Real Estate Record

AND     BUILDERS'     GUIDE.





Vol. XVI.





NEW yOEK, SATUKDAY, JULY 10, 1875.





No. 382





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^                              Published Weekly by

f THE REAL ESTATE RECORD ASSOCIATION.

\ C. W. SWEET...............PlJESIDENT AND Tbeasuber

PRESTON   I. SWEET...........Secretary.

tf Ii. ISRAELS.........................Business Manager

TERMS.
ONE YEAR, in advance....$10 00.
Communications should be addressed to

C.    TT.    ©T\^1E3ET,

Nos. 34.5 and 347 Broadway.

LAWS   1875.

Chap. 379.
AN ACT to Define and Limit tlie Liens of Con¬
tractors and Others upon Real Estate in
the City and County of New York, and to
Provide for the Enforcement Thereof.

Section 1. Every person performing labor upon,

or furnishing materials to be used m, the con-

I struction, alteration or repair of any building,

vault, wharf, fence, or anv other structure in the

:  city or county of New YorJr,  shall have alien

' upon the same for the work or labor done, or

materials furnished by each respectively, whether

done or furnished at the instance of the owner

: ol the building, or other improvements, or his

% ageut^but the aggregate amount of such liens

S must not exceed the amount which the owner

S wculd be otherwise liable to pay at the time of

, f the filing of the claim prescribed by section five

' " of this Act.

Sec. 2. Any person who, at the request of the
■% owner of any lot in said city or county, grades,
J fills in or otherwise improves the same, or the
'' sidewalk or street in front of or adjoining the
same, shall have a lien upon such lot for his
work done and materials furnishsd, to  the ex¬
tent of the liability therefor of the owner of the
! pro]>erty at the time of. filing the claim pre-
i scribed by section five of this Act.
'■K,    Sec. 3. The land upon which any building,
^improvement or structure) is  constructed,   to-
L#gether with the appurtenonces, fchall be subject
'   _to the lieu s, if at the time the work was com-
■.; menced, or the materials ior the same had com-
1 menced to be furnished, the land belonged to
i the person who caused said building, improve-
'^ ment or structure to be constructed, altered or
'•   ^repaired, but if such perr.on owned less than fee
' ^simple estate in such land, then only his interest
?;' therein shall be subject to such Hen.

tSsc. i. The liens provided for in this act shall
, .jbe preferred to any lien, mortgage or other in-
" Icumbrance of which the lien holder had no no-
iftice, and which was unrecorded at the time of
'^he filing of the claim referred to in the next
^section.

M                        TIME OF FUJNG liEENS.

^ m Sec. 5. Every original contractor, within sixty
y Bflays after the coinpletion of his contract, and
^ ref ery person, savethe original contractor, claim-
r<^ing the benefit of this Act, must, within thirty
:|- days after the. completion of any btiilding, im-
iprovement.or structure, or after the completion
I of the alteration or repair thereof, or after the
completion-ot the work or the famishing of the
materials for which the lienis claimed, file with
the county clerk of the county, a claim contain¬
ing the names and residence of all the claimants
!l and a statemeiit'of tlie cieinand after deducting
I aE just credits and offsets, with the name i.f the
1^ owner or repu'eel owner, if known, iiiid ."xlso the
I name of the person by whom he was emploj ed,
1? or to whom he furnished the materials, with a
t statement of the. terms,,time given and condi-
^\ tions of his coijtract, and whether all the work





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or materials for which the claim is made has
been actually performed or furnished, and if
not, how much of it, and also a description of
the property to be charged with the lien, suffi
cient for identification, which claim must be
verified by the oath of himself or one of several
united in interest, or of some other person. The
verification must be to the effect that the state¬
ments contained in the claim are true to the
knowledge of the person making the same. If
his contract or any part thereof is in writing, a
copy of such writing must be filed with and
made part of his claim.

Sec. 6. In every case in which one claim is filed
against two or more buildings or other improve¬
ments owned by the same person, the person
fihng such claim must, at the same time, desig¬
nate the amount due to him on each of such
buildings, or other improvements, otherwise the
lien of such claim shall be postponed to other
liens. The hen of such claimant shall not ex¬
tend beyond the amotint designated as against
other creditors having liens by judgment, mort¬
gage or otherwise, upon either ot such build¬
ings or other improvements, or tipon the land
upon which the same are situated.

