WA building company part of major national franchise collapses into liquidation, 18 homes impacted

An firm attached to a major national construction franchise has gone bust, as a customer reveals they have waited years to have their build completed.

EXCLUSIVE

An independent Western Australian building company attached to a major national construction franchise has collapsed into liquidation.

On Thursday afternoon, RPH Australia Pty Ltd appointed Robert Brauer and Linda Smith of insolvency firm McGrath Nicol as voluntary liquidators.

RPH Australia Pty Ltd was trading under the name GJ Gardner Perth West as it was part of the GJ Gardner network, a major building franchisor which has nearly 100 independent building companies and offices dotted around Australia.

A spokesperson from the GJ Gardner Homes WA head office said the company’s untimely demise had impacted 18 homes.

The head office also noted that the Perth West company’s financial woes were “not widespread” across the franchise.

One customer told news.com.au he had been waiting three years for his house and there was “no end in sight”.

The man, who wanted to remain anonymous, signed a contract in March 2020 and his build is still not complete.

Customers have been left reeling.

The customer claims the company “lied constantly to me with false finish dates and progress updates”.

“My build has been a disaster since the first day I signed the contract,” he lamented.

“I also think that GJ Gardner need to take responsibility for this outcome,” he said, adding that “at no point” did the master franchisor inform customers of the financial difficulties its Perth West branch was facing.

A GJ Gardner Homes WA spokesperson, the state’s master franchisor, said the company had “provided ongoing support to the Perth West office including operational support, financial support and financial guidance for some time”.

However, ultimately, the franchisee was hit by pressures the construction industry is battling with, including trade and supply line disruptions and increasing costs which resulted in “impacting its financial position”.

The spokesperson added: “As the master franchisee of GJ Gardner Homes WA, we are here to support the customers, trades and suppliers directly involved by assisting with the insurance process and providing support where we can.”

The GJ Gardner Perth West company, with an office in Osborne Park, had been a registered business since 2013.

news.com.au has contacted the liquidators for comment.

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The Perth West builder went bust on Thursday. Picture: Facebook

It comes as last month, news.com.au reported that another GJ Gardner franchise based in Queensland had also gone bust.

Harris Constructions was trading under the name GJ Gardner Homes Springfield/Ripley and its eponymous director, Iain Harris, filed for bankruptcy in August.

Mr Harris owes $1.8 million to 46 creditors, including the tax office, tradies and financial institutions, according to a document the trustee sent to creditors. Between 25 to 30 homeowners were impacted from the venture going bust.

The company is not in liquidation as Mr Harris said to news.com.au he couldn’t afford to do so. As a result, staff never received a formal termination notice and have limited ways of recovering their wages and superannuation.

The GJ Gardner master franchisor said these two collapses were unrelated.

The Perth business was under a different master franchisor agreement.