1. Except as provided in subsection 2, payment to the original contractor by the owner of any part or all of the contract price of the building or improvement before the lapse of the ninety days allowed by law for the filing of a mechanic's lien by a subcontractor, does not relieve the owner from liability to the subcontractor for the full value of any material furnished or labor performed upon the building, land, or improvement if the subcontractor files a lien within the time provided by law for its filing.
2. In the case of an owner-occupied dwelling, a mechanic's lien perfected under this chapter is enforceable only to the extent of the amount due the principal contractor by the owner-occupant under the contract, less any payments made by the owner-occupant to the principal contractor prior to the owner-occupant being served with the notice specified in subsection 3. This notice may be served by delivering it to the owner or the owner's spouse personally, or by mailing it to the owner by certified mail with restricted delivery and return receipt to the person mailing the notice, or by personal service as provided in the rules of civil procedure.
3. The written notice required for purposes of subsection 2 shall contain the name of the owner, the address of the property charged with the lien, the name, address and telephone number of the lien claimant, and the following statement:
"The person named in this notice is providing labor or materials or both in connection with improvements to your residence or real property. Chapter 572 of the Code of Iowa may permit the enforcement of a lien against this property to secure payment for labor and materials supplied. You are not required to pay more to the person claiming the lien than the amount of money due from you to the person with whom you contracted to perform the improvements. You should not make further payments to your contractor until the contractor presents you with a waiver of the lien claimed by the person named in this notice. If you have any questions regarding this notice you should call the person named in this notice at the phone number listed in this notice or contact an attorney. You should obtain answers to your questions before you make any payments to the contractor."
[S13, § 3093; C24, 27, 31, 35, 39, § 10283; C46, 50, 54, 58, 62, 66, 71, 73, 75, 77, 79, 81, § 572.14; 81 Acts, ch 186, § 2]
87 Acts, ch 79, §6; 98 Acts, ch 1142, §3
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