State Liens Search

Where tax and property liens are recorded, and how to ask for a sourced report.

State Liens Search

State tax lien search in New York

Quick answer. A state tax lien search looks for the state tax authority’s notice in the index that authority uses. A property lien search by address is usually the county recorder. A mechanic’s lien is a land record tied to a job. A judgment lien follows that state’s judgment statute. This page applies that reading to New York.

Official office

New York Department of State, Division of Corporations entity index

Open the official search

Steps

  1. Name the lien

    State tax, judgment, mechanic’s, or federal. Each has a home office.

  2. Use the state page’s office

    The link is the starting index we have for that state, not a promise that no county filing exists.

  3. For land, open the recorder

    Address, owner, and parcel. Prior owners if the question is the parcel’s history.

  4. Read releases in the chain

    The original notice remains as history after a release.

The official record in New York

A state tax lien search in New York is not one list. The entity index at New York Department of State, Division of Corporations shows whether a company is on the state rolls. It does not show a mortgage, a mechanic’s lien, or most judgment liens. Those sit with the county recorder or clerk for the parcel.

Federal tax liens and state tax liens follow the statute that tells the agency where to file. Some are with the secretary of state. Some are with the county. Read the lien type before you pick the office. A name hit is notice, not a payoff. Release, withdrawal, or expiration has to appear as its own later instrument.

State Liens Search is not a revenue department or a county recorder. When you write the result, name the office in New York, the instrument number, and the date you looked. “No liens” without those three facts is not a result.

Pick the lien type before the website

Title companies search land records because real-property claims are recorded there. A statewide tax-lien brand that only queries a UCC debtor name will miss a county abstract of judgment. Say which book you opened.

Mechanic’s liens have short deadlines and are indexed under the property and the claimant. This site will not compute those deadlines. We can pull the recorded instrument the county still shows and email it.

Common mistakes

  • Calling a UCC-1 a state tax lien.
  • Searching only by city name.
  • Ignoring county records for a property question.
  • Calculating a foreclosure deadline from a blog.

Questions

Where is a property lien search done?

At the county recorder or clerk for the parcel, under the owner and the legal description.

What is a judgment lien?

A lien arising from a money judgment under state law, usually after an abstract or notice is filed in the office the statute names.

What is a mechanic’s lien?

A real-property claim for unpaid work or materials, recorded in the land records, with deadlines set by statute.

Sources reviewed