Selling Alberta Commercial Property With a Construction Lien

1. Identify the property, project and governing contract

Reconcile every affected title, legal description, condominium unit, parcel, leasehold interest and improvement with the owner, contractor, consultant and subcontract chain. Index each prime contract, amendment, change order, purchase order and assignment by date and legal entity.

A contractor's invoice, site address or project nickname is not proof that every title or owner interest is affected. Counsel should determine the applicable project, contract and land interest before the property is marketed.

• Affected title
• Contracting owner
• Prime contract
• Lien claimant
• Registered amount
• Current project stage

2. Use the current statutory framework, not legacy terminology

Alberta's current private-project framework is the Prompt Payment and Construction Lien Act and regulations. The province states that new contracts have been subject to the framework since August 29, 2022 and that the two-year transition for older contracts ended in 2024.

Legacy records may still say builders' lien, while current Land Titles materials use construction lien forms. Terminology does not determine the governing rule, filing period, validity or remedy; counsel must classify the contract and dates.

3. Build the lien chronology from original evidence

Order the current title, registered lien and every later notice, certificate of lis pendens, discharge, postponement or court order. Record work and supply dates, registration date, service, disputed amount, statement of claim and each stated deadline from the source record.

Land Registry currently summarizes 60 calendar days for a regular lien, 90 days for identified oil-and-gas or ready-mix-concrete categories and 180 days from registration before a certificate of lis pendens is required to continue the registered lien. Those summaries are not a deadline calculation for a particular claim.

4. Separate registration from validity and amount

Have construction counsel analyze the claimant, work, land interest, contract chain, filing trigger, amount, statutory compliance, priority and available challenge or security routes. Maintain the owner's response and evidence without rewriting the claimant's filing.

A lien appearing on title is not a court determination that the amount is valid. Conversely, an owner's disagreement, deficiency list or payment assertion does not remove the registration or prove that no amount is owing.

5. Reconcile proper invoices and non-payment notices

Index each invoice, proper-invoice status, receipt date, certification, disputed item, owner notice, contractor notice and downstream payment record. Connect every amount to work, materials, retainage, tax, change orders and payments.

Alberta's public guidance currently describes a 28-calendar-day owner payment timeline for an amount payable on a proper invoice and a 14-calendar-day owner notice period for a disputed invoice. Commercially does not decide whether an invoice is proper, an amount is payable or a notice is effective.

6. Reconstruct lien fund, holdback and security

Have counsel and the project accountant reconcile the statutory lien fund or holdback, progressive or annual releases, major and minor lien funds where applicable, retained contract amounts, security posted and trust-account treatment. Cite every number to the governing contract and payment record.

A ten-percent assumption, accounting reserve or unpaid invoice is not automatically the correct current lien fund. Project value, duration, contract date, phase, consultant election and other facts can affect the analysis.

7. Verify physical completion and remaining exposure

Create a dated schedule of completed, deficient, disputed, unperformed and owner-deferred work. Link drawings, permits, inspections, consultant certificates, site reports, change orders, warranties, commissioning, as-builts, manuals and photographs.

Substantial performance, occupancy, final completion, deficiency correction and contractual acceptance are different concepts. A building in use is not proof that construction is complete, every permit is closed or every contractor has been paid.

8. Coordinate lenders, purchasers and controlled disclosure

Review mortgage covenants, construction financing, assignments, cost-to-complete requirements and lender consents. Define a staged buyer disclosure package containing title, project status, lien record, unfinished work and the counsel-approved closing plan.

Do not describe a disputed lien as invalid, settled, insured, bonded off or about to be discharged until operative evidence supports the statement. Brokerage marketing cannot substitute for legal treatment.

9. Build a closing path before launching

With counsel, identify the expected payout, discharge, security, holdback, trust condition, court order or other closing mechanism; the responsible party; required documents; funding source; registration sequence; and fallback if resolution is delayed.

An accepted offer, solicitor undertaking request or expected refinance does not itself clear title. The sale agreement, funds, legal authority and registered evidence must align.

10. Maintain role and deadline boundaries

Commercially can organize property evidence, market positioning, qualified-buyer access and a sale timeline around the counsel-led lien workstream. It can update recipients when authorized facts change.

Commercially does not calculate lien or notice deadlines, determine validity or priority, advise on holdbacks or trust duties, negotiate a legal claim, file or lapse a lien, provide adjudication services, certify construction completion or guarantee a discharge or closing.