Release of lien
A release of lien is the recorded document discharging a lien from a property.
It is the generic form of what a satisfaction of mortgage does for a mortgage, and the same principle applies: paying is not clearing.
Different liens, different releases#
Each lien type has its own instrument and its own holder to obtain it from.
Mechanic's lien — released by the contractor, subcontractor or supplier who filed it.
Judgment lien — a satisfaction of judgment from the creditor, recorded.
Federal tax lien — a certificate of release from the IRS.
State tax lien — a release from the Department of Revenue.
HOA lien — a release from the association.
There is no universal form and no central place to obtain one. Each requires approaching the specific holder.
Partial releases#
Used where only part of a property is being freed.
A lender releasing one lot from a blanket mortgage covering a subdivision. A lienholder releasing a portion being sold while retaining the lien on the remainder.
Partial releases require the lienholder's agreement and are commonly negotiated as part of a development or a sale of part of a larger holding.
The chronic problem#
Unreleased liens on satisfied obligations are among the most frequent causes of clouded title.
The pattern is consistent. The obligation is paid. Nobody records the release. Years pass. The lienholder merges, dissolves, or simply cannot find the file.
At the next sale, the record shows a live lien on a debt that was cleared a decade ago, and proving it was paid falls on the owner.
Prevention#
Get the release at the time, and confirm it recorded.
When paying off anything secured against property — a contractor, a judgment, a tax debt — the payment and the release are two separate things to obtain.
Checking the record a couple of months afterwards takes minutes and prevents a problem that costs considerably more to solve later.
When nobody will release#
Where the obligation is satisfied and the holder refuses, or cannot be found:
Statutory procedures exist for some lien types.
A quiet title action under Minn. Stat. 559.01 where nothing else works.
A real property lawyer is the right first call, because the answer depends heavily on which lien type and how long ago — and some routes are considerably cheaper than litigation if the facts fit.
Lien waivers on construction work#
A related instrument worth distinguishing, because owners confuse the two.
A lien waiver is given by a contractor or supplier as work proceeds and payments are made, waiving lien rights for amounts already paid.
A release of lien discharges a lien that has already been filed.
The waiver is preventive, the release is remedial. On any construction project of consequence, collecting waivers from every party as payments are made is what stops liens being filed at all — and Minnesota's owner protections around the 120-day period contemplate exactly that practice.
An owner who paid a general contractor in full and collected no waivers from subcontractors can still face liens from parties the contractor did not pay.