For owners: the routes are payment (in exchange for a recorded release), negotiation, bonding it off (substituting a surety bond so the title clears while the dispute continues), letting it expire if the claimant misses the enforcement deadline, or petitioning the court to strike an invalid or exaggerated lien — many states have expedited procedures and penalize fraudulent liens.
For claimants who've been paid: record the release promptly; several states impose per-day penalties for sitting on a satisfied lien. Either side should verify the enforcement window before assuming a stale lien still has teeth.
General education, not legal advice — lien law is state-specific and changes. For your state's exact windows, use the free deadline calculator; for anything contested, talk to a construction attorney.
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