A mechanic’s lien release form, also known as a “lien cancellation”, is a legal document used for removing an existing lien from a commercial or residential property. Like the mechanic’s lien, it is recorded with the County Clerk in the county where the property is located.

How to Release a Mechanic’s Lien (3 steps)

The process for releasing a lien on a property involves filling out the release form and recording it with the County Clerk. See the steps below for additional information on this process.

Step 1 – Negotiate with the Property Owner

More often than not, the owner of the property will reach out to the worker (claimant) in order to resolve the lien. Depending on the value of the lien, the owner may attempt to pay a lower amount than owed. While accepting the owner’s offer can resolve the situation faster, it is ultimately up to the claimant if they want to accept a lower value for their work and/or materials.

Step 2 – Recieve Payment

The claimant should require the owner to pay them before the lien is released. This is very important, as there is far less incentive for the property owner to make a payment if the lien is already released. Additionally, once payment is received, the claimant has no reason to not release the lien. Another reason it is important to receive payment first is that the claimant only has a set amount of time to file a lien; should they release the lien and not receive payment, the state-mandated deadline would most likely have already been met, thus limiting the worker’s ability to record a second lien.

Step 3 – Complete + Record the Release

Once the claimant has been paid for the full value of the lien (or a lesser, agreed-upon amount), they will need to complete the lien release. If the claimant had to notarize the Mechanic’s Lien when they initially filed it, they will most likely need to notarize the release form as well.

Bring the completed lien to the County Clerk for recording. Once a copy of the release is obtained, the claimant should mail a copy of the form (via certified mail) to the owner to inform them that the lien is officially released. This completes the lien release process.

Lien Release Deadlines: By State

In general, the claimant will need to release the lien after receiving a written demand from the property owner, OR after receiving payment in full. For states that don’t have laws covering release deadlines, it is the recommended practice to release the lien once payment has been received, regardless of if it is legally required.

Sample

Download: PDF, Word (.docx), OpenDocument

How to Write

Download: PDF, Word (.docx), OpenDocument

Step 1 – State & County

Field 1 – Type the name of the State that the lien was originally filed in.
Field 2 – Type the name of the County in which the lien was originally recorded in.

Step 2 – Lien to be Released

Field 3 – Type the date (mm/dd/yyyy) that the original lien was recorded on.
Fields 4 & 5 – Enter the name of the County and State that the lien was recorded in (same as Fields 1 & 2).
Fields 6 & 7 – Type the book and page numbers that the lien recording can be found in.
Field 8 – The Claimant can add any other information regarding the lien here (optional).

Step 3 – Property (with Lien)

Field 9 – Type the full property address where work took place. This is the property that has the lien to be released.
Field 10 – Write the full description of the property. This can be found on the property’s deed as well as other recorded documents.

Step 4 – Claimant

Field 11 – Type the full name of the Claimant. This is the name of the person that completed the work (and is filling out the form).
Field 12 – Enter the Claimant’s full mailing address. This should include the State and ZIP code.

Step 5 – Owner

Field 13 – Type the full name of the owner of the property that has the lien.
Field 14 – Type the owner’s full mailing address (if the owner lives in the property with the lien, this address will be the same as the “Property” address written above).

Step 6 – Reason for Release

Field 15 – Check the box that corresponds to why the Claimant is releasing the lien. If the “Other reason” box is checked, describe the reason the claimant is releasing the lien.

Step 7 – Claimant Signature

Field 16 – The Claimant will need to sign their name here. If the Claimant will be having the form notarized (highly recommended, and often required), they will need to wait to sign until they are in the presence of a Notary Public.
Field 17 – Type the date (mm/dd/yyyy) the Claimant signed the form.
Field 18 – Type the Claimant’s full name here.

Step 8 – Notarization

Fields 19-24 – These fields are for a Notary Public to complete ONLY.