When a customer or a contractor above you has not paid, you climb a ladder, cheapest rung first. Start with a firm written demand. If that fails, reach for your strongest leverage, which on a private job is a mechanic's lien and on a public job is a bond claim. Escalate to small claims or an attorney only if you have to. And move fast, because your best tools run on strict deadlines that can expire while you wait.
Here is the ladder, in order. One thing to understand before you start climbing it: the rungs are not sequential in time. You do not finish one and then begin the next. The cheap rungs and the deadline-bound ones run at the same time, and the commonest way a contractor loses real money on this page is by working down it politely, one step at a time, while a lien deadline runs out in the background.
So do this first, today, before you send anything: find your lien and preliminary-notice deadlines from the per-state tools, and write the earliest of them on the wall. Every deadline you meet is a right you keep; every one you miss is gone and cannot be recovered by being reasonable afterwards. Then climb the ladder inside that window. If the earliest deadline is weeks away you have room to be patient. If it is days away, protect the right FIRST and send the demand alongside it, because preserving a right costs you nothing and you can always choose not to use it.
1. A clear written demand
Most late payments are not disputes, they are drift. A short, dated letter or email that states the job, the amount owed, and a firm deadline to pay often shakes the money loose on its own. Keep it professional and factual, not angry. Either way it becomes the first page of your paper trail, and it costs nothing. What goes in it, what to attach, and how to set the deadline against your lien clock rather than against what feels polite, are in How to write a demand letter that actually gets you paid. If that is ignored, The notice of intent to lien: the letter that gets you paid before you file is the sharper version of the same letter, and it is the one that tends to move a customer who has been ignoring you, because it reaches their lender and their title.
2. Your strongest leverage: a lien or a bond claim
This is the big gun, and it is what makes getting paid in construction different from chasing any other debt.
- On private property, you can file a mechanic's lien, a legal claim against the property itself that stops the owner selling or refinancing until you are paid. Most liens get paid without a lawsuit, just by existing. See Mechanic's lien basics, and get your exact deadline from the Mechanic's Lien Deadline tool.
- On a public job, you cannot lien government property, so you make a claim against the project's payment bond instead.
Both have short, strict, state-specific deadlines, and the first step often has to happen at the start of the job, not now. So this is the rung to reach for early, not last.
3. Prompt-pay interest
Most states have prompt-payment laws that give you a right to interest, and sometimes your costs, when a payment runs late. It is money you are owed on top of the bill, and simply citing the law in your demand can move things along. See Prompt pay and retainage for how it works, and Working in Your State for your rules.
4. Small claims court
For smaller amounts (each state sets a limit), small claims is fast, cheap, and does not need a lawyer. If the debt is inside your state's limit and the lien or bond route has not worked, this is often the most efficient next step. See the Small Claims tool for your state's limit and whether it is worth it.
5. Mediation or arbitration
Check your contract. Many construction contracts require you to mediate or arbitrate a dispute before anyone goes to court. If yours does, that is the path, and skipping it can cost you.
6. An attorney and a lawsuit
For a large balance, or a genuinely contested one, a construction attorney is worth it. They can send a demand that carries more weight, enforce a lien through foreclosure, or take it to civil court. Get one involved early, not after your deadlines have passed.
Do not lose next time
The best time to fix a payment problem is before it happens:
- Get it in writing. A signed contract or a clear written quote beats a handshake every time.
- Take a deposit and bill in stages, so you are never far out of pocket.
- Send preliminary notices on every job, so your lien rights are alive if you need them. This is the item on this list that has to happen at the start, not when it goes wrong: The preliminary notice: the paperwork that keeps your lien rights alive covers who has to send one, when, and to whom. Getting the rest of the money once the job is done is Retainage and prompt pay: getting the rest of your money.
- On a big general contractor, ask around about how they pay before you sign.
Common questions
How long do I have to chase an unpaid construction bill?
You usually have years to sue for the debt itself, but only weeks to protect your strongest tools, so move on those first. The plain breach-of-contract clock runs for a few years and varies by state. Your lien and bond deadlines are far shorter, sometimes only a week or two from when you start, and once they pass they are gone. Get the short ones from the per-state tools and treat them as the real deadline.
Should I file a lien or take it to small claims?
On private property, a lien is usually the stronger opening move, because it pressures the property itself and often settles without a lawsuit. Small claims is a good fit when the amount is inside your state's small-claims limit and you want a fast, lawyer-free judgment. Many contractors protect the lien first, then use small claims or an attorney if that does not shake the money loose. Limits vary, so see the Small Claims tool.
Can I charge interest on a late payment?
Often yes. Most states have prompt-payment laws that entitle you to interest, and sometimes your costs, once a payment runs past the legal deadline. If your contract also sets a late-payment rate, you can rely on that. The rate and the deadline that triggers it are set state by state, so confirm yours in Working in Your State before you put a figure in a demand.
What if the customer just disappears?
Your lien does not need the person, it attaches to the property, so a vanished customer does not kill your claim on a private job. On public work you claim against the payment bond instead. Either way, note your last day on the job in writing right away, because that date usually starts the clock, and get the deadline from the per-state tool.
The honest bit
- Lien and notice deadlines are short and different in every state, and they are the thing that decides whether these options are even open to you. Use the per-state tools and confirm your dates.
- This is general guidance, not legal advice. For a large or contested amount, talk to a construction attorney early, because on payment disputes, early is leverage.
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