How many days do you have to file a mechanics lien in Missouri?
File a verified account of the amount due, with a description of the property, with the circuit court clerk of the county within six months after the debt accrued. Equipment rental claimants have sixty days after the rented equipment was last removed from the property.1 RSMo 429.080
Do you need a preliminary notice in Missouri?
Anyone other than the original contractor (subcontractors, suppliers, laborers) must give the owner written notice at least ten days before filing the lien. The notice states that the claimant holds a claim against the building or improvement, the amount, and who owes it. Separately, an original contractor must give the owner a written 'Notice to Owner' about lien rights before receiving any payment; skipping it voids that contractor's lien.2 RSMo 429.100; RSMo 429.012
How long is a mechanics lien good for in Missouri?
Suit to enforce the lien must start within six months after the lien is filed. The lien ends six months after filing unless suit has been brought.3 RSMo 429.170
Who can file a mechanics lien in Missouri?
Anyone who does work, rents equipment, or supplies materials or fixtures for a building or improvement under a contract with the owner or the owner's agent, contractor or subcontractor can claim a lien on the building and the land it sits on (to the extent of three acres outside a city). Registered architects, engineers, surveyors and landscape architects can also claim one.4 RSMo 429.010; RSMo 429.015
Does a Missouri lien claim have to be notarized?
The lien account must be verified by the oath of the claimant or a credible person for the claimant. The statute does not require a notary seal by that name; the sworn verification is the requirement.1 RSMo 429.080
What about public jobs in Missouri?
On public works expected to cost more than $50,000, the public body must require the contractor to post a payment bond covering labor, materials and insurance premiums, in an amount the body sets. Suppliers that sold to a second-tier or lower subcontractor must notify the contractor in writing within ninety days after last supplying or lose the right to the bond. A bond replaces mechanic's lien rights on public property.5 RSMo 107.170
Sources
- RSMo 429.080 (revisor.mo.gov, 2026-10-27)
- RSMo 429.100; RSMo 429.012 (revisor.mo.gov, 2026-10-27)
- RSMo 429.170 (revisor.mo.gov, 2026-10-27)
- RSMo 429.010; RSMo 429.015 (revisor.mo.gov, 2026-10-27)
- RSMo 107.170 (revisor.mo.gov, 2026-10-27)