Personal Property
The English common law recognized mechanic's liens respecting only personal property. The lien was created by operation of law by the fact of the artisan working on the personal property item or attaching additional material to it. However, to maintain the lien, the artisan had to retain possession of the article until he or she was paid. If the property were returned to the owner before that time, the lien was lost. The lien was enforced by a "self-help" sale of the property and applying the sale proceeds to payment of the amount owed for the workmanship. The sales were non-judicial, i.e., they were held in the same way as a sale of property pawned for a debt.
Some 34 states now appear to have statutes providing for mechanic's liens on personal property. These statutes tend to modify the common law rules. For example, in Virginia, a mechanic's lien can only be enforced up to the amount of $625, and if the property is valued at over $5,000, it must be sold at a sheriff's auction ordered by the court of appropriate jurisdiction.
Read more about this topic: Mechanic's Lien, Creation and Enforcement
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