NJ mechanics lien: what to do when a customer won't pay, the residential deadlines, and the letter to send

Published November 4, 2026 · New Jersey statutes, court pages, county clerk fees and the AAA lien arbitration form checked November 4, 2026

• Free. The demand letter and deadline worksheet come by email.
• Deepsel is our product: free estimate, invoice and scheduling software for contractors (scheduling and dispatch, quotes, invoicing, card payments). The section before the FAQ says where it fits and where it doesn't.
• Not legal advice. Have a New Jersey attorney read your Notice of Unpaid Balance before you file it.

On a New Jersey home you can't file a mechanics lien straight away. Within 60 days of your last day of work you file a Notice of Unpaid Balance with the county clerk, and within 10 days of filing it you demand arbitration with the American Arbitration Association. Only if the arbitrator finds the lien valid do you file it, within 10 days of the decision and no later than day 120.^{1, 2} None of it works without a written contract the customer signed.³

Before the lien come the cheap steps: a written demand, a talk about what's wrong, maybe a payment plan, and small claims for anything up to $5,000. Below are the steps in order, every deadline with its statute, what each filing costs, and a free demand letter with a deadline worksheet. Get it three ways: make your own copy in Google Docs (opens in your Drive), download the Word version (.docx), or download the PDF. Pick a format, enter your email and I'll send the links.

NJ mechanics lien deadlines at a glance

This is the residential path: a one-, two- or three-family house, or a condo or co-op unit.³ The example assumes the last day of work was Thursday, October 22, 2026.

Day 60 is the one to watch. Add the steps after it (10 days to demand arbitration, up to 30 for the decision, 10 to file) and a Notice filed on day 60 already takes you to day 110, with day 120 as a hard stop. File the Notice earlier if you can. Days are calendar days,³ so a deadline on a Saturday is still a Saturday: file on the business day before.

Don't go by the Judiciary's own FAQ on this. It says the lien claim goes to the county clerk "within 90 days of the date payment was due."⁷ The statute counts from your last work, not from a due date, and 90 days is the rule for non-residential jobs.²

What to do when a customer refuses to pay: the first steps

"Customer refuses to pay. What should we do?" a roofer asked on r/Roofing. The top reply, with 175 upvotes: "Slap a lien on the house."⁸ In New Jersey the lien comes last. This is the order I'd go in:

1. Decide whether to stop work. If the job is only partly done and a progress payment is late, you can stop, but do it in writing. The Home Improvement Practices rules make it unlawful to miss the dates in your contract unless the delay is "beyond the seller's control," or to skip "timely written notice" of the reason and when the work will be done.⁹ The Prompt Payment Act lets a contractor suspend work "after providing seven calendar days' written notice" when a payment is late, no written reason for holding it back was given, and the owner isn't making a good faith effort to sort it out.¹⁰ (Whether that Act reaches a homeowner's job is an open question, covered below.) So send a written notice, wait seven days, then stop and leave the site safe.
2. Put the bill in writing. Send the invoice again with a due date. Two New Jersey rules decide what you can ask for. You can't ask for the final payment "before the home improvement is completed in accordance with the terms of the contract," and copies of any inspection certificates go to the customer "before final payment is due."⁹ With punch-list items still open, bill the progress payments that are due and say when the final one will be.
3. Send a demand letter. Certified and regular mail, plus email. Name the contract, the price, the signed change orders, what's been paid, the balance and a pay-by date about 10 days out, then say what happens next. If you're registered, the letter needs your registration number and the Division of Consumer Affairs sentence in bold capitals, because "Any invoice, contract or correspondence" you give a consumer must carry it.¹¹ The template below has both.
4. Find out what's wrong. A customer who's holding money usually has a reason, even a thin one. ("Client withholding $6,000 over a small crack in a concrete patio," as one contractor put it.¹²) Offer to look, fix or credit, and put what you agree in writing. If it ends up in lien arbitration, the arbitrator rules on the owner's setoffs and counterclaims too.¹
5. Offer a payment plan, carefully. In writing, signed, with amounts and dates. Keep it short and interest-free. New Jersey licenses "home repair contractors" whose customers pay in installments "over a period of time greater than 90 days,"¹³ and a plan doesn't stop the lien clock. I'd have the last payment land before about day 45, which still leaves time for the Notice.
6. Call a lawyer before you file the Notice of Unpaid Balance, when the owner says the work is defective or hires a lawyer, or when the balance is over the $5,000 small claims limit.¹⁴ An hour of advice costs far less than a forfeited lien plus the owner's legal fees, which is what a bad filing can cost you (below).

