  3. 3

    The claim must be filed within six months. Under 49 P.S. section 1502 the claim is filed with the county prothonotary within six months after the claimant's work is completed, and notice of the filing served on the owner within one month.

  4. 4

    You must sue within two years of filing. Under 49 P.S. section 1701 an action to obtain judgment on the filed claim must be started within two years from the date the claim was filed, unless the owner extends the time in writing.

  5. 5

    Pennsylvania reads the requirements strictly. Missing the 30-day formal notice, the six-month filing period, or the two-year deadline to sue generally forfeits the lien, though a separate breach-of-contract claim for the debt may remain.

  6. 6

    There is no single mandated form. 49 P.S. section 1503 sets the required contents of the claim, and section 1501 sets the contents of the formal notice of intention, so the claim must include the details the statute lists.

  7. 7

    Owner-occupied homes have a shield. Under 49 P.S. section 1301, a subcontractor has no lien against an owner-occupied one- or two-family residence when the owner has already paid the contractor the full contract price.

Key decisions before you file

Before you file a Mechanics Lien in Pennsylvania, 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 guide

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MECHANICS' LIEN CLAIM (PENNSYLVANIA)

Filed with the prothonotary under the Mechanics' Lien Law of 1963, 49 P.S. sections 1101 and following. The claimant files this Mechanics' Lien Claim against the real property described below to secure payment for labor or materials furnished to improve that property.

  1. CLAIMANT Name: [CLAIMANT NAME] Role: [CONTRACTOR / SUBCONTRACTOR / MATERIAL SUPPLIER] Address: [CLAIMANT ADDRESS]

  2. OWNER OR REPUTED OWNER Name: [OWNER NAME] Address: [OWNER ADDRESS]

  3. HIRING PARTY The claimant furnished the work under contract with, or at the request of: [PERSON OR COMPANY THAT ORDERED THE WORK].

  4. PROPERTY Street address: [PROPERTY ADDRESS]. Legal description: [LEGAL DESCRIPTION]. County: [COUNTY].

  5. WORK OR MATERIALS FURNISHED General description of the labor or materials furnished to erect, alter, or repair the improvement: [DESCRIPTION]. Date work first furnished: [FIRST DATE]. Date work completed: [COMPLETION DATE].

  6. AMOUNT OF THE CLAIM The amount unpaid and now due, after deducting all just credits and offsets, is: $[AMOUNT].

  7. AFFIDAVIT / VERIFICATION The claimant, being duly sworn, states that the facts set forth in this claim are true and correct to the best of the claimant's knowledge, information, and belief.

Signature: [SIGNATURE] Printed name and title: [NAME AND TITLE] Date: [DATE] [NOTARY / VERIFICATION AS REQUIRED]

NOTICE OF INTENTION TO FILE A MECHANICS' LIEN CLAIM (served by a subcontractor on the owner at least 30 days before filing, under 49 P.S. section 1501)

You are notified that the claimant named above intends to file a Mechanics' Lien Claim against your property described above for labor or materials furnished and not paid for. The amount claimed is $[AMOUNT]. This notice is given at least 30 days before the claim is filed, as required by the Mechanics' Lien Law of 1963.

To: [OWNER NAME AND ADDRESS] From (claimant): [CLAIMANT NAME AND ADDRESS] Date served: [DATE]

Note: This Pennsylvania mechanics lien claim and notice follow the Mechanics' Lien Law of 1963, 49 P.S. sections 1101 and following. Confirm the current statutory contents, notice steps, and deadlines, or have this reviewed by an attorney, before you file.

Pennsylvania Requirements for Mechanics Lien

Pennsylvania Filing Deadline and Office

File the Pennsylvania mechanics lien in the correct office, a county recorder or court as Pennsylvania requires, within the state's deadline after you last furnish labor or materials. Pennsylvania applies the deadline strictly, so filing late or in the wrong office can void the lien.

Frequently Asked Questions

A Pennsylvania mechanics lien is a claim that a contractor, subcontractor, or supplier files against a property they improved but were not paid for. It attaches to the real estate and clouds the title, making the property hard to sell or refinance, and it can be reduced to a court judgment and enforced by sale. The Mechanics' Lien Law of 1963 governs it.

General contractors, subcontractors, and material suppliers who furnished labor or materials to erect, alter, or repair a structure and were not paid can file. A contractor who dealt directly with the owner files without a preliminary notice, while a subcontractor must first serve the owner a formal written notice of intention at least 30 days ahead.

You must file the claim with the county prothonotary within six months after your work is completed, under 49 P.S. section 1502. Unlike many states, the claim is filed with the court rather than the recorder of deeds. You then have one month after filing to serve the owner with notice that the claim was filed.

A subcontractor must serve the owner a formal written Notice of Intention to file a claim at least 30 days before filing, under 49 P.S. section 1501. On alteration or repair projects the subcontractor must also give a preliminary notice on or before the date its work is completed. A general contractor in privity with the owner is exempt.

Filing the claim is not the last step. Under 49 P.S. section 1701 you must start a court action to obtain judgment on the claim within two years from the date it was filed. The owner can agree in writing to extend that time. If no action is started within the two-year window, the lien is lost.

Missing the 30-day formal notice, the six-month filing deadline, or the two-year deadline to sue usually means the lien is gone, because Pennsylvania courts read the statute strictly. You may still sue the party that hired you for breach of contract to recover the money, but you lose the security a lien gives against the property.

Often no. Under 49 P.S. section 1301, a subcontractor has no lien against an owner-occupied one- or two-family residence if the owner has already paid the contractor the full contract price. This protects homeowners who paid their contractor in full but whose subcontractors went unpaid. A contractor in direct contract with the owner is not limited this way.

Once the debt is paid, the claimant should file a satisfaction or release with the prothonotary to clear the claim from the record. A claim also becomes unenforceable if no court action is started within two years of filing. An owner who believes a claim is invalid can challenge it in court, and the claim can be discharged by posting security.