Texas mechanic's liens

Who and what this applies to

Statutory private construction liens under Property Code Chapter 53; the post-January 1, 2022 procedure described here is distinct from constitutional liens and special homestead requirements.

Thresholds and scope

Deadlines depend on claimant, residential status, and whether the claim is for retainage.

The rules

• Section 53.052: an original contractor files by the 15th day of the fourth month after the month its work was completed, terminated, or abandoned; residential projects use the third month. File in the county where the improvements are located. Source
• Section 53.052: other claimants generally file by the 15th day of the fourth month after the later of the month of last labor/materials or the month undelivered specially fabricated materials normally would have been delivered; residential projects use the third month. Their retainage claims instead use the third month after the month the original contract was completed, terminated, or abandoned. Source
• Section 53.056: subject to the separate contractual-retainage procedure in Section 53.057, a non-original contractor must send the statutory unpaid-labor/materials notice to both owner and original contractor by the 15th day of the third month after each relevant work or delivery month; residential projects use the second month. Source
• Section 53.055: send the filed affidavit to the owner within five days after filing; a claimant other than the original contractor must also send it to the original contractor within those five days. Source
• Section 53.158: the ordinary foreclosure deadline is one year after the last day the affidavit could be filed. A written agreement with the current record owner, entered before that deadline and recorded in the same county, can extend it only as far as two years after the affidavit was actually filed. Source

Deadlines

Monthly notices, affidavit filing, service of the affidavit, and foreclosure are separate requirements.

Primary sources

• PR.53.htm

Sources reviewed 2026-09-30. This guide covers the projects and rules stated above.

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