(a) Filing. In a case specified in section 6501, the notice of pendency shall be filed in the office of the clerk of any county where property affected is situated, before or after service of summons and at any time prior to judgment. Unless it has already been filed in that county, the complaint shall be filed with the notice of pendency.
R 6511.Filing, content and indexing of notice of pendency.
Article 65. Notice of Pendency · Last amended 2020 · Last verified July 21, 2026
In one sentenceCPLR 6511 sets out where a notice of pendency must be filed, what it has to say, and how the county clerk indexes and records it, including an option for clerks to index electronically.
Full Text of CPLR 6511
(b) Content; designation of index. A notice of pendency shall state the names of the parties to the action, including the name and telephone number of the mortgage servicer for a foreclosing party involving a mortgage foreclosure of a one-to four-family residential property, the object of the action and a description of the property affected. A notice of pendency filed with a clerk who maintains a block index shall contain a designation of the number of each block on the land map of the county which is affected by the notice. Except in an action for partition a notice of pendency filed with a clerk who does not maintain a block index shall contain a designation of the names of each defendant against whom the notice is directed to be indexed.
(c) Indexing. Each county clerk with whom a notice of pendency is filed shall immediately record it and index it against the blocks or names designated. A county clerk who does not maintain a block index shall index a notice of pendency of an action for partition against the names of each plaintiff and each defendant not designated as wholly fictitious.
(d) Electronic indexing. A county clerk may adopt a new indexing system utilizing electro-mechanical, electronic or any other method he deems suitable for maintaining the indexes.
Plain-English Summary
CPLR 6511 supplies the how-to for the filing right that section 6501 creates. The notice of pendency goes to the clerk of whichever county the affected property sits in, and it can be filed before or after the summons is served, at any point up to judgment. If the complaint has not already been filed in that county, it has to go in along with the notice.
The notice itself must identify the parties, describe the object of the lawsuit, and describe the property affected. In a mortgage foreclosure involving a one- to four-family residence, it must also give the name and phone number of the mortgage servicer for the foreclosing party -- a detail meant to help homeowners and their advocates reach the right office. How the notice is indexed depends on the county: where the clerk keeps a block index, the notice must designate every block on the county land map that the notice touches; where the clerk indexes by name instead, the notice must name each defendant it is directed against, except in a partition action.
Once filed, the clerk must record and index the notice right away, against the blocks or names the filer designated. In a county without a block index, a partition action gets indexed against every plaintiff and every defendant not designated as wholly fictitious. And clerks are not locked into paper indexing -- the statute lets a county clerk adopt an electronic or other suitable method for maintaining these indexes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where do you file a notice of pendency in New York?
With the clerk of the county where the affected real property is located, at any time before or after the summons is served but before judgment.
What must a notice of pendency say?
It must state the names of the parties, the object of the action, and a description of the property affected, plus the block designation or defendants' names depending on how the county clerk indexes filings.
Does a foreclosure notice of pendency need extra information?
Yes -- in a mortgage foreclosure of a one- to four-family residential property, the notice must include the name and telephone number of the foreclosing party's mortgage servicer.
What if the complaint hasn't been filed yet when the notice of pendency is filed?
Unless the complaint is already on file in that county, it must be filed together with the notice of pendency.
Can a county clerk use an electronic indexing system for notices of pendency?
Yes, CPLR 6511 lets a clerk adopt an electro-mechanical, electronic, or other method the clerk considers suitable for maintaining the index.
How is a notice of pendency indexed in a partition action?
In a county without a block index, it is indexed against the names of every plaintiff and every defendant not designated as wholly fictitious.
Advisory Committee Notes
Subd (a) of this rule is derived from part of the first sentence of CPA § 120. The specification in CPA § 120 of the type of action in which a notice of pendency might have been filed appears in § 6501. The remainder of CPA § 120 appears in subd (b) and in § 6512. The requirement of CPA § 120 that the complaint be verified has been deleted.
Subd (b) and subd (c). The first sentence of subd (b) is virtually identical with the last clause of the first sentence of CPA § 120. The remainder of subd (b) and all of subd (c) are derived from CPA § 122. The requirement of CPA § 122 for subscription by the attorney for the plaintiff is covered by the more general rule for indorsement of all filed papers. See CPLR rule 2101(d) and notes. The last sentence of CPA § 122, which concerned erroneous or missing designations, has been deleted. See notes to § 6501.
Amendment History
Add, L 1962, ch 308; amd, L 1962, ch 318, § 24, eff Sept 1, 1963; L 1991, ch 648, § 3, eff July 26, 1991; L 2020, ch 269, § 3, effective November 11, 2020.
Source & verification. Provision text, History, and Advisory
Committee Notes are reproduced verbatim from the Consolidated Laws of New York.
Last verified July 21, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: CPLR 6511 filing notice of pendencyhow to file lis pendens NY county clerknotice of pendency content requirements New Yorkblock index lis pendens New York