Couple says they are getting no answers from QBCC in house extension construction fiasco

A couple say they have been “ghosted” by the building regulator after sinking almost $100,000 into a home extension which had a slew of problems and was 18 months behind schedule.

Michelle Holmes and David McInnes at their home Burpengary East in their half built extension.

A couple say they have been “ghosted” by the building regulator after sinking almost $100,000 into a home extension which is 18 months behind schedule with a slew of problems.

Michelle Holmes, an Australian Defence veteran, used her disability payout to pay off the mortgage on her property north of Brisbane at Burpengary East and set aside her remaining money to improve her home.

It was supposed to be a six-month job by local company Tilson & Sons Building & Construction but she said it has been a “two-year nightmare”.

Meanwhile, the builder says he is doing what he can do to finish the job.

She and husband David have had no choice but to live in the home while it was a building site – at one stage without a full roof.

“I suffer really bad anxiety and it gets worse in this situation and I have been hospitalised,” she said.

“This has also been quite stressful for my husband who has blood pressure issues.”

Ms Holmes said she had contacted Queensland’s Housing and Public Works Minister Sam O’Connor who passed on her concerns to the Queensland Building and Construction Commission.

She launched a series of actions through QBCC, which she said were fruitless. She began a Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal action and engaged a specialist building compliance lawyer.

“The QBCC ghosted me. They were completely dismissive. No one rang. No one contacted me,” she said.

“When they did contact me they pretty much told me nothing and said they can’t do anything about it. What the QBCC wants me to do now is make sure I get a construction lawyer and terminate the contract because they say `we cant help you if don’t terminate the contract’.

“So they’re not allowing me natural justice. They’re not regulating the building industry and if I terminate the contract I will have to go to court.”

Michelle Holmes and David McInnes at their home Burpengary East, where building extension only half built. Picture: Patrick Woods.

The plan was for a 6m by 9m extension which involved knocking down an exterior wall making it an open plan lounge, kitchen and dining area. There would be a media room to one side and a carport.

Ms Holmes said the builder told her it would be completed by Christmas 2023 under a fixed price $164,000 contract.

“We then paid him $97,000 on what is a fixed price contract but we then found there was no building approval,” she said.

“Nothing has been done anything since August 2024 and he’s dragging it out. Everyone was scattering to the winds on who’s responsible for what and why.

Ms Holmes said the roof was eventually rebuilt but claimed there were still some parts of the build which were defective.

The builder Declan Tilson told the Courier-Mail there had been problems throughout the project.

“We’re just trying to get through to the other end,” he said.

“We want to finish the job. I’ve had many customers who have had delays and they’re happy with the end product. You get the bad ones now and then which can be a nightmare but you work through it as best you can.

“It’s all up to the big man above - if you do the right thing and do the work it should always work out. Sometimes it doesn’t but you always have to do your best.”

A QBCC spokesman said because of strict confidentiality obligations they could not comment on individual cases.

However, they confirmed that Tilson & Sons currently holds a low-rise builder licence.

They said the builder had been issued with one direction to rectify work in 2024 for an unspecified job. They were fined $3226 and issued four demerit points for failing to comply with direction to rectify or remedy.

“The QBCC has a range of regulatory action to address offences committed by individuals and companies, including penalty infringement notices and warning notices, as well as prosecution and disciplinary actions,” the spokesman said.

Originally published as Couple says they are getting no answers from QBCC in house extension construction fiasco