Queensland One Homes and Empire Constructions Pty Ltd customer’s build heartbreak

THE sunlight streams into Rod Mattingley’s brand new home. Trouble is, it is coming from underneath the wall instead of through the windows. He’s the latest Queensland One Homes customer to complain.

Rod Mattingley with his botched Q1 Homes house which is now being completed by related company Empire Constructions Pty Ltd. Photo: John Gass

THE sunlight streams into Rod Mattingley’s brand new home.

Trouble is, it is coming from underneath the wall instead of through the windows.

The customer of collapsed Gold Coast builder Queensland One Homes is a year into his nightmare dealings with the company, and now with its related company Empire Constructions Pty Ltd, which has taken over building his new home.

Rod Mattingley's home was being built by collapsed builder Queensland One Homes. Now under-investigation company Empire Constructions Pty Ltd is supposed to complete it. The slab is 100mm too small for the house. Photo: Supplied

Ormeau-based Empire Constructions Pty Ltd, whose director Amber Callender is the wife of Queensland One Homes director Paul Callender, remains under investigation by the Queensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC), who have referred allegations of illegal phoenix activities to ASIC. Empire has denied the allegations.

Mr Mattingley signed a contract last October and was told his Brisbane home would be completed within six months of the start of construction in February.

When Queensland One Homes went into liquidation, he was encouraged to sign the contract over to Empire Constructions.

Rod Mattingley can fit his hand under an internal wall of his new home. Photo: Supplied

“In July and August I started to notice problems with the build — part of the slab in the front bedroom was missing — I could see light shining up from underneath the floor and it was obvious there was something wrong,” he said.

‘The back of the slab was about 100mm short but they kept building anyway.

“They tried to hide it by gluing Hebel (lightweight concrete) to the back and rendering over it.”

Mr Mattingley also found a hole had been made in the wrong place in a bathroom wall and that the home had no lock on the front door, and the roller doors were not secure when the house was supposed to be in the “lockup” stage of construction.

Here comes the sun — from under the wall. Photo: Supplied

A QBCC building inspector is scheduled to visit the property on Monday.

“The whole site will have to be re-engineered,” Mr Mattingley said.

“It could be months before it is finished.”

Despite the flaws, Empire Constructions is still demanding progress payments from Mr Mattingley, with staff threatening to hold up his build for even longer if he doesn’t pay.

“I’m at the point where I don’t want the house,” Mr Mattingley said.

“I’m paying rent as well as mortgage, that money should be going into my house.

“It has created a great strain on my relationship, I’m spending a lot of time on this when I could be spending it with my partner. “I’ve also got a job to hold down — it’s affecting every part of my life.

“Not being a builder, it’s been very confusing — you go into this and trust the process.”

Rod Mattingley outside his unfinished home in Griffin.

Ms Callender said the slab defect has been inspected by her company’s construction manager and Mr Mattingley who had agreed on a rectification strategy.

“The front door does lock and the wall defect will be rectified during the defects liability period along with any other defects Empire is notified of,” she said via email.

Ms Callender said the construction manager had been in constant contact with Mr Mattingley regarding the completion of project, and that progress claims were issued “in accordance with the contract”.