WORD: Involuntary Lien

The WORD for Today is:

Involuntary Lien—any lien, such as a tax lien, judgment lien, etc which attaches to property without the consent of the owner. Such a lien is unlike a mortgage lien, which a borrower voluntarily agrees to have placed against a property.

A legal claim against property that must be satisfied when the property is sold. A judgment affecting all the property an owner has or acquires during the legal life of the lien. Statutory and involuntary liens fall into four categories:

1. Property tax liens—These are placed against a property when the property taxes are not paid on time; they are given precedence over all other claims; if they continue to be delinquent for five years, the property will be sold off to pay the taxes; whenever a property is foreclosed upon, taxes are always the first debts paid.
2. Judgment liens—These are general liens resulting when a person suing another person wins a judgment from a court for the sums owing and records an abstract of that judgment
3. Mechanics liens—These are recorded with the county by contractors, subcontractors, materials suppliers, or workers who wish to be paid for their delinquent bills covering labor or materials on new construction, land improvements, or remodeling projects
4. Federal or State liens—These result from unpaid federal or state taxes, personal and inheritance taxes being the most common.

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