Nevada Liens Records

What is a Lien in Nevada?

A Lien in Nevada is a form of security interest or legal claim granted over real or personal property to secure the payment of a debt. The lienholder is usually the creditor that gives the loan, while the lienee is the borrower who consents to the lien. However, this legal claim to a property does not give the lienholder the automatic right to sell the assets.

A lien can be created by statute or a contract. It may be part of an agreement to purchase property or created by legal action in the form of judgment liens. Liens can be filed in the county district court, Nevada Secretary of State's Office, or county recorder's Office. These liens can be general or specific. General liens are attached to all of a borrower's assets, while specific liens are attached to a particular piece of property. Whichever the case, liens can only be enforced within state limits if the creditor obtains a judicial order from Nevada courts.

Are Liens Public in Nevada

In Nevada, liens are public records pursuant to the Nevada Revised Statutes which provide the legal framework for the creation, enforcement, and dissemination of lien records. Per these statutes and the state’s public records law, the county recorder's office is required to maintain these records and make them available for public inspection.

Types of Lien in Nevada

Several liens can be recorded in Nevada, including mechanics liens, government liens, judgment liens, etc.

In Nevada, a mechanics lien can be established if an individual providing labor or materials worth over $500 for the maintenance or repair of a property has an outstanding payment. Individuals, in this case, include architects, contractors, surveyors, subcontractors, engineers, and anyone involved in a construction project. The lien hinders the property from being sold until the contractor's or supplier's invoice is paid.

A government agency in Nevada records a government lien due to a property owner's failure to pay personal, commercial, or real property taxes. Such agencies include the Department of Taxation, Internal Revenue Service, and other agencies with the appropriate authority.

A judgment lien can be attached to a property if its owner fails to fulfill a financial obligation that arose from a lawsuit. This lien ensures that the person who obtained the judgment (the creditor) receives the money owed. The creditor can also recover the debt from the proceeds when the property is sold.

How Do I Check for Liens in Nevada?

To check for liens in Nevada, inquirers must visit or call the government agency that recorded the lien. For liens filed in the clerk/recorder's office, the requestor can view the original record in person for free, but copy requests are subject to a fee. Alternatively, the requesting party can check for a Property Search Engine or Recentreate Data Center Engine on the clerk's website. This tool can retrieve information on liens.

On the other hand, persons checking for UCC liens must direct their query to the Secretary of State. The Nevada SOS provides a UCC11 (Information Request) Form, which interested parties can fill, download, and mail to receive information on UCC liens.

Free Lien Search in Nevada

Individuals who want to search for liens in Nevada for free should either visit the agency that recorded the lien or use a search engine provided on the agency's website (if available). Typically, the following information may be found online:

• The lienee and lienholder's names and addresses
• Type of lien
• Recording date
• The lien's status (active, released, or expired)

What is a Property Lien in Nevada?

In most cases involving debt collection in Nevada, attaching a property lien is usually a last resort option that a creditor embraces after multiple attempts to collect a debt. A legal claim on a borrower or debtor's real and personal property allows the lien holder to claim or access the property if debts are not paid. Liens can be voluntary or involuntary. That is, attached with or without a debtor's consent.

In Nevada, creditors can place property liens to repossess, seize, or sell real and personal properties such as cars, boats, houses, and condos. Creditors, in this case, may be individuals, financial institutions, small money-lending organizations, and the state government. For example, through the Nevada Department of Revenue, the Nevada government can initiate property liens claims through tax liens. Similarly, financial institutions can create property liens through mortgage liens on real property.

How Do You Know if a Property Has a Lien in Nevada?

To know if a property has a lien in Nevada, an individual can visit the clerk or recorder's office located in the county where the property is situated to run a title deed search. This search shows the legal owner of a property and any liens or claims against the property.

Property Lien Search by Address in Nevada

There is no direct way to conduct a property lien search by address in Nevada. Rather, record seekers can conduct a property lien search with the name of the property owner (individual or organization), the specific date range when the lien was recorded, or the property parcel number. With the aforementioned information, record seekers can visit the recorder's office of the county where the property is situated to request a property lien search. Most county recorders’ offices also maintain online search portals record seekers can use to check for liens on a property. For instance, interested persons can use the Clark county recorder’s office Record Search System to check for liens on a property located in the county.

