Stressed lives of retirees who bought cursed $1.2 million ‘luxury homes’ in Applecross

Several seniors who bought brand new “luxury townhouses” