Subversiveness Backside of Connecting Partition: A Neighbour's Disastrous Impact on Our Idyllic Home
In the Central Business District of Alexandria, Melbourne stood our beautiful sanctuary of 30 years, a concealed award winning house and garden in the middle of the storm of the city streets. For over 20 years, it was a gorgeous place of solacement, a shelter of beauty and sanctuary.
As an esteemed architect creator, my friend had graced our community with numerous municipal proposals, but of these none were more beloved that the progressive design of the Lawrence Street, Alexandria, Victorian style conversion. Featured in the Sydney Morning Herald, it was applauded as a creative masterpiece, blending old-world magic with modern-day elegance.
The Victorian transformation was a creed to architectural inventiveness—a two and 1/2-story build and conversion to a Victorian terrace, offering a home for a small family and a studio. The highlight was the light tower, far above the main structure with suspended stairway, capturing the essence of the south east and northwestern sky. French style sash windows adorned the master bedroom, while timber casement windows embellish in the bathroom welcomed views and filtered light.
However, our idyllic existence was shattered when a new neighbour, a builder, entered the scene next door. Initially welcomed with open arms, his actions soon turned our lives upside down threatening the safety of everyone in the area. Without warning, he began demolishing a major supporting wall on our property, the major load supporting wall of our master bedroom. At one period of time he had constructed pipes from his roof diverted water into our upstairs studio, causing several thousand dollars damage to our property and undermining its structural integrity.
Additionally to outline the lack of construction experience, we through investigation found that the intermediate wall lacked the required fire rating, a major omission that endangered everyone's well-being. Despite our urgent endeavours to seek resolution the issue with the builder and contacting the council, we were informed the builder's inspector had already signed off on the project, providing no recourse and leaving us open to harm.
In spite of getting a legal judgement in their favour and recompense for restitution, the emotional 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 government negligence and dicey building practices. The lack of oversight and appropriate governance by local government allowed this tragedy to unfold, highlighting the need for more extensive accountability and legal protection for owners.
As we grapple with the consequence of this trial, we are left to ponder: What recourse do house owners have when their sanctuaries are threatened by the negligence of dodgy construction companies?
When to Begin - Voting the Competent and Unqualified Construction Companies in Australia..?
The Bankrupt, Fugitive, and the ending of Property CorporationToplace's Billion-Dollar Empire
from Aug 2023
A Fugitive building consultant was extensively solicitous with acquiring his insolvent company a very lucrative construction contract — managing the collapse of Bankrupt Jean Nassif's property empire, which went under debts surpassing $1.24 billion, inclusive $88.5 million due to suppliers and tradespeople.
Fresh revelations about the failure of Nassif's Toplace group have come out in evidence presented to the Australian Commonwealth Federal Court this recently by bankruptcy managers from dVT Group. These documents 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.
Additional Relevant Subject Matter:
Riad Tayeh, Jean Nassif, and Toplace's Skyview development in Castle Hill.
Creditors without Security, have made claims with a total est. quarter of a billion.
Australian Federal Court filings also indicate that Riad Tayeh, founder of dVT Group, which played a fundamental duty in securing his businesses appointment as bankruptcy administrators. Despite being announced financially bankrupt in July last year with several million in debt, Tayeh, now a consultant, and colleague Antony Resnick attended important meetings with Toplace top managers in the weeks before the firm's appointment as administrators.
Included in those at the meetings on May 2020 was Jean Nassif's 29-year-old daughter, Ashlyn, whose legal certificate was suspended while she fights charges relating to fraud tied to Toplace's Skyview construction development in Castle Hill.
Riad Tayeh was charged insolvent in May last year.
Just days before these meetings, an arrest warrant was issued of Jean Nassif, 55, who escaped to Dubai in October 2022. Jean and Ashlyn Nassif are accused of fraud to secure a $150 million loan from Westpac.
In July, Resnick and fellow dVT partner Suelen McCallum were nominated voluntary bankruptcy administrators for Toplace, following a resolution passed by Jean Nassif, its sole director The bankruptcy administrators now face the task of handling one of New South Wales' 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. More methods 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.