The NJ construction lien law on a home

New Jersey calls it a construction lien, and the law is the Construction Lien Law, N.J.S.A. 2A:44A. On a home it runs through extra steps that the Legislature added so houses can still be sold and financed without a pile of small lien fights.¹

Who can file a mechanics lien in NJ

• Contractors, subcontractors and suppliers. A contractor has a contract directly with the owner. Subs and suppliers below them can lien too, but only down to the third tier.^{3, 15}
• Only with a signed written contract. In the lien law, "Contract" means "any agreement, or amendment thereto, in writing, signed by the party against whom the lien claim is asserted," and "signed" means the writing "bears a mark or symbol intended to authenticate it."³ No signature, no lien. The same goes for change orders: the forms ask for "Executed Amendments to Contract Price/Change Orders."¹⁶ The roofer in that Reddit thread had no signed contract, only photos of the owner during the job.⁸ In New Jersey that job has no lien at all.
• Tenants. If a tenant hired you, the lien attaches to the lease. It reaches the owner's interest only if the owner authorized the work in a signed writing, paid or agreed to pay most of it, or the lease says so.¹⁷
• Licensed work needs the license. "Any work or services requiring a license for performance including, but not limited to, architectural, engineering, plumbing or electrical construction, shall not constitute an improvement unless performed by a licensed claimant."³ An unlicensed electrician, plumber or HVACR contractor has no lien for that work. Our electrical, plumbing and HVAC license pages cover what each license allows.
• Home improvement registration is a grey area. The lien law says "license," not registration, and I found no published decision saying an unregistered home improvement contractor loses the lien. But working unregistered breaks the registration law, and that is "an unlawful practice and a violation of" the Consumer Fraud Act.¹⁸ Expect the owner to raise it in the arbitration. Register before you need to collect: the NJ registration page has the steps.

If your contract broke the Consumer Fraud Act rules, can you still collect?

Usually something, rarely all of it. No statute says a home improvement contract that misses a required item is void, so the courts have decided it case by case. In a published 1997 case an electrician sued for extras agreed only by word of mouth, and the court held "the oral contract is unenforceable under the Act and the regulations" and that he was "limited to quantum meruit."¹⁹ That means the reasonable value of the work, proved with evidence, rather than the price you agreed. In a published 2001 case, a homeowner who "insisted a written contract was unnecessary" couldn't use the writing rule against his landscaper.²⁰ An unpublished 2019 case shows the arithmetic: a bathroom contractor sued for a $6,289 balance and got $2,831 for the value of work the judge found about 80% complete, while the homeowner got $1,500 for workmanship plus $3,429.09 in attorneys' fees on her Consumer Fraud Act counterclaim.²¹

For the lien it's simpler. No signed writing, no lien.³ A signed contract that misses an item still meets the lien law's definition of a contract as I read it, but I found no decision on how an arbitrator weighs the missing item, and the owner will bring it up as a counterclaim. The NJ home improvement contract page lists what the contract must include and what a wrong one costs.

Is your job residential?

The residential rules cover building or improving a "dwelling," which means "a one-, two- or three-family residence," or a residential unit in a condo, co-op or townhouse development. Units designed for rent aren't residential units.³ Anything else, such as a four-family rental or a shop, follows the non-residential path: the lien claim within 90 days, with no required Notice first and no arbitration.² Most of the jobs this page is written for are homes, so the rest of it covers the residential path.