In cases where the property address is the only information about a property an inquirer has, they obtain the property’s parcel number and owner information through the assessor's office of the county where the property is located. With the property address, an inquirer can visit the county assessor's office to request a parcel number inquiry. Alternatively, inquirers may be able to conduct parcel number inquiries remotely through search portal most assessor offices provide. For instance, inquirers can use the Clerk county assessor office parcel number inquiry portal to find a property parcel’s number and owner information. After obtaining this information, the inquirer may visit the county recorder's office or use its online search portal to conduct a property lien search.

Meanwhile, if the property is a manufactured home, mobile home, or commercial coach, a property lien search by address on these types of properties can be conducted by querying the Nevada Housing Division. The Division also maintains an online portal record seekers can use to conduct a title search to discover if there are any liens against these types of properties in Nevada.

Free Property Lien Search by Address

County recorder's offices in Nevada normally don't charge a fee for lien searches carried out through online search portals they manage. As a result, record seekers use these portals to find liens on a property for free. However, record seekers are charged a fee if they request regular or certified copies of property lien records at a county recorder’s office or through online search portals they maintain.

What is a Tax Lien in Nevada?

Nevada's tax liens are recorded by the Nevada Department of Taxation against a debtor's personal, business, or real property for failure to pay taxes. It is a legal claim against the debtor's assets, and it serves to guarantee payment of taxes. Although the lien does not mean that one's property will be sold, it ensures that the Nevada tax authority gets the first claim over the debtor's asset(s) over any other creditor vying for the property.

The lien may only be removed if the taxpayer pays the debt, agrees to a payment plan, or has another agreement with the government. If no attempts are made to pay the outstanding obligation, the state government may seize an asset for sale. Otherwise, the lien will remain on the debtor's properties until payment is made or the statute of limitations on the debt expires.

Before recording a lien against a taxpayer's assets, the government authority always issues a notice and demands payment. If the taxpayer ignores the notice or cannot make the payment, the agency places a lien on the person's assets.

Tax liens are usually attached to all of the debtor's real and personal property, business or commercial assets, and bank accounts used for business. Thus, the agency is authorized to seize the taxpayer's securities, properties, and vehicles, including all other assets acquired while the lien is active.

Nevada tax liens have precedence over all other claims, except federal tax debts. It also puts the taxpayer's assets at risk because it makes it difficult to sell the assets, refinance them, or even obtain credit. This is because a tax lien claim shows up on the taxpayer's credit report and damages the debtor's credit score.

Tax Lien Lookup in Nevada

NRS 361.731 defines a tax lien as a perpetual lien against a property or parcel of land until Unpaid property taxes against the property, as well as any interest, penalties, and fees, are fully paid off.

Property tax lien records in Nevada are typically maintained at the county level by county recorder offices. Hence, interested persons can conduct tax lien lookups by querying the recorder's office of the county where the property in question is located. Similar to other types of liens, inquirers can visit the recorder's office of the county where the property is located during regular business hours to request a tax lien lookup.

Alternatively, inquirers can use an online search portal maintained by the county recorder to look up tax liens (if available). For instance, interested parties can search for tax lien agreements, tax lien releases, tax lien rescissions, and tax lien bond records using the Washoe County Recorder's Document Search and Copies portal. The portal includes historical search index records from 1862 to 11/18/1991 as well as county land records recorded after that date (11/18/1991).

What is a Mortgage Lien in Nevada?

In Nevada, a mortgage lien is a property lien taken by a mortgage lender to obtain a loan to improve, build, or refinance real estate. Usually, a mortgage lien is placed voluntarily upon receipt of a loan. The financed property becomes collateral when the debtor cannot make payment. This ensures that a debtor honors payment obligations or suffers foreclosures, and the debtor removes this lien by completing the repayment commitment set out in the mortgage contract.

Overall, a mortgage lien in Nevada is a lienholder's interest in a debtor's real property, held as protection if the borrower fails to repay the loan.

What is a Mechanics Lien in Nevada?

