Notice of completion

Why it matters

For owners, it closes the lien window sooner. For anyone still owed money, it's a countdown: once it's recorded, the clock may run in weeks, not months.

Two states, as examples

• California (Civil Code §§ 8182, 8412, 8414): the owner may record it within 15 days after completion, signed and verified. The direct contractor then has 60 days from recording to record a lien, and everyone else 30, instead of 90 days from completion. Unless an exception applies, such as an owner living in a home of four units or fewer, the owner must send a copy within 10 days to the direct contractor and anyone who gave a preliminary notice, or it doesn't shorten that person's deadline.
• Arizona (A.R.S. § 33-993): a lien must be recorded within 120 days after completion, or within 60 days after a notice of completion is recorded.

An example

A California remodel is finished on May 28 and the owner records a notice of completion on June 2. A tile sub who served a preliminary notice and is still owed now has until July 2 to record a lien, not late August.

It isn't the same as the customer's sign-off. A job completion sign-off, which you can send in SignMaster, records that the customer accepted the work; the notice of completion is a county filing the owner makes.