Sec. 7. The clerk shall enter the claim in a
book kept by him for that purpose, called the
lien docket; such entry shall contain the name
and residence of the claimant, the person who
incurred the debt, the amount and the date of
filing, the street aud particular place where
located, in such manner as to be convenient in
searching for the liens by street and block. The
County Clerk shall receive ten cents on filing
the same. Except as provided in the fourth
section, the lien shall attach, from the time of
filing of the claim, to all the right, title and
interest, which the owner then has in the prop-
perty therein described, to the extent of the
LiabUity of such owner for the claim preferred.

Sec. 8. No lien, provided for in this Aot, shall
bind the property therein described for a longer
period than ninety days after the claim has
been filed, unless an action be commenced with¬
in that time to inforce the same, and a notice of
the pendency of such action filed with the clerk
of the county, and an entry of the fact of such
notice made on the lien docket. And where a
claimant is made a party defendant to any action
brought to enforce any other lien, a notice of
tbe pendency of,such action musfcbe filed by
him or on his behalf. But the neglect to file
such notice shall not abate any action which
may be pending to enforce the lien; such action
may be prosecuted to judgment against the
persons liable for the debt.

Sec. 9. Any claimant who has filed the notice
mentioned in the fifth section of this Act may
enforce his claim against the property therein
described, and against the persons liable tor the
debt, by a civil action in a court of record held
in said city.

Sec. 10. The manner and form of instituting
and prosecuting any such action to judgment
and any appeal trom such judgment shall be the
Same as in actions for the foreclosure ol mort¬
gages of real property, except as herein other¬
wise provided.

Sec. 11. The person filing the claim shall be
the plaintiff in such action. The plaintiff must
make aU parties who have filed claims against
the property, as well as those who have subse¬
quent liens by judjiment, mortgage or convey¬
ance, parties defendant. And as to all persons
against whom no personal claim is made, the
plaintiff may, with the summons, serve a notice
stating briefly the object of the action, and that





no iiersonal claim is made. But all persons who
have filed claims under this Act may, by answer
in such action, set forth the same, and the
court m which the action is brought may decide
as lo the extent, justice and priority of the
claims of all parlies to the action.

Sec. 12. Any number of persons claiming liens
upon the same property may join in the same
action, and when separate actions are com¬
menced, the court in which the first was
brought may, on the application of the owner of
the property or of any part thereof, consolidate
them.

Sec. 13. At any time after the action is com¬
menced, the owner of the property affected may,
in writing, offer to pay into court any amount
stated in the offer, or to execute or dehver any
securities or papers which he may describe in
discharge of the property. If the offer is accept¬
ed, in wilting, within ten days thereafter, the
Court in which the action is pending may make
an order that on deposit with the County Clerk of
the amount offered, or the securities or other
property described, the lien be discharged, and
the money or securities deposited thereafter
takes the place of the lien. In case the offer be
not accepted within ten days, and the plaintiff
fails to recover any more favorable judgment
against the property, he shall pay all cosJs in
the action incmxed by the owner from the time
of the offer.

Sec. 14. All persons entitled to liens on the
structure or improvement, except those who
contracted with the owner thereof, shall be
daemed sub-contractors; and the Court in the
judgment shall direct the amount due sub-con¬
tractors to be paid out of the proceeds of sales
before any part of such proceeds are paid to the
contractor.

Sec. 15. In every case in which different liens
are asserted against property, the Court in the
Judgment must declare the rank of each lien or
class of liens, and the proceeds of the sale of the
property must be applied to each lien or class of
liens in the order of its rank.

Sec. 16. Whenever by the terms of his con¬
tract the owner has stipulated for the delivery
of biUs, notes, or any other species of property
in lieu of money, the judgment must direct that
such substitute, be delivered er deposited au the
Court may direct, and the property affected by
the liens can only be directed to be sold in de¬
fault of the owner to deliver such substitutes
within such time as may be directed.

Sec. 17. Whenever on the sale of properly
subject to the lien, there is a deficiency of pro¬
ceeds, judgment may be docketed for the defi¬
ciency against the persons named in the judg¬
ment as liable therefor in like manner and with
like effect as in actions for the foreclosure of
mortgages.

Sec. 18. The lien may be discharged as
follows:

1.  By filing a certificate of the claimant or
his successor in interest, acknowledged or proved
in the same manner as the satisfactionoi a mort¬
gage, stating that the lien is discharged.

2.  By the deposit with the clerk, if before
suit, of a sum of money equal to the amount
claimed, with interest to the time of such deposit.

3.  After the commencement of an action by
the deposit with the clerk of such sum as in the
judgment of the Court, after due notice to the
claimant, will be sufiicent to pay any judgment
which may be recovered against the j)roperty.

4.  In lieu of such deposit as prescribed in the
last preceding subdivision of this sectioo, tho
Court may require the execution and delivery to
tlje clwk of the county of a bond; in such sums as