MAKE YOUR FREE Notice of Completion
What is a Notice of Completion?
If you've ever had work done on your property (or done that work yourself), you know construction projects can be time-consuming and costly. With so much at stake, it's important to get as much as possible in writing. Documenting exactly when a project has finished makes sure the contractor gets paid in a timely manner, and protects the property owner from surprise extra costs after work has supposedly ended. It may even be a legal requirement in your state, so check your state's laws to see if and when you need to file a Notice of Completion.
When to use a Notice of Completion:
- You want to file a mechanic's lien.
- You own property where work was performed.
- You're a contractor who performed work on a property.
Sample Notice of Completion
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The of Completion should be signed in front of a notary public. It is not necessary that the signature be witnessed or notarized.
After signing the Notice of Completion, you should file it with the county recorder in the county where the project took place no more than 15 days after the date of completion.
The date of completion may be (1) the date that the work being described was actually completed; (2) the date that the owner started occupying the property or using the improvement that was made, along with labor stopping; (3) the date after labor has stopped on the project for a continuous period of 60 days; (4) if labor has stopped for a continuous period of at least 30 days, the date that a Notice of Cessation was filed; or (5) if the work was subject to acceptance by a public entity, the date that the work was actually accepted.
Within 10 days of filing the Notice of Completion, the owner needs to give a copy of the document to the direct contractor who performed the work and any lien claimant who has given the owner preliminary notice that they intend to file a lien.
If the above requirements are met, the period that the direct contractor has to enforce a lien on the property is reduced from 90 days after work is completed to 60 days after your Notice of Completion is recorded. Meanwhile, the period that any other claimant has to enforce a lien is reduced from 90 days to 30 days.
After signing the Notice of Completion and having it notarized, you should file it with the county recorder's office in the county in which the property (or at least some part of the property) is located.
Within 15 days of filing the Notice of Completion, you should mail by certified mail or registered mail postage prepaid a copy, along with a written statement of the date of recording and the county recorder's record location information, to the original contractor and anyone else from whom you've received a preliminary 20-day notice.
If the above requirements are met, the period that any claimant has to enforce a lien on the property is reduced from 120 days after work is completed to 60 days after your Notice of Completion is recorded.
After signing the Affidavit of Completion and having it notarized, the owner should file it with the county clerk of the county in which the property is located.
No later than the day that you file the Affidavit of Completion, you should send a copy to the original contractor. If you've received a Notice of Lien Liability from anyone, you should send that party a copy as well, no later than the date you file the Affidavit or 10 days after you receive the Notice of Lien Liability, whichever is later.
Without the Affidavit of Completion, anyone who claims a lien can wait until the 15th day of the fourth month after indebtedness accrues to make their claim. However, if you meet the requirements above, this deadline is reduced to 40 days after the completion date stated in the Affidavit of Completion.
At least five days before recording the Notice of Completion, the owner is required to give notice to certain parties that the Notice of Completion is about to be filed. These parties include everyone who has given a Notice of Right to Lien or a Stop-Lending Notice to the owner at least ten days before this future recording date. This notice to other parties must include a copy of the Notice of Completion a statement that it will be recorded no earlier than five days after the date of the notice. Then, the Notice of Completion should be recorded in the office of the recorder of the district where the property is located.
As an example of the notice deadlines, if you intend to record this Notice of Completion on March 15th, you are required to give notice by at least March 10th to anyone who has given you a Notice of Right to Lien or a Stop-Lending Notice on or before March 5th.
Without recording the Notice of Completion, any lien claimant has 90 days after they complete their portion of the contract to file a lien. However, if the above notice requirements are met and the Notice of Completion is properly recorded, lien claimants will only have 15 days after it is recorded to file their lien.
After signing the Notice of Completion, it should be recorded in the office of the county recorder in the county where the property is located.
Within 10 days after the Notice of Completion is recorded, you must deliver a copy of the Notice (by certified mail) to (1) each prime contractor with whom you had a contract for any part of this work and (2) each potential lien claimant who, at some point before you recorded the Notice, either submitted a request to you for a copy of the Notice or delivered a Preliminary Notice of Right to Lien.
The Notice of Completion may be filed at any time after completion of the work. "Completion of the work" can be measured in a couple of different ways: it can either be (1) the written acceptance by the owner, the owner's agent, or the representative of the building, improvement, or structure; or (2) the cessation of labor for at least 30 days.
The Notice of Completion, along with affidavit of publication, must be filed in the office of the county clerk and recorder of the county where the property is located. A copy of the Notice of Completion must be published once a week for three weeks in a row in a newspaper of general circulation in the county where the property is located.
Finally, a copy of the Notice of Completion should be given to anyone who has given the owner a Notice of a Right to Claim a Lien.
After the Notice of Completion is signed and notarized, it should be filed in the office of the register of deeds in the county in which the property is located and, simultaneously, a copy should be given to the prime contractor for the work. If a remote contractor has served a Notice of Nonpayment upon the owner, then a copy should also simultaneously be given to that contractor.
For work on residential property, lien claimants have ten days from the date the Notice of Completion is recorded to file for a lien. For work on commercial property, this deadline will be 30 days from the date of recording.
When every original contractor employed on the project has substantially performed its work under the contract, the Notice of Completion should be posted in a conspicuous place on the property where the work took place. Within five days of this posting, it should be filed with the recording officer of the county in which the property is located, along with an affidavit stating the date, place, and manner that the Notice was posted.
Anyone claiming a lien related to the project will have 75 days from the date of completion, as stated truthfully on the Notice of Completion, to file their lien. After 75 days, their lien rights are waived.
In Massachusetts, the owner and contractor should both sign the Notice of Substantial Completion. Under the Massachusetts General Laws, "substantial completion" means that the "work under the written contract is sufficiently complete" to allow the property to be "occupied or utilized for its intended use."
After signing, which can occur once "substantial completion" occurs or any time thereafter, the Notice of Substantial Completion should be filed with the registry of deeds for the county in which the property is located.
The owner should mail a copy of the Notice of Substantial Completion by certified mail return receipt requested to everyone who has filed a Notice of Contract. The contractor should mail a copy of the Notice of Substantial Completion by certified mail return receipt requested to everyone who has a written contract with the contractor and everyone who has given him or her written Notice of Identification.
