This is general information, not legal advice. Review every notice and sale with your attorney. We could not read the current Georgia code on an official code site, so see the note at the end.
In Georgia, you can enforce a storage lien by written notice after the occupant has been in default for 30 continuous days. The notice must give at least 14 days to pay. Then you advertise once a week for two consecutive weeks and sell no sooner than 15 days after the first ad, which puts the earliest sale at about day 59 from default. The law is the Georgia Self-service Storage Facility Act, O.C.G.A. 10-4-210 through 10-4-217.
Georgia lien timeline, step by step
Days below count from the date of default unless noted.
| Step | Earliest timing | What the law requires | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Default | Day 0 | Rent due on the 1st under the required lease wording. Default if unpaid by the 7th calendar day of the month due, or a check is dishonored. | 10-4-213 |
| Late fee | Per lease | Greater of $20.00 per month of late payment or 20% of monthly rent. | 10-4-217 |
| Access denial | Day 0 | May deny access without notice until payment, if the lease has the required language. | 10-4-213 |
| Lien notice | Day 30 | After 30 continuous days in default, send a written notice by hand, verified mail or email. Demand payment within at least 14 days after delivery. | 10-4-213 |
| Advertisement | Day 44 | After the notice period, publish once a week for 2 consecutive weeks in the county legal organ. | 10-4-213 |
| Sale | Day 59 | Public sale to the highest bidder, not sooner than 15 days after first publication. | 10-4-213 |
Worked example: rent of $100 is due on the 1st and unpaid. Default counts from the date payment was due. On day 30 you deliver the notice. The payment period runs to day 44. You publish starting day 44 and again a week later. The earliest sale is day 59.
Notice requirements
The lien notice must (10-4-213):
- Itemize the sum due and the date it was due.
- Notify the occupant of denial of access.
- Give the owner or agent's name, street address, email and phone.
- Demand payment within a specified time not less than 14 days after delivery.
- State that unless paid, the property will be advertised and sold at public sale to the highest bidder at a specified time and place.
You must also notify holders of superior liens or security interests known to you.
Methods
Hand delivery, verified mail (certified, registered, statutory overnight delivery or a similar method with proof of sending), or email. If you email a sale notice and receive no non-automated response or delivery receipt, send it by verified mail to the occupant's last known address or the designated agent's address before the sale (10-4-211(8), 10-4-213).
Alternate contact
The required lease wording lets the occupant designate an agent to receive notices. If one is designated, a failed email notice goes by verified mail to the occupant's last known address or the agent's address.
Advertising the sale
Publish in the legal organ of the county where the facility is, once a week for two consecutive weeks. The ad must give a brief general description, the facility address and space number, the occupant's name, and the time, place and manner of sale. One ad may cover several occupants. The sale must be at least 15 days after the first ad (10-4-213). The 2013 version of the Act had a posting fallback where no newspaper existed, but we did not find it in the 2019 text we read, so ask your attorney what applies in your county.
Late fee limits
Georgia caps late fees at the greater of $20.00 per month of late payment or 20 percent of the monthly rent. This applies to agreements entered, extended or renewed, and late payments occurring, on or after July 1, 2019. Late fees are secured by the lien (10-4-217, 10-4-212).
Sale rules, surplus and records
- Public sale. At the facility or the nearest suitable place, or an online auction on a public website that regularly conducts online auctions. A sale is commercially reasonable if at least 3 independent bidders attend.
- No buyers. The owner may otherwise dispose of the property and must notify the occupant.
- Redemption. The occupant may pay the lien and reasonable expenses before the sale.
- Surplus. Hold the balance for the occupant or any notified secured party. If unclaimed within 2 years of the sale, follow the Disposition of Unclaimed Property Act. Your liability does not exceed the sale proceeds.
- Buyer protection. A good-faith purchaser takes free of the rights of persons against whom the lien was valid.
- Records. The statute we read lists no retention period. Keep the lease, notices, proof of delivery, ads and sale records.
Vehicles and boats
Personal property includes motor vehicles, trailers and watercraft. If rent and charges are unpaid 60 days after maturity, you may have the vehicle, trailer or watercraft towed instead of foreclosing the lien. You are not liable once the tower takes possession (10-4-213).
Active-duty military (SCRA)
Federal law adds protections for servicemembers, and owners must check status before a sale. See 50 U.S.C. 3958. Georgia also says that if the rental agreement is with a service member, you must comply with all terms of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (10-4-214).
Common mistakes checklist
- Sending the lien notice before 30 continuous days of default.
- Demanding payment in fewer than 14 days.
- Skipping the verified-mail follow-up when an emailed notice gets no response.
- Advertising in the wrong newspaper instead of the county legal organ.
- Selling less than 15 days after the first ad.
- Charging late fees above the cap.
- Not notifying known superior lienholders.
- Not checking servicemember status.
Tools to help
Use the lien timeline calculator, read about lien and auction management, browse all state lien laws, follow the self storage auction process guide, and start from the lien notice template.
What we could not confirm
The common code sites were blocked, so we read the 2013 and 2019 bill texts on legis.ga.gov. Those PDFs merge struck and inserted text, and we did not check amendments after 2019. The statute is not clear on whether the 14-day period runs from sending or delivery, so our day counts assume the longer reading. Verify against the current O.C.G.A. with your attorney.
Last reviewed: October 19, 2026. This page is general information, not legal advice. Review every notice and sale with your attorney.