New Jersey has no pre-job notice. You send the owner nothing before you start, and I found no lien warning required in the contract. I read every section of the Construction Lien Law in force: the only notice is the Notice of Unpaid Balance, filed after the work.^{16, 1}

The deadline, and what counts as the last day of work

Everything counts from "the last date that work, services, material or equipment were provided."¹ The statute closes the obvious way to stretch it: "warranty or other service calls, or other work, materials or equipment provided after completion or termination of a claimant's contract shall not be used to determine the last day."² So going back a month later to adjust a door or swap a thermostat doesn't buy you time. Count from the last day of real contract work.

The clock doesn't wait for the inspector either. The roofer in that thread believed he couldn't lien "until the final inspection is completed," and his customer was ignoring the county.⁸ New Jersey's statute counts from the work you provided and says nothing about inspections, so a customer who keeps the inspector out isn't stopping your 60 days. Write down the dates and keep moving.

How to file a mechanics lien in NJ: the Notice, the arbitration, the lien claim

1. The Notice of Unpaid Balance and Right to File Lien. Its wording is printed in the statute.¹⁶ It asks for the owner, the Block and Lot from the municipal tax map, the contract date and parties, the work you did, the last date of work, and the amount on lines A to G: contract price, signed change orders, the value of the work if you didn't finish, agreed credits, and payments. You tick that it's a residential contract and sign it, and the form has a notary block. You file it ("lodge it for record") with the clerk of the county where the house is. The Judiciary has no form;⁷ some county clerks do.

The statute sets the fee at $15 a document, and counties add page charges: Morris charges $15 for the first page and $5 for each extra page, Monmouth adds $10 a page, and Burlington's list says $20.²² Within 10 days of filing, serve a copy stamped by the clerk on the owner, and on the contractor above you if you're a sub. Serve it by hand, or by certified or registered mail and regular mail sent together.^{1, 4}

2. The arbitration demand. "Unless the parties have otherwise agreed in writing to an alternative dispute resolution mechanism, within 10 days from the date the Notice of Unpaid Balance and Right to File Lien is lodged for record," you serve a demand for an expedited arbitration before a single arbitrator of the American Arbitration Association.¹ Those 10 days run from filing, not from service. The AAA's form costs $300 for a case decided on documents and $525 with a hearing, plus $25 for each extra party. You attach the Notice and proof of service, and send your documents within five business days of the AAA's notice. An owner who files a counterclaim pays $300.²³

Within 30 days of the AAA getting your demand, the arbitrator decides whether the Notice was right and properly served, what the contract earned, whether there's a valid lien and for how much, and what the owner's setoffs and counterclaims are worth, and splits the costs. If a counterclaim can't be put at a fixed number, the arbitrator orders you to post a bond, letter of credit or deposit of 110% of its approximate value (never more than the lien amount) before you may file the lien.¹ If your contract names a different dispute process, that process replaces the AAA step, so read your contract before day 50. (The template on our NJ contract page has no arbitration clause, so the AAA path applies.)

3. The lien claim. If the arbitrator finds an amount, file the lien claim on the form in N.J.S.A. 2A:44A-8, "signed, acknowledged and verified by oath," within 10 days of receiving the decision and no later than 120 days after your last work.^{2, 24} Miss the 10 days and the lien is invalid.¹ Serve it within 10 days of filing, the same ways as the Notice.⁴ The amount "shall not exceed the unpaid portion of the contract price,"¹⁵ so leave out interest, late fees and collection costs. Those belong in a lawsuit, if your contract allows them.

Enforce it or lose it

A lien is only a claim on the house. To turn it into money you sue in Superior Court in the county where the house is, "within one year of the date of the last provision of work," or within 30 days after the owner sends you a written demand to sue by hand or certified mail. You file a notice of lis pendens with the suit, and the judgment can order a sheriff's sale. Miss the deadline and you forfeit the lien and must discharge it; leave it on record and you pay the owner's costs and attorneys' fees.⁵ This part is a lawyer's job. The owner can also clear the lien off the title at any point by filing a bond or deposit of 110% of the claim (on a home, no more than the earned amount the arbitrator found).²⁵ When you're paid, file a discharge within 30 days, or within 7 days if anyone asks for it.²⁶

