Liability of owner limited to contract price.

Nothing in the Oil and Gas Lien Act shall be deemed to fix a greater liability upon an owner than the amount contracted by the owner to be paid the original contractor; provided that the risk of all payments made to the original contractor shall be upon the owner until the expiration of the one hundred eighty days specified in Section 70-4-4 NMSA 1978 within which persons other than the original contractor may fix their liens by the filing of the claim as provided in that section, and no owner shall be liable to an action by the contractor until the expiration of the one hundred eighty day period. Owners may pay subcontractors the specific contract or agreed upon charge due them from the original contractor for work, labor, material, tools, machinery, equipment and supplies, and the amount so paid shall be held and deemed a payment of that amount to the original contractor.