Melbourne family locked in bitter legal battle with Red Bluff Homes over dream home

A bitter dispute has emerged as the Melbourne mum fights to get her deposit back and the land where she thought her family home would be sits empty.

A Melbourne mum has been “brought to tears” over a bitter dispute with a building company who terminated the contract for the family’s dream home and kept their $23,675 deposit.

Dee Filik signed a contract back in March 2022 with a Melbourne building company called Red Bluff Homes to construct their house in the suburb of Diamond Creek.

But the 40-year-old said she was left shocked when the company terminated the contract in September 2022.

She has disputed the company’s reason for the termination based on a clause in the contract regarding proper planning permits being obtained and claimed that was done in July 2022.

But desperate to get her home built, she discussed signing on to a new contract which would have hiked the original price of $473,500 to $618,986.

“The price was $140,000 more than the original price,” she told news.com.au.

“Since then I have been trying desperately to at least get my deposit back ... and I can’t build the house as I need to get another permit through council and new plans.”

Dee Filik has extreme anxiety after trying to get her dream home built. Picture: Supplied

Now the family and Red Bluff Homes are locked in a legal battle with the company suing Ms Filik for an extra $9228 for its “costs to date” including legal fees, according to a document lodged with the Domestic Building Dispute Resolution.

The dispute is also due to be mediated in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT).

The mum-of-one said it had been an “extremely difficult” time in her life as she gave birth to her first child in December.

“The experience has dealt a severe blow dealing with lawyers ... ” she said.

“I have to now incur significant legal costs at VCAT to try and seek some sort of justice. And even then if I do ‘win’ I still lose. I don’t have a house being built, I’m out of pocket significantly and my mental health has declined considerably.”

Ms Filik claimed the messy legal battle has seen the building company focus on a separate issue where the family were constructing their own driveway and had put in a different planning permit to change the driveway and retaining walls.

The empty block of land the family wanted to build their dream home on. Picture: Supplied

She said this was secondary to building the house even though Red Bluff Homes are saying the issue to claim the permits weren’t obtained in time and to cancel the contract.

“We have always moved from house to house and always been in old houses and it’s been a dream of mine to build a nice family home and because I had my son coming it was something I always wanted – a nice family home to settle into,” she said in tears.

“It’s really upsetting. It’s taken a toll emotionally. I have severe anxiety daily not knowing what is going to happen with it as I’m just in limbo now.

“I can’t move forward because they (won’t) to give the plans back and even if I said ‘Don’t worry about them I can build’, it’s going to cost me more money and I don’t want to lose any more money on it.

“I have already incurred significant legal fees, close to $10,000 just in legal fees, trying to seek justice. Then it will cost me an extra $20,000 to $25,000 to get new plans and permits and pay the council fees and reports again and things like that.

“I’ve gotten quotes from other builders and has nearly doubled in price.”

The family are paying $2000 a month for the empty block of land. Picture: Supplied

The financial planner said she has also struggled with a very slow legal system.

“The mediation alone is scheduled towards the end of September – that’s just mediation – and I don’t know when the actual VCAT hearing would be. I’m filled with anxiety as I don’t know what I am going to do until then,” she said.

“There is obviously holding costs associated with the land so that will all add to about $2000 a month, with the interest rates going up.”

All Ms Filik wants is for Red Bluff Homes to build her dream house but instead she is fearful she will just end up losing a lot of money including her deposit as well as legal fees.

She said she faces never being able to build.

“I won’t be able to afford it because if I add up the legal fees – I would have lost $23,000 with the deposit and add on another $20,000 – I’m going to have to sell the block of land,” she added.

Red Bluff told news.com.au it would not be appropriate to comment while the matter is currently before VCAT.