What happens if your lien is wrong

New Jersey punishes a bad lien. If a lien claim is "without basis," the amount is "willfully overstated," or it's filed in the wrong form, way or time, you forfeit it and pay the owner's court costs, "reasonable legal expenses, including, but not limited to, attorneys' fees," and damages. "Without basis" means "frivolous, false, unsupported by a contract, or made with malice or bad faith or for any improper purpose."²⁷ On a home the bar for the Notice is lower: a Notice that is "significantly overstated," with no "willfully" needed, makes you liable for the owner's damages, costs and fees.¹ It cuts both ways. An owner who keeps up a defense "without basis" pays your costs and fees.²⁷ So claim only the unpaid contract price you can document, line by line.

Subcontractors and suppliers versus the prime contractor

If you're a sub or supplier, your lien comes out of the "lien fund": what the owner still owes the prime contractor when your lien claim is served. If the owner has paid the prime in full by then, "no lien fund exists."¹⁵ Subs on a home go through the same Notice and arbitration.¹ Two rules bind the prime contractor. The owner can ask in writing for a sworn list of every sub and supplier, due within 10 days, and a prime who doesn't give it is liable for the owner's costs of fighting a lien from anyone left off.²⁸ And under the Prompt Payment Act, a prime pays a sub within 10 calendar days of being paid for that sub's work, unless they agreed otherwise in writing.¹⁰

Lien waivers: when to sign them

New Jersey has no state waiver form, and its rule fits in one sentence: waivers "are against public policy, unlawful, and void, unless given in consideration for payment," and they work "only upon and to the extent that such payment is actually received."²⁹ Even so, sign only for money in hand. One contractor's rule, on r/Contractor: "Final waiver only after we get the last check and it clears."³⁰

Other ways to get paid in New Jersey

NJ small claims limit and filing fee

Small claims takes cases up to $5,000, and "Payment for work performed" is on the court's own list. Filing costs $35 for one defendant and $5 for each extra one, plus $10 per defendant for service by certified and regular mail. Above $5,000 and up to $20,000 you file in the regular Special Civil Part ($75, plus the same $10 per defendant for mail service), and above $20,000 in the Law Division. File in small claims for more than $5,000 and you give up the rest for good.¹⁴ You have six years to sue on a contract.⁶

Winning isn't collecting, as someone pointed out in that roofing thread: "Just because you win in small claims doesn't mean you get paid, you still have to collect. The court doesn't do that for you."⁸ A judgment does earn interest at a rate the courts set each year: 4.5% for judgments up to $20,000 in 2026, falling to 4.0% on January 1, 2027 (6.5% and 6.0% above that).³¹

Interest and attorney fees

New Jersey "generally disfavors the shifting of attorneys' fees," but "a prevailing party can recover those fees if they are expressly provided for by statute, court rule, or contract."³² So your contract decides. If you want interest on late payments, put the rate in the contract, and keep it at or under 16% a year, the cap New Jersey's interest statute puts on a rate set in a written contract.³³ The lien law adds one fee rule on your side: an owner who fights a valid lien with a defense "without basis" pays your fees.²⁷ The contract page covers how to state the price and any finance charges.

The NJ Prompt Payment Act, and whether it reaches a homeowner

Its terms are strong. The owner pays within 30 days of the billing date. A bill is "deemed approved and certified 20 days after the owner receives it unless the owner provides, before the end of the 20-day period, a written statement of the amount withheld and the reason for withholding payment." Late money carries "interest at a rate equal to the prime rate plus 1%," you may suspend work after seven days' written notice, and in a suit to collect, "the prevailing party shall be awarded reasonable costs and attorney fees."¹⁰

Its words don't leave homes out. "Owner" means "any person, including any public or governmental entity, who has an interest in the real property to be improved and who has contracted with a prime contractor," and one clause only makes sure the Act doesn't restrict the rights of "an owner who is a resident homeowner" under other laws.¹⁰ I found no published decision applying it to a homeowner's job; the cases I found are commercial. Treat it as a backup argument, not your plan. It works on billings made "in accordance with the terms and definitions of the applicable contract," so put billing dates in your contract. The Act also says contracts "shall provide" that payment disputes may go to alternative dispute resolution.¹⁰ Ask your lawyer before adding that to a home contract, because a written dispute clause also replaces the AAA step in the lien process.¹

