N.Y. Lien Law § 10

§ 10. Filing of notice of lien. 1. Notice of lien may be filed at any\ntime during the progress of the work and the furnishing of the\nmaterials, or, within eight months after the completion of the contract,\nor the final performance of the work, or the final furnishing of the\nmaterials, dating from the last item of work performed or materials\nfurnished; provided, however, that where the improvement is related to\nreal property improved or to be improved with a single family dwelling,\nthe notice of lien may be filed at any time during the progress of the\nwork and the furnishing of the materials, or, within four months after\nthe completion of the contract, or the final performance of the work, or\nthe final furnishing of the materials, dating from the last item of work\nperformed or materials furnished; and provided further where the notice\nof lien is for retainage, the notice of lien may be filed within ninety\ndays after the date the retainage was due to be released; except that in\nthe case of a lien by a real estate broker, the notice of lien may be\nfiled only after the performance of the brokerage services and execution\nof lease by both lessor and lessee and only if a copy of the alleged\nwritten agreement of employment or compensation is annexed to the notice\nof lien, provided that where the payment pursuant to the written\nagreement of employment or compensation is to be made in installments,\nthen a notice of lien may be filed within eight months after the final\npayment is due, but in no event later than a date five years after the\nfirst payment was made. For purposes of this section, the term "single\nfamily dwelling" shall not include a dwelling unit which is a part of a\nsubdivision that has been filed with a municipality in which the\nsubdivision is located when at the time the lien is filed, such property\nin the subdivision is owned by the developer for purposes other than his\npersonal residence. For purposes of this section, "developer" shall mean\nand include any private individual, partnership, trust or corporation\nwhich improves two or more parcels of real property with single family\ndwellings pursuant to a common scheme or plan. The notice of lien must\nbe filed in the clerk's office of the county where the property is\nsituated. If such property is situated in two or more counties, the\nnotice of lien shall be filed in the office of the clerk of each of such\ncounties. The county clerk of each county shall provide and keep a book\nto be called the "lien docket," which shall be suitably ruled in columns\nheaded "owners," "lienors," "lienor's attorney," "property," "amount,"\n"time of filing," "proceedings had," in each of which he shall enter the\nparticulars of the notice, properly belonging therein. The date, hour\nand minute of the filing of each notice of lien shall be entered in the\nproper column. Except where the county clerk maintains a block index,\nthe names of the owners shall be arranged in such book in alphabetical\norder. The validity of the lien and the right to file a notice thereof\nshall not be affected by the death of the owner before notice of the\nlien is filed.\n 2. Where the county clerk indexes liens in a block index, every notice\nof lien presented to the clerk of a county of filing, in order to\nentitle the same to be filed, shall contain in the body thereof, or\nshall have endorsed thereon, a designation of the number of every block,\non the land map of the county, which is affected by the notice of lien.\nThe county clerk shall cause such notice of lien to be entered in the\nblock index suitably ruled to contain the columns listed in the\npreceding paragraph, under the block number of every block so\ndesignated. In cases where a notice of lien shall have been filed\nwithout such designation or with an erroneous designation, the county\nclerk, on presentation of proper proof thereof, shall enter such\ninstrument in the proper index, under the proper block number of every\nblock in which the land affected is situated, and shall, at the same\ntime, make a note of such entry and of the date thereof in every place\nin which such instrument may have been erroneously indexed, opposite the\nentry thereof, and also upon the instrument itself, if the same be in\nhis possession or produced to him for the purpose, and the filing of\nsuch instrument shall be constructive notice as to property in the block\nnot duly designated at the time of such filing only from the time when\nthe same shall be properly indexed.\n A county clerk may adopt a new indexing system utilizing\nelectro-mechanical, electronic or any other method he deems suitable for\nmaintaining the indexes.\n