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Treachery Backside of Connected Partition: A Neighbour Fateful Effect on Our Idyllic Home
In the Central Business District of Alexandria Melbourne, Australia we had renovated our gorgeous refuge of greater than 20 years, a concealed special architecturally designed house and garden amidst the chaos of the city. For 30 years, it was a loving place of solace, a haven of shimmering beauty and safety.
As an prestigious architect, my friend had donated to our city of Sydney with numerous urban creative proposals, but of these none were more personal and loved that the progressive design of the Lawrence Street, Sydney, Australia, Victorian. Featured in the Sydney Morning Herald, it was acclaimed as a masterpiece, blending old-world magic with neo elegance.
The Victorian transmutation was a creed to architectural ingenuity—a two and 1/2-story addition and conversion to a Victorian style semi-attached, offering a house for a family and a home-office or studio. The premier feature was the light tower, high above the roof with floating stairs, capturing the core of the south east and northwestern sky. French sash windows adorned the master bedroom, while timber casement windows decorate in the bathroom frame the views and filter the light.
However, our idyllic lifestyle was shattered when our neighbour, a fencing contractor, entered the scene next door. Initially welcomed, his actions soon turned our lives upside down threatening the safety of everyone in the area. Without proper notification, he began demolishing a major supporting wall on our property, the major load supporting wall of our bedroom. At one period of time he had constructed pipes from his roof diverting water into our office, causing over some several thousand dollars damage to our property and undermining its structural integrity.
In addition to outline the lack of construction experience, we discovered that the intermediate wall lacked the required fire rating, a critical omission that threatened everyone's safety. In spite of our pressing attempts to rectify the problem with the neighbour's and contacting the council, the council said the builder's inspector had already approved on the project, ignoring our concerns and leaving us vulnerable to harm.
In spite of getting a legal judgement in their favour and recompense for restitution, the toll was immeasurable and created many unpleasant memories. They decided to sell their beloved home, we mourned the loss of our award winning sanctuary, another casualty of government negligence and dodgy construction practices. The lack of oversight and governance by local government created the environment for this tragedy to unfold, heightening the necessity for more accountability and protection for homeowners.
As we grapple with the consequence of this experience, we are left to ponder: What recourse do house owners have when their greatest financial investment are made vulnerable by the carelessness of others?
Where to Commence - Vote the Capable and Inept Building Companies in Commonwealth of Australia..?
The Bankrupt, Accused, and the Collapse of Building CompanyBillion Dollar Regime Toplace
from June 2023
A Suspect building adviser was comprehensively solicitous with acquiring his insolvent business a very lucrative job — managing the collapse of Defendant Jean Nassif's business empire, which drowned under liabilities in excess of $1.24 billion, incl. $88.5 million due to suppliers and onsite builders.
Fresh disclosures about the failure of Nassif's Toplace group have emerged in documents presented to the Federal Court this month by administrators from dVT Group. These documents uncover that secured creditors such as banks with mortgages, are owed one thousand million.
More Applicatory Info:
Riad Tayeh, Jean Nassif, and Toplace's Skyview building development in Castle Hill.
Unsecured creditors, have made claims with a total est. $244 million.
Federal Court filings also show that Riad Tayeh, founder of dVT Group, which played a fundamental responsibility in securing his firm's assignment as administrators. Even though being announced bankrupt in June last year with millions in debt in debt, Tayeh, now a consultant, and colleague Antony Resnick attended essential business meetings with Toplace executives in the weeks before the firm's appointment as administrators.
Among those involved at the meetings on May 2020 was Jean Nassif's 29-year-old daughter, Ashlyn, whose legal practicing certificate has been suspended while she fights charges related to a $150 million fraud bound to Toplace's Skyview construction development in Castle Hill.
Riad Tayeh was declared bankrupt in July 2022.
Just before the meetings, a warrant was issued for the arrest of Jean Nassif, 55, who fled Sydney for Dubai in October 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, following a resolution passed by Jean Nassif, its sole director The bankruptcy managers now face the task of handling one of New South Wales' largest corporate bankruptcy's.
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. Paul Meek, 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.
The Wall