House Builders Beware
 

I don't profess to have any building experience, but when we have been observing some of the new house building in Perth, it seems quite basic. We wondered what the 'life' expectancy was of these properties given the way they are built.

Building disasters:

'The Boules family are like squatters in their own faulty home. The local council won't grant an occupancy certificate unless they spend $260,000 on repairs. Is it time for an inquiry into the building industry? The Boules estimate repairs will cost $260,000. They've lived in the home for five years but it's never been granted an occupancy certificate so technically they're squatters.
The local council won't approve the home because it says only half the brickwork sits on the slab - the remainder hangs precariously away from it. The couple says the home can't be sold in its current state and so far they've spent $25,000 on legal fees and building reports but they're no closer to a resolution'.



David Lawrence of Archicentre assesses workmanship and says the number of problem homes has increased in the last five years. A recent Archicentre study suggests as many as three-in-10 homes could be defective.

"For quite a number of people the system has failed, especially with those builders that are not doing quality work," Mr Lawrence said. "It's a serious issue that definitely needs some fundamental reform with the certification scheme." He says the industry's private certification scheme is letting people down and needs some major modifications.

Could some homes built during the recent construction boom become worthless?


An interesting report country wide re housing can be located at

http://www.google.com/search?q=cache...hl=en&ie=UTF-8