A collection agency

An agency is for balances too small for a lawyer, or past the lien deadlines. It takes a cut and can't revive a missed deadline. The federal debt collection law governs the agency, a "debt collector" collecting debts "owed or due another," and not you chasing your own invoice.³⁴

If they paid by card

If the customer paid by card and files a chargeback, the card issuer decides, so answer the dispute fast with the signed contract, the signed change orders, the invoice and dated photos of the finished work.

By trade

Roofers: the deductible and the insurance check

The roofing version of this came up on r/Contractor on November 1: "Long story short total job $16,700." The insurer's money came in, and the customer "said he needs time to pay the deductible."³⁰ The deductible is part of your contract price, so an unpaid deductible is an unpaid balance like any other, on the same 60-day clock. One roofer's habit avoids the chase: "I always collect a separate check for the deductible with deductible written in the memo line."³⁵ We found no New Jersey law that adds claim rules to a roofing contract, so there's no NJ claim page; the contract page covers the insurance-claim clause and the public adjuster rule.

Electricians, plumbers and HVAC: billing by stage, and inspection holds

Bill in stages so the last payment is small. A plumber on r/askaplumber: "I do 30% after underground, 40% after rough in, and 30% at the end."³⁶ On a home improvement job in New Jersey the last stage is tied to the inspection, because the customer gets copies of the inspection certificates "when construction is completed and before final payment is due."⁹ So hand the final certificate over with the final invoice. If the owner won't let the inspector in, keep the emails and dates; your lien clock still runs from your last work. Your license is what makes the work lienable,³ and your board wants your name, license or permit number and street address on business correspondence, demand letters included.³⁷

General contractors and remodelers: the punch list holding the final payment

"Client withholding $6,000 over a small crack in a concrete patio. Suggestions?"¹² is the usual shape: a big final payment held over a small item. Fix it, or offer a written credit for that item, and ask for the rest. In lien arbitration the arbitrator puts a value on the owner's setoff, and one that can't be priced means you post a bond or deposit of 110% of its approximate value before you file the lien.¹ A small, priced credit costs less.

If a customer owes you now: this week

1. Write down your last day of contract work (not a warranty visit). Add 60 days and put that date in your calendar, with a reminder at day 40.
2. Find the signed contract and every signed change order. Anything unsigned can't go in a lien.
3. Check that your registration or license was valid on every day of the job.
4. Re-send the invoice with a due date, with the inspection certificates if the job had any.
5. Send the demand letter by certified and regular mail, and email it too.
6. Call the customer and ask what's wrong. Offer a fix or a written credit, and put any payment plan in writing with the last payment before about day 45.
7. Look up the Block and Lot on the tax bill or the county's records, and find your county clerk's fee page.
8. Still unpaid at day 40: call a New Jersey construction lawyer and get the Notice of Unpaid Balance and the AAA demand ready.

The free NJ demand letter and lien deadline worksheet

The download has two parts:

• A demand letter with your registration or license lines, the balance table, the inspection certificate line, the pay-by date, the dispute and payment plan paragraphs, a plain notice that you intend to file a Notice of Unpaid Balance (New Jersey sets no wording for one, so it's yours to keep or cut), an optional line for contract interest and fees, and the Division's sentence in bold capitals.
• A deadline worksheet with the job facts the forms ask for (Block and Lot, residential or not, signed contract and change orders, license), the amount on the forms' lines A to G, and 16 steps, each with its deadline, a blank date, the statute and a box to tick. Then what to keep in the job file, the waiver rule and when to pay a lawyer.

Get it as a Google Docs copy, a Word file or a PDF. The Notice of Unpaid Balance and the lien claim themselves go on the forms printed in the statute, or your county clerk's version of them.