Nevada laws on mechanics' liens grant contractors, subcontractors, and material suppliers the right to foreclose an improved property or force a property sale to obtain payment for their work or materials. The mechanics' lien laws are exceptionally inclusive. Under these laws, any party that provides at least $500 worth of labor, materials, or equipment for a construction project has lien rights. Other than the entities mentioned above, equipment lessors, engineers, architects, surveyors, consultants, and geologists also have the right of lien in Nevada.

Nevada's Legislature sets forth the procedures for creating and enforcing mechanics' liens. These laws mandate that any claimant of a mechanics' lien must satisfy the following requirements:

• Provided work or materials valued at $500 or more for a construction project.
• Government-issued or professional license, if required, to perform the work.
• Delivered Notice of Right to Lien to the project owner before filing a lien claim.
• Served the Notice of Intent To Lien on the project owner fifteen days before recording the mechanics' lien.
• File a lawsuit to enforce mechanics' lien within six months of recording the lien.

The Notice of Right to Lien must be delivered to the project owner within 21 days of providing their services. This document informs the owner that the entities providing services, labor, or materials for the project have a right of lien if they are not paid. If payment is not made, the project owner must be served with a Notice of Intent to Lien no less than fifteen days before the mechanics' lien is recorded.

Eventually, claimants can register a Notice of Lien with the county recorder's office in the county where the service was provided. The owner must receive this notice personally or by certified mail. It must also be recorded 90 days after the work is completed and service rendered.

A mechanics' lien must be enforced within six months from the filing in Nevada. If this deadline passes, it cannot be extended, and the lien becomes unenforceable. Liens that do not comply with the state laws may be invalid. In such cases, any debtor who pays off an invalid lien must be reimbursed through the Residential Recovery Fund.

What is a UCC Lien?

Generally, the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) is a model that governs business and commercial transactions in the United States of America. Therefore, Uniform Commercial Code liens are financial statements that creditors announce their collateral rights. These statements are otherwise called UCC-1 filings. They are filed by lenders in the Nevada Secretary of State office, usually when a loan is granted.

UCC liens can be general or specific. They are "specific" when attached to a particular piece of real estate or commercial asset but "general" when attached to all the borrower's assets. This legal claim is most familiar with small lending businesses in Nevada. If the borrower defaults, the lien protects a creditor's rights in a money lending transaction. The lender is authorized to seize or sell the collateral asset in the event of a payment default.

A UCC lien must contain the following information:

• The borrower's name and address, including mailing address, city, state, and zip code
• The borrower's company details, if available.
• The creditor's name and address
• The creditor's organization details
• A detailed description of the collateral that was used to secure the loan.

If the borrower defaults and cannot make the payment, the UCC Lien is established or enforced according to how the claim was filed (lien priority). This determines how the creditors would be paid, especially when more than one entity claims a borrower's property. Hence, the first lender to file a UCC lien is first in line for the debtor's property. Notwithstanding, most lenders do not allow borrowers to repeatedly use the same collateral property or asset.

Generally, UCC liens expire after five years, but if the debtor cannot make a payment, the lender can renew the lien by filing a continuation statement. This allows the lender to claim the borrower's assets for another five years. If the borrower pays off the debt before the fifth year, the lender is required by law to file a termination statement with the Nevada Secretary of State.

Filing parties must take extra care when providing any information because UCC filings are indexed on a public database. To file a UCC lien in Nevada, the Secretary of State's Office accepts the national forms UCC1, 3, and 5. The forms are downloadable on the office's website.

Lenders may also file UCC liens online to reduce the filing costs. Online filing services are accessible 24-hours a day and seven days a week; therefore, lenders can file at any time that suits them. Also, filing a UCC lien online is faster than traditional paper filing.

How to Conduct a UCC Lien Search

In Nevada, interested parties can query the Secretary of State's office to conduct a UCC lien search. UCC lien searches can be performed using the state secretary's office's online portal (SilverFlume). A record seeker would have to sign up for an account or log in using their existing account credentials to use the portal. There are instructions on how to use the portal to carry out a UCC lien search on the State of Nevada eSOS Online Help page. Interested parties can contact the SOS office for more information on how to perform a UCC lien search.

What is a Judgment Lien in Nevada?

A court ruling may clarify who owes a debt and order payment, but it does not guarantee that the debtor will pay in due time. With a judgment lien, a judgment creditor in Nevada can rightfully take property or money from a debtor to finalize a judgment.

