Your crew has finished the work, but the GC has not paid. Gather the agreement, invoice, records showing completed work, and payment history. Ask for a written explanation of the unpaid amount while you have a construction attorney check deadlines.
In North Carolina, real-property lien filing and enforcement limits run from last furnishing, not from the day the GC stops answering. G.S. 44A-12 and G.S. 44A-13 set those separate limits.
Use the steps below to build the payment file. Have a lawyer check which remedies, notices, and deadlines apply to your contract, tier, and property.
List what remains unpaid
Check the subcontract balance before sending another demand. List the original scope, approved changes, amounts billed, payments received, and retained money. Separate a rejected extra from accepted base work. Separate a disputed deduction from contract retainage.
Use one file for the job. Keep original records intact and add a short index so someone else can follow the payment history.
Scroll to read all columns.
| Record | Question it should help answer |
|---|---|
| Signed subcontract and exhibits | Who owes payment and under what terms? |
| Approved scope and drawings | What work did you agree to perform? |
| Invoice and delivery record | What did you request, and who received it? |
| Photos, daily notes, and inspection records | Which records show the work is complete? |
| Change approvals | Which extra work has an agreed price and schedule? |
| Payment reconciliation | Which amounts remain outstanding? |
| Communications | What explanation or commitment did the GC give? |
Do not mix jobs in a single unpaid balance. Identify the property and invoice each time. If a payment arrived without a reference, ask which invoice it covers and record any disagreement. Give your bookkeeper the same balance breakdown you use with the GC.
Ask for an explanation that can be checked
Send the invoice through the contract’s billing channel. Ask whether the GC accepts it, which items it disputes, and the scheduled payment date for the accepted amount. If the response says “paperwork,” ask which document is missing and who reviews the resubmission.
If the response says “the owner has not paid,” ask whether the relevant draw has been submitted, approved, or received. Treat those as different statuses. Save the answer with the invoice.
Do not describe a request as a promise from the GC. Summarize only what the person said. If you propose a new payment date, label it as your request and ask for a response. Keep disputed amounts marked as disputed in your records.
Check the payment rule for this project
For work covered by North Carolina Chapter 22C, G.S. 22C-2 says contractual performance entitles a sub to payment from its contracting party. It rejects upstream payment as a condition precedent. G.S. 22C-3 separately requires qualifying pass-through payment within seven days of receipt.
However, G.S. 22C-6 excludes residential contractors and specified residential improvements, including improvements with twelve or fewer units. Do not tell a single-family builder that Chapter 22C automatically controls your invoice. Have an attorney check the project and agreement before citing that rule.
Ask the attorney to review the notice and dispute clauses too. Identify the correct recipient and required delivery method. If arbitration, mediation, or another process appears in the contract, flag it for review. Do not assume an ordinary email satisfies a contractual or statutory notice requirement.
Understand the North Carolina lien routes
A lien upon funds concerns money owed upstream for the improvement. G.S. 44A-18 grants rights according to subcontracting tier and sets written notice under the funds-notice statute as the step to perfect those rights. Before notice, the statute permits ordinary-course use of the funds. Track notice timing separately from the invoice due date.
G.S. 44A-19 specifies notice content and service. A reminder invoice is not automatically that notice. Under G.S. 44A-20, receipt creates a duty to retain covered funds up to the noticed claims, with liability rules for wrongful further payment. Have the attorney check the funds, recipients, and service before you proceed.
A real-property lien is a different route. G.S. 44A-23 allows specified subcontractors to enforce the contractor’s property-lien rights through subrogation. Tier, notices, and contractor actions affect that route.
A GC’s prior waiver can impair subrogated property rights while leaving specified other rights intact. Do not assume every unpaid sub has an identical claim against the house.
Keep the notices and deadlines distinct
Use this table to prepare questions for your attorney, who must check the project before advising you how to file.
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| Document or action | North Carolina distinction |
|---|---|
| Notice to lien agent | Early notice; it does not replace lien filing, funds notice, or notice of subcontract. G.S. 44A-11.2 |
| Notice of claim of lien upon funds | Written notice with statutory content and service requirements. G.S. 44A-19 |
| Claim of lien on real property | Filing and service both matter to perfection. G.S. 44A-11 |
| Property-lien filing limit | No later than 120 days after last furnishing at the site. G.S. 44A-12 |
| Property-lien enforcement limit | No later than 180 days after last furnishing at the site. G.S. 44A-13 |
Do not calendar the enforcement action as 180 days after filing the lien. Do not assume a promise to pay extends either period. Give your attorney all site dates, including disputed completion and return visits, to identify the legally relevant furnishing date.
Know when to call a construction attorney
Call a construction attorney early if a sale or refinance is approaching, the GC asks for a broad release, or you cannot establish where your contract sits in the payment chain. Also call when a deadline is near, the balance spans multiple changes, or the GC threatens default or backcharges.
Bring the actual documents. Include the parties above and below you, job identification, first and last furnishing records, notices already delivered, delivery evidence, and every signed waiver. Ask the attorney to identify available contract claims and lien remedies, the next required step, and the final date for that step.
Keep a separate record of negotiations. A proposed installment plan needs its own written terms and professional review. Do not sign a final-payment acknowledgment while payment remains unresolved. Our waiver guide explains the terminology without prescribing a form.
Keep one person responsible for the follow-up
Assign one person to keep the invoice file and communicate with the attorney. Ask the crew to send work records to that person. Keep business negotiations out of unrelated site conversations. After each response, record the accepted amount, unresolved issue, next action, and the person responsible.
If future starts are also uncertain, use the builder-slowdown plan to research suitable accounts while protecting existing commitments.
Use the payment-timing review to identify the disputed trigger. Keep crew attendance and recovery decisions in a separate record when the payment dispute also affects planned starts.
Keep enough detail for the next reviewer to follow the file without reconstructing every call.
For year-end reporting after the payment records are reconciled, follow the subcontractor 1099 workflow.
Where Cercha fits
Cercha gives you profiles, portfolios, endorsements, and Messages to begin and maintain professional relationships. Use the member conversation to identify the person responsible for the business agreement. Keep collection documents and legal notices in the process your attorney specifies.