QUESTION: Our condominium management company is involved in a dispute with a contractor who did work on our common areas. The contractor is threatening to record a mechanic’s lien. Our management company has advised us that a contractor’s lien can never affect the individual units. Are they correct?
ANSWER: No. Labor performed, or services or materials furnished for the common areas, if duly authorized by the association, is deemed to be performed or furnished with the express consent of each condominium owner. Consequently, the contractor may have a basis for filing a mechanic’s lien. Note that the owner of a condominium may remove his or her condominium from a lien by payment to the holder of the lien the fraction of the total sum secured by the lien which is attributable to his or her condominium. Finally, there may be other legal defenses to a mechanic’s lien which should be explored.
QUESTION: We live in a planned development with covenants, conditions and restrictions (CC&Rs). Our neighbor has created a nuisance by installing lighting that does not comply with the architectural restrictions. The board of directors refuses to do anything about it. What can we do?
ANSWER: The covenants and restriction in your CC&Rs, unless unreasonable, are enforceable by any owner of a separate interest (home), or by the association or both. Thus, you have the right to bring suit to abate the nuisance. Your suit can include a claim for money damages, including legal fees, as well as a request for injunctive relief.
QUESTION: May our homeowners’ association charge a $500 move-in fee whenever a new owner moves in?
ANSWER: No. Under California law, an association may not impose or collect an assessment or fee that exceeds the amount necessary to defray the costs for which it is levied.
QUESTION: What is a mechanic’s lien? ANSWER: A mechanic’s lien is a form of security, much like a deed of trust, that creates an interest in real estate to assure payment for materials furnished or services provided for its improvement.
The holder of the mechanic’s lien can foreclose on the property if the obligation for payment is not paid. This provides a secondary source of repayment if the property owner does not voluntarily pay.
QUESTION: Can a contractor file a mechanic’s lien on an entire condominium building if the contractor was hired by a single owner to do work on an individual unit?
ANSWER: No. Only the individual unit can be liened. (Michael T. Chulak is the founder of Michael T. Chulak & Associates, a Law Corporation, based in Agoura Hills. Questions can be sent by e-mail to Answers are general in nature. An attorney should always be consulted when legal advice is needed. For more information visit these two web sites: www.MTCLaw.com and www.HOAQandANSWER:com.)
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on June 14, 2006. Read the original PDF.