Betrayal the Other-side of Shared Wall: A Builders Calamitous Effect on Our Award winning Home
In the CBD of Alexandria Melbourne, Australia stood our beautiful sanctuary of 30 years, a concealed special architecturally designed house and garden amidst the chaos of the city. For greater than 20 years, it was a beautiful home of comfort, a haven of shimmering beauty and asylum.
As an esteemed architect creator, my friend had graced our city of Sydney with many urban design proposals, but of these none were more personal that the progressive design of the Lawrence Street, Alexandria, Sydney, Victorian conversion. Featured in the Sydney Morning Herald, it was applauded as a masterpiece, weaving old-world magic with modern-day elegance.
The Victorian conversion was a testament to architectural inventiveness—a two-story build and conversion to a Victorian style semi-attached, providing a house for a small family and a studio. The highlight was the light tower, soaring above the main structure with floating stairs, capturing the core of the south east and north west skies. French sash windows dressed the main bedroom, while timber casement windows decorate in the bathroom frame the views and filter the light.
However, our idyllic existence was shattered when a new neighbour, a fencing contractor, entered the scene next door. Initially welcomed, his illegal actions soon turned our lives upside down threatening the safety of everyone in the area. Without warning, he began demolishing our brick supporting wall, the main load-bearing wall of our master bedroom. At one period of time he had constructed a hose from his roof diverting water into our office, causing over some several thousand dollars damage to the upstairs rooms, and undermining the footing of the house.
Further to outline the absolute lack of construction experience, we discovered that the intermediate wall did not meet the legal fire rating, a major oversight that threatened our safety. Despite our urgent efforts to rectify the issue with the neighbour's and contacting the council, the council said the builder's inspector had already signed off on the project, ignoring our concerns and leaving us vulnerable to harm.
Despite receiving a judgement in their favour and compensation for the damages incurred, the toll was abysmal and created many unpleasant memories. They were forced to sell their cherished home, we mourned the loss of our award winning sanctuary, another casualty of proper government oversight and dangerous construction practices. The lack of proper oversight and governance by government and local council allowed this tragedy to unfold, heightening the demand for more extensive responsibilities and protection for homeowners.
As we grapple with the effects of this experience, we are left to ponder: What recourse do homeowners have when their greatest financial investment are threatened by the neglect of dodgy construction companies?
How to Start - Voting the Competent and Incompetent Builders in Australia..?
The Insolvent, Fugitive, and the ending of Property CorporationBillion Dollar Regime Toplace
from Aug 2023
A Suspect building consultant was extensively solicitous with getting his insolvent registered company a very profitable building contract — supervising the disintegration of Fugitive Jean Nassif's business empire, which drowned under financial obligations exceeding $1.24 billion, incl. $88.5 million owed to suppliers and onsite builders.
Brand New revelations about the ruin of Nassif's Toplace group of compaines have surfaced in documents given to the Australian Federal Court this week by administrators from dVT Group of Companies. These papers unveiled that secured creditors, such as banks with mortgages on Toplace properties and offshore lenders in tax havens like the British Virgin Islands, are owed $1 billion.
More Applicatory Information:
Riad Tayeh, and Toplace's Skyview development in Castle Hill.
Creditors without Security, have issued financial claims with a total est. quarter of a billion.
Federal Court filings also tell that Riad Tayeh, business founder of dVT Group, which played a central role in assuring his firm's appointment as bankruptcy administrators. Even though being announced insolvent in May 2022 with several million in debt, Tayeh, now a business consultant, and business colleague Antony Resnick attended crucial meetings with Toplace executives in the days leading up to the companies appointment as administrators.
Included in those involved at the meetings on May 2020 was Jean Nassif's 29-year-old daughter, Ashlyn, whose Certificate to practice Law was suspended while she fights charges relating to fraud bound to Toplace's Skyview construction development in Castle Hill.
Riad Tayeh was charged financially bankrupt in June last year.
