If you’re in Illinois, then you need to know what your rights are when it comes to being able to work as a contractor, and secure your rights under a mechanic’s lien. Thanks to the Illinois Mechanic’s Lien Act, you have a higher chance of knowing that as long as you properly do everything possible in the correct amount of time, and for the right reasons (mostly non-payment), then you have the ability to secure your services, receive payments, and it ensures that all parties involved in the contract itself receive the proper notification, and money for their time and materials.
In this guide, we’re going to tell you how you can file for one through the BICA services in Illinois so you can ensure that you as a contractor, subcontractor, or supplier can get paid properly.
Public Project Mechanic’s Liens
In Illinois, subcontractors are able to file mechanic’s liens on both private projects as well as public construction projects. This is because while the lien that a property is place on will be actually placed on the home itself, a public project will be based on the amounts that the general contractor from the governmental organization will be. General contractors are not able to file a mechanic’s lien on public projects though, so it would basically need to be filed because of non-payment from the general contractor themselves.
Is a Subcontractor’s Mechanic’s Lien Different?
In Illinois, there is a difference between a subcontractor and a general contractor, so even though they have the same legalities to ensure that each person gets paid, a general contractor’s lien is different, because they directly go through the client or property owner. A subcontractor includes laborers, as well as other subcontractors (electricians, plumbers, etc.), as well as material suppliers.
You Have to Perfect a Lien in Illinois
One of the things you’ll notice is that there are extremely strict deadlines on when everything needs to file a mechanic’s lien. Illinois allows for a mechanic’s lien claim to be recorded within 4 months of the last day of work, and a contractor must serve a copy of the lien within the first 10 days of receiving the claim to the owner in order to file. Also, a subcontractor must file a 90-day preliminary notice to file a lien, or a 60-day notice if the residence is occupied by the owner.
If the mechanic’s lien is served properly, there is a section of the Mechanic’s Lien Act in Illinois that allows the owners to file suit to foreclose the lien within 30 days of the notice (if they are going to choose to foreclose). This window must be watched out for carefully, so that when the contractor receives this paperwork, then the claimant (contractor) has to file suit within that 30 days. If they don’t do that, then they will be simply out of their luck and money, as well as their hard earned time putting into the project.
Conclusion
Make sure that you have a quality company that operates to help contractors nationwide when it comes to filing liens in a timely fashion, as well as helping you to cover all of your bases. You don’t want anything you’ve done to be wasted, and then be out of a reputation, face legal action, or lose preciously earned money.
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