‘Death trap’: Owner stuck in defective Melbourne home after developer collapsed

Rebecca Welsh thought she’d found her dream home. Then she uncovered building defects that will cost more than $300,000 to fix.

Rebecca Welsh thought she’d found her dream home.

The two-bedroom townhouse in the beachside suburb of Edithvale, Melbourne, appeared to tick all the boxes when Ms Welsh bought it at auction for $795,000 in early 2021.

“I thought it was great location - it was close to my daughter’s school, close to public transport, close to the beach,” the 52-year-old told news.com.au.

“It just had everything. I wasn’t any the wiser.”

Ms Welsh was eager to move straight in and did not get a building inspection, a decision she has come to regret.

The following year, she began to notice major issues with the property - and her health.

Water was leaking into the kitchen in multiple areas, including through the window, rangehood and ceiling. The house was humid and had a constant damp smell.

Ms Welsh was horrified when she discovered the wall cavities were damp and riddled with black mould.

On-top of the stress of trying to repair the house, she was also dealing with breathing problems and skin rashes.

Rebecca Welsh says she's effectively stuck in the defective home. Picture: Supplied

A building report found a long list of defects at the home. Picture: Supplied

She arranged an environmental assessment report which found the house was damaged, mouldy and damp due to water ingress - particularly a lack of waterproofing around the floor slab and inadequate drainage.

The level of mould was “likely to have significant health effects to occupants,” the report said, estimating the cost of mould remediation works to be more than $130,000.

Ms Welsh later also arranged a building report, which concluded the property had a long list of defects, including poor waterproofing at the floor slab level, non-compliant roof pitch, sarking, and flashings, and incorrectly installed external cladding.

The report estimated the cost of repairs - after the mould remediation work - to be more than $200,000.

“This place is a death trap,” Ms Welsh said.

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Water was coming into the house in multiple ways, including through the kitchen window. Picture: Supplied

Ms Welsh said she was unable to cover the repair costs herself and nobody else would take responsibility.

When she contacted the developer, Arrow Building Group, the company initially told Ms Welsh that its homes came with a three month defect liability period that had already concluded.

It later agreed to send a builder to carry out repairs, but Ms Welsh said it only intended to “patch up” the problem rather than address the root causes.

She said she had not received any assistance from the strata manager, appointed by Arrow Building Group, and the body corporate’s insurer had told her that it does not cover defects.

Having run out of options, Ms Welsh said she was effectively stuck in her defective home, with no end to her ordeal in sight.

“What do you do? Where do you go and live?

“I can’t sell, because I wouldn’t get a cent for it. It would have to be bulldozed. Either way, for my own mental sanity, I’ve got to get the place repaired.”

The Melbourne-based Arrow Building Group collapsed into voluntary administration in April.

News.com.au has contacted the company and its administrator for comment.

Ms Welsh was horrified when she discovered the wall cavities were damp and riddled with black mould. Picture: Supplied

A country-wide problem

Research shows Ms Welsh is one of millions of Australians who are living in defective homes.

Last year, a report from the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute revealed 70 per cent of the estimated 10.9 million homes across the country have some kind of major building defect.

They range from plumbing and waterproofing issues, some of which can cause hazardous mould such as in Ms Welsh’s case, through to serious structural faults and foundation cracking.

Associate Professor Lyrian Daniel from the University of South Australia, an architectural expert and lead author of the research, said the findings smashed the old perception that homes in this country are built to stand the test of time.

“For many years in Australia, we’ve had a fairly laissez-faire approach to regulation in the construction sector when it comes the quality of our housing,” Dr Daniel said.

“The notion that the free market will demand a certain level of quality - it will lead to high standards - simply doesn’t ring true. We need national leadership in this area - a strategy that ensures housing stock, whether it’s new, existing, owned or private rental, is of a good standard.”

Originally published as ‘Death trap’: Owner stuck in defective Melbourne home after developer collapsed