More for new contractors

• How to find work as a new contractor: where your first customers come from, with a free first customers plan.
• Angi vs Thumbtack: should you pay for leads yet, with a free lead cost calculator.
• Google Business Profile for contractors: setup, verification and your first reviews, with a free checklist.
• How much to set aside for taxes: self-employment tax, quarterly payments and your state, with a free calculator.
• Hiring your first employee: W-2 or 1099, workers comp and what a helper really costs, with a free checklist.
• Contractor insurance: what you need from day one, what it costs and what can wait, with a free checklist.
• Punch list template: stop a small list holding your final payment.

Where Deepsel fits

Deepsel is the field service software I build, and it covers the billing side of this, not the lien. Every invoice gets a due date from your payment terms and shows as overdue after it, and the invoice list totals what's outstanding and overdue. You can re-send an invoice with a short message, the customer can pay the balance by card from the link, and the invoice shows when they first opened it. Cash, check, Zelle and other payments are recorded against it, so a payment plan shows as partly paid with the balance left. The shop-wide invoice footer is copied onto every invoice, which is a place for your registration number and the Division's sentence, though it prints in small plain type, not the bold capitals the rule asks for. The quote the customer approves keeps their on-screen signature and the time they approved, and a deposit taken at approval is credited on the final invoice. It's free up to 30 estimates and 30 invoices a month; Pro is $29 a month with unlimited estimates and invoices (see pricing). Deepsel doesn't track lien deadlines, write demand letters or Notices, send automatic overdue reminders, or add late fees or interest. Day 60 goes in your own calendar.

Frequently asked questions

How long do you have to file a mechanics lien in NJ?

On a home (a one-, two- or three-family house, or a condo or co-op unit), you file a Notice of Unpaid Balance and Right to File Lien within 60 days of your last day of work, demand arbitration within 10 days of filing it, and file the lien claim within 10 days of the arbitrator's decision and no later than 120 days after your last work. On other property the lien claim is due within 90 days. Warranty and service calls don't restart the clock. You then have one year from the last work to sue on the lien.

Can a contractor put a lien on a house in NJ?

Yes, with conditions. You need a written contract the owner signed, and if the work needs a license (plumbing, electrical, HVACR), you need that license. On a home you file the Notice of Unpaid Balance and go through an expedited American Arbitration Association arbitration first, and the lien can't be more than the unpaid contract price.

What are the lien laws in New Jersey?

The Construction Lien Law, N.J.S.A. 2A:44A. It gives contractors, subcontractors and suppliers, down to the third tier, a lien for the unpaid contract price. Non-residential jobs get 90 days; homes go through the Notice of Unpaid Balance, arbitration and a 120-day limit. You must sue within a year, and anyone who files a lien without basis or willfully overstated pays the owner's legal fees and damages.

Do you need a written contract to file a lien in NJ?

Yes. The lien law defines a contract as an agreement “in writing, signed by the party against whom the lien claim is asserted.” Change orders count only if signed. An electronic signature works if it's a mark meant to authenticate the writing. Without a signed contract you can still sue for the reasonable value of your work, but you can't file a lien.

What is the small claims limit in NJ?

$5,000. Filing costs $35 for one defendant, plus $10 per defendant for service by certified and regular mail. Claims up to $20,000 go to the regular Special Civil Part, and larger ones to the Law Division. If you file in small claims for more than $5,000, you give up the rest.

Does the NJ Prompt Payment Act apply to homeowners?

Its text doesn't leave them out: “owner” means any person with an interest in the property who contracted with a prime contractor, and one clause keeps a resident homeowner's rights under other laws intact. I found no published decision applying it to a homeowner's job, so treat its 30-day payment rule, prime-plus-1% interest and fee award as a backup argument, and ask a lawyer before you lean on it.

What can the homeowner do about my lien?

Contest your Notice in the arbitration with setoffs and counterclaims; clear the lien off the title with a surety bond or deposit of 110% of the claim (on a home, no more than the earned amount the arbitrator found); send you a written demand that gives you 30 days to sue; and ask a court to discharge a lien that's without basis, with their legal fees charged to you.

Can I file a lien in NJ if I'm not registered?