Nevada's judgment lien is issued by court order on a debtor's real property. The judgment lien authorizes the judgment creditor to take legal possession of a debtor's property to settle a debt. A judgment lien may also allow the judgment creditor to garnish a judgment debtor's wages or bank deposits.

The judgment creditor must have essential information on the judgment debtor's money, properties, or assets to collect a judgment. Without this information, collection may be impossible. The creditor may also request a hearing at which the judgment debtor must provide this information unless the court rules otherwise.

Regardless, the court allows the debtor to exempt some properties or assets from the collection, typically property related to basic needs. These properties will be exempted from attachment, garnishment, or other debt collection actions that the creditor may initiate. For example, the debtor may exempt a home, specific income benefits, and more. These exemptions can be initiated by filing a claim of exemption in court after attachment or garnishment attempts. The judgment debtor has ten days from the date they receive the notice of attachment or garnishment to claim that a property is exempt.

In Nevada, when the debtor pays in full, the judgment creditor must file a Satisfaction of Judgment with the court to ensure that the payoff reflects in the court's records per state law. This ensures that a judgment lien negatively impacts a judgment debtor's credit report and credit score.

Judgment liens in Nevada are only valid for six years from the date of recording. If the judgment is not secured within that period, the lien expires and becomes unenforceable. Still, Nevada allows for judgments to be renewed for another six years from the date of renewal. The renewal process must commence at least 90 days before the initial judgment expires. The judgment creditor must file an "Affidavit of Renewal of Judgment" with the clerk of the same court which issued the original judgment.

What is a Federal Tax Lien

A federal tax lien gives the federal government of the United States the authority to confiscate property owned by state residents who owe back taxes. A taxpayer's entitlement to their salary and bank account, as well as any present or future property they own, such as a house or car, can all be subject to a federal tax lien. If the owner of a property refuses or neglects to pay a federal tax bill, the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) § 6321 permits the placement of a federal tax lien on the properties they own in favor of the United States government.

What is a Lien Title?

A lien title is a legal claim that an individual, the government, or an institution holds against the property of another person. When financing payment for a property, such as real estate or a car, a lien title gives the lienholder the right to sell or recover the property if the buyer fails to meet the terms of the purchase agreement.

Besides financing a purchase, a lien can be placed against a property title if its owner uses the property as collateral to collect a loan from a lending institution. A lien title is typically utilized to lessen its holder's losses. A lien title is normally removed from a property title once the terms of the agreement have been satisfied.

Where and How to Do a Title Search in Nevada

A title search is the process of scouring public records for information on a certain property's ownership and other relevant facts. This entails searching not only land records but also civil court documents for information on the property's title. In Nevada, title companies that offer title search services are typically used to conduct title searches. It should be noted that these companies typically bill customers for the services they provide. A title search can be used to find liens on a property, unpaid property taxes, and other information about a property.

Voluntary Lien vs. Involuntary Lien in Nevada?

Voluntary and involuntary liens are legal claims to real or personal property. However, the primary difference between them is the owner's consent. While a voluntary lien claims a property with the owner's approval, involuntary liens are attached without the borrower's permission.

How Creditors Collect Payment Through a Lien

When a debtor fails to satisfy the terms of a loan or contract, the creditor can use the legal right established through a lien to seize and sell the collateral property or asset of the debtor. This would be the same if the debt arose from a legal obligation, e.g., taxes. The creditor may take further legal action against the debtor in extreme cases. However, if the lien is tied to the debtor's principal residence, Nevada's homestead exemptions may limit the creditor's ability to collect their payment.

How Do I Get a Lien Removed in Nevada?

In Nevada, there are two ways to remove a lien. The first is to pay off the debt, including late fees and penalties, so that the creditor can release the lien.

The second option is to challenge the lien in court. If the creditor or lienholder cannot prove the validity of the lien, the court will declare the lien invalid. When a lien is declared invalid or not binding, the lienholder will be legally mandated to remove the lien.

How Long Does a Lien Stay on Your Property in Nevada?

Once a lien is placed on someone's property, it remains until the debt is paid or the statute of limitations runs out. For instance, a judgment lien can stay on a property for six years, even if the ownership changes. Meanwhile, mechanics and government liens stay on the property until the financial obligation is settled.