Liquidation of Montego Homes leaves sour taste for first home buyers at Mount Duneed’s Dalgona estate

The collapse of yet another builder – this time Montego Homes – has impacted several would-be homeowners at Mount Duneed’s Dalgona estate, as affected parties desperately seek state government compensation.

As development continues at the Dalgona estate in Mount Duneed, Chantelle Gizycki is hoping the state government will reimburse the $15,000 she paid to failed builder Montego Homes. Picture: Brad Fleet

A dozen would-be homeowners in Mount Duneed’s Dalgona estate will be left hundreds of thousands of dollars out of pocket unless the state government comes to their rescue.

Melbourne-based Montego Homes was placed in liquidation on Tuesday, snuffing out any hope for people who paid deposits to the builder.

Chantelle Gizycki paid a $15,000 deposit to Montego in 2022 after years of saving as part of a house and land package within Dalgona at Duneed.

The 29-year-old pharmacist said that money was now gone after Montego failed to take out domestic building insurance despite legal requirements to do so.

Ms Gizycki is one of 12 parties within the Dalgona estate, located on the northern edge of Whites Rd, and one of more than 60 Montego customers impacted statewide.

“It’s not just about losing the money,” she said.

“This situation has taken a massive toll on both my physical and mental health, as I’m sure is the case for many others.”

First home buyers Hayden Plunkett and wife Juli, both in their early 30s, are in the same situation after paying a deposit of almost $20,000.

“The whole thing is a mess,” Mr Plunkett said.

“We’re both suffering from anxiety … I’m not going to stop fighting to get our money back, but you have to weigh that against your mental health.”

The Victorian Building Authority has suspended the registration of Montego director Todd Searle while it investigates claims that almost $900,000 worth of deposits were paid without any domestic building insurance being obtained.

Both Ms Gizycki and Mr Plunkett said their contracts led them to believe Montego had the required insurance, only to learn upon its collapse it hadn’t.

Liberal MP Evan Mulholland says the state government had failed its duty.

The law requires builders to take out insurance for any contract above $16,000 and the pair said the state government should step in, as it did with the more than 500 customers affected by last year’s collapse of Porter Davis.

That scheme was widened to include clients of other collapsed builders but applications closed late last month.

“I think if more people were impacted (by the Montego collapse) the government would be forced to act,” Mr Plunkett said.

Opposition spokesman for home ownership and housing affordability Evan Mulholland described Labor’s failure to fix widespread non-compliance with domestic building insurance requirements, coupled with a lack of compensation for Montego victims, as “cruel and heartless”.

“Porter Davis should have been a wake-up call for Labor instead they’ve hit the snooze button and let the home ownership dreams of another 63 families become a nightmare,” he said.

Geelong-based Liberal MP Bev McArthur said the government must act.

“How can any hardworking family be confident about putting down a deposit knowing Labor has no interest in enforcing the laws which are there to protect them when things go wrong?” she said.

A state government spokesman pointed the finger at the opposition for playing politics after it opposed legislation two years ago that would have strengthened industry oversight.

South Barwon MP Darren Cheeseman did not respond to questions.

Originally published as Liquidation of Montego Homes leaves sour taste for first home buyers at Mount Duneed’s Dalgona estate