If the work needs a trade license and you don't hold it, no: unlicensed plumbing, electrical and other licensed work isn't lienable. For home improvement registration the lien law is silent, and I found no published decision either way. Working unregistered is a Consumer Fraud Act violation, though, and the owner will raise it, so register before you need to collect.

Sources

1. N.J.S.A. 2A:44A-21, Construction Lien Law, residential construction: (b)(1) Notice of Unpaid Balance within 60 days, (b)(2) service, (b)(3) arbitration demand within 10 days of lodging, (b)(4)-(6) the arbitrator's determinations, 110% bond, 30 days, (b)(8) lien claim within 10 days of the determination, (b)(12) liability for a Notice "without basis" or "significantly overstated." law.justia.com (2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes, read November 4, 2026.)
2. N.J.S.A. 2A:44A-6, filing the lien claim: (a)(1) signed, acknowledged and verified by oath, (a)(2) 90 days non-residential, 10 days after the arbitrator's determination and 120 days residential, (d) warranty and service calls. law.justia.com (2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes, read November 4, 2026.)
3. N.J.S.A. 2A:44A-2, definitions: "Contract," "Day," "Dwelling," "Improvement" (licensed claimant), "Residential construction contract," "Residential unit," first, second and third tier claimants. law.justia.com (2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes, read November 4, 2026.)
4. N.J.S.A. 2A:44A-7, service of the lien claim within 10 days of lodging, by personal service or simultaneous certified, registered or courier delivery and ordinary mail. law.justia.com (2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes, read November 4, 2026.)
5. N.J.S.A. 2A:44A-14, suit within one year or 30 days after the owner's written notice, forfeiture and liability, law.justia.com; 2A:44A-24.1, suit in Superior Court, venue, lis pendens, sheriff's sale, law.justia.com. 2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes, read November 4, 2026.
6. N.J.S.A. 2A:14-1, six years for contractual claims. law.justia.com (2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes), read November 4, 2026.
7. New Jersey Courts, "How do I file a contractor (or mechanic) lien?" (FAQ): no Judiciary forms; "within 90 days of the date payment was due." njcourts.gov, read November 4, 2026.
8. r/Roofing, "Customer refuses to pay. What should we do?" (March 24, 2025, a California job), with the replies quoted. reddit.com.
9. N.J.A.C. 13:45A-16.2, Home Improvement Practices, "Unlawful practices": (a)6.v final payment, (a)7.ii and 7.iii delays and written notice, (a)10.ii inspection certificates. law.cornell.edu, read November 4, 2026.
10. N.J.S.A. 2A:30A-1 (definitions: "Owner," "Billing," "Prime contractor") and 2A:30A-2 (30 days, 20-day deemed approval, prime rate plus 1%, 10 days to subcontractors, suspension after seven days' written notice, resident homeowner, alternative dispute resolution, prevailing party fees), Prompt Payment Act. law.justia.com, law.justia.com (2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes), read November 4, 2026.
11. N.J.A.C. 13:45A-17.11(d) and (f): registration number on correspondence; the Division of Consumer Affairs sentence on "Any invoice, contract or correspondence." law.cornell.edu, read November 4, 2026.
12. r/Contractor, "Client withholding $6,000 over a small crack in a concrete patio. Suggestions?" (October 8, 2026). reddit.com.
13. N.J.S.A. 17:16C-62(c) and (d), "Home repair contract" and "Home repair contractor," law.justia.com; 17:16C-77(a), licence required, law.justia.com. 2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes, read November 4, 2026.
14. New Jersey Courts, Small Claims Frequently Asked Questions (CN 11482, revised May 2025): $5,000 limit, claims listed, fees, waiver of the excess, PDF; "How to Sue for an Amount of Money up to $20,000" (CN 10541, revised May 2025): Special Civil Part fees, PDF; small claims and Special Civil self-help pages. Read November 4, 2026.
15. N.J.S.A. 2A:44A-9, amount of the lien claim ("shall not exceed the unpaid portion of the contract price") and the lien fund; (g) no lien beyond the third tier. law.justia.com (2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes, read November 4, 2026.)
