Filing deadline

Claim of Lien must be recorded with the clerk of superior court of the county where the property sits within 90 days (a day-count, not three months) after the claimant's last furnishing of labor, services, materials, or equipment; no residential/commercial distinction; deadline cannot be extended by agreement and a premature filing is invalid; lien must contain a 12-point bold 395-day expiration statement and a Notice of Contest advisory or it is void.

Notice prerequisites

No notice is mandatory before starting work, but three early notices matter. (1) Preliminary Notice of Lien Rights: optional; filed with the superior court clerk within 30 days of first furnishing; non-contractors must mail a copy to the contractor or owner within 7 days of filing; it protects inchoate rights against dissolution via the GC's final-payment affidavit and must be cancelled within 10 days of receiving final payment. (2) Notice of Commencement of Improvement: filed by owner/GC within 15 days of physical commencement and posted on site; its filing changes which perfection track applies. (3) Notice to Contractor: if a Notice of Commencement was properly filed, every claimant lacking privity with the GC (except design professionals) must serve written notice on the GC and owner by registered/certified mail or statutory overnight delivery within the later of 30 days after the Notice of Commencement filing or 30 days after first furnishing, or lien rights are lost.

Service on the owner

Within 2 business days after recording, the claimant must send a copy of the lien by registered/certified mail or statutory overnight delivery to the owner (and to the GC if a Notice of Commencement was filed, or as owner's agent if the owner's address is unknown); filing comes first, service follows.

Enforcement

Suit on the underlying debt against the primary debtor must be started within 365 days of lien filing (arbitration counts); within 30 days of filing that action a sworn Notice of Commencement of Action must be recorded with the clerk, functioning as Georgia's lis-pendens-style filing, and strict compliance is required. Lien foreclosure against the owner can follow later, except claimants in direct privity with the owner (or excused from the debt action) must foreclose within the 365 days; the lien self-expires 395 days after filing absent the notice.

O.C.G.A. § 44-14-360 et seq., esp. §§ 44-14-361, 44-14-361.1, 44-14-361.5