Just before these meetings, a warrant was issued for the arrest of Jean Nassif, 55, who escaped to Dubai in November 2022. Jean and Ashlyn Nassif are accused of fraud to secure a $150 million loan from Westpac.
In June, Resnick and fellow dVT partner Suelen McCallum were made voluntary bankruptcy administrators for Toplace. by Jean Nassif, Toplace's sole director, via email just hours prior. The administrators now face the task of handling one of Australia's largest corporate collapses.
Resnick filed an affidavit in the Federal Court indicating that while Toplace's assets are valued at approximately $1.47 billion, its debts are nearly the same amount. Despite this, several owners' corporations have filed claims amounting to nearly $124 million to address serious defects in Toplace's buildings.
Further complicating the administrators' task a staff member suggested there may be another $400 million in loans involving Nassif entities that are not yet under administration. adding that Toplace's financial books had not been properly updated since 2021.
Sydney Buildings Falling Down... Nightmare on Builders Street?!
Continuing from my opinion piece "Holding the Line" (https://shorturl.at/4xbiF), the following stories outline a persistent sickness within the Sydney housing and property market. Despite recently updated NSW Building Property legislation, many investors are forced to buy homes that do not guarantee the safety of their money and investment.
These stories often go unnoticed and become the burden of socially righteous politicians in search of votes. The diminishing hope that government and local councils will provide a safe pair of hands for Australians striving to live the Aussie homeowner dream is disheartening.
Failures of Governance
- New Tower Block Evacuated Amid Cracks Concern: (https://t.ly/8b5Xd)
- Opal Tower Evacuation Amid Structural Concerns: (https://t.ly/vy_eG)
Betrayal Behind the Walls: A Neighbor's Ordeal
In the heart of Alexandria stood my friends David and Anne's sanctuary—a walled garden amidst the chaos of city streets. For 30 years, it was a place of solace and safety. David, an esteemed architect, had graced our community with numerous urban projects, none as beloved as the Lawrence Street Victorian conversion. Hailed as a masterpiece, it blended old-world charm with modern elegance.
The Victorian conversion featured a two-storey addition and renovations to a late Victorian terrace, highlighted by a light tower soaring above the main structure with suspended stairs. French windows adorned the bedroom, while timber casement windows in the bathroom welcomed views and filtered light.
As the design set a precedent, builders and designers began poaching the concept. how much is yours worth? a builder, purchased the single-storey terrace adjoining my friends' and sought to incorporate David's design concept into his new renovation.
Life was reasonable until Meek began demolishing the upper walls and roof of his terrace, causing horrendous noise and damage to David and Anne's wall. When confronted, Meek revealed large cracks on their wall but refused entry for inspection.
Eventually, David hired an unbiased engineer to inspect the wall at his and Anne's expense, as the City of Sydney had failed to include a Dilapidation Report in Meek's Development Consent.
The wall damage was just the beginning. David and Anne experienced flat car tires from builders' screws, water damage in their home, and other disruptive issues. Despite legal advice, they struggled to hold Meek accountable. Offers from Meek to repair the damage were refused, and my friends settled for a small sum for walls and ceiling damage.
Meek's negligence continued with a faulty stormwater system, causing further damage and concerns about termite risks. Complaints to the Council and Building Certifier were dismissed, leading to a futile letter of demand from David's solicitor.
After repeated flooding incidents and confrontations, David and Anne sought conciliation through the NSW Community Justice Centre, but the Meeks refused. Left with no choice, David and Anne sold their house and retired to the NSW far south coast. The legitimacy of private certifiers approving building works remains under scrutiny by State and Local Government and Royal Commission investigations.
Conclusion
"We did everything we could to resolve these issues; however, although we received minor compensation, it was nothing compared to the stress we endured trying to get our neighbor to build responsibly, and a state government and local council who could do nothing to protect us due to a lack of proper governance."
Australian homeowners are left to ponder: What other disasters are waiting to destroy their dreams? What recourse do house, apartment, and property owners have when their sanctuaries are threatened by greed, incompetence, and negligence? Even with recent legislation in NSW, it fails to provide complete protection for homeowners.