16. N.J.S.A. 2A:44A-20, Notice of Unpaid Balance and Right to File Lien, the statutory form. law.justia.com (2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes, read November 4, 2026.)
17. N.J.S.A. 2A:44A-3, lien entitlement; (e) tenant contracts. law.justia.com (2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes, read November 4, 2026.)
18. N.J.S.A. 56:8-138(a), registration required, law.justia.com; 56:8-146(a), a violation is "an unlawful practice and a violation of" the Consumer Fraud Act, law.justia.com. 2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes, read November 4, 2026.
19. Marascio v. Campanella, 298 N.J. Super. 491 (App. Div. 1997), published. law.justia.com, read November 4, 2026.
20. Joe D'Egidio Landscaping, Inc. v. Apicella, 337 N.J. Super. 252 (App. Div. 2001), published. courtlistener.com, read November 4, 2026.
21. CB Construction, Inc. v. Panico, No. A-0833-17T2 (App. Div. June 26, 2019), unpublished and "binding only on the parties." njcourts.gov, read November 4, 2026.
22. N.J.S.A. 22A:2-29, county clerk fees ("Construction lien $15.00"; "Notice of unpaid balance, discharge $15.00"), law.justia.com; county clerk fee pages: Morris, Monmouth, Burlington (list dated July 7, 2020), Hunterdon, Union. Read November 4, 2026.
23. American Arbitration Association, "New Jersey Construction Lien Arbitration Rules Demand for Arbitration" (fees $300 documents only, $525 oral hearing, $25 each additional party, $300 counterclaim; documents within five business days; determination within 30 days), PDF; AAA New Jersey Residential Construction Lien Arbitration Rules (effective March 1, 2012), icdr.org. Read November 4, 2026.
24. N.J.S.A. 2A:44A-8, lien claim form ("Construction Lien Claim"). law.justia.com (2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes, read November 4, 2026.)
25. N.J.S.A. 2A:44A-31, discharge by surety bond or deposit of 110% of the claim (residential: no greater than the earned amount found by the arbitrator). law.justia.com (2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes, read November 4, 2026.)
26. N.J.S.A. 2A:44A-30, discharge certificate within 30 days of payment or 7 days of demand; (c) order to show cause to discharge a lien claim without factual basis. law.justia.com (2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes, read November 4, 2026.)
27. N.J.S.A. 2A:44A-15, improper lien claim: forfeiture, costs, attorneys' fees and damages; (b) defense without basis; (d) "without basis" defined. law.justia.com (2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes, read November 4, 2026.)
28. N.J.S.A. 2A:44A-37, verified list of subcontractors and suppliers within 10 days of a written request. law.justia.com (2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes, read November 4, 2026.)
29. N.J.S.A. 2A:44A-38, waivers of construction lien rights. law.justia.com (2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes, read November 4, 2026.)
30. r/Contractor, "Customer didn't pay deductible? Needs time" (November 1, 2026), with the reply quoted. reddit.com.
31. New Jersey Courts, notices to the bar under R. 4:42-11: post-judgment interest for 2026 (4.5% and 6.5%) and 2027 (4.0% and 6.0%, dated July 21, 2026). Read November 4, 2026.
32. Packard-Bamberger & Co. v. Collier, 167 N.J. 427 (2001). law.justia.com, read November 4, 2026.
33. N.J.S.A. 31:1-1(a), maximum interest with a written contract: "$16.00 for the forbearance of $100.00 for a year." law.justia.com (2025 New Jersey Revised Statutes), read November 4, 2026.
34. 15 U.S.C. 1692a(6), definition of "debt collector." law.cornell.edu, read November 4, 2026.
35. r/Roofing comment, August 6, 2024: "I always collect a separate check for the deductible with deductible written in the memo line." reddit.com.
36. r/askaplumber comment, May 16, 2026: "I do 30% after underground, 40% after rough in, and 30% at the end." reddit.com.
37. Trade board identification rules on business correspondence: N.J.A.C. 13:31-1.5(b), electrical contractors, law.cornell.edu; 13:32-3.1(b), master plumbers, law.cornell.edu; 13:32A-5.1(b), master HVACR contractors, law.cornell.edu. Read November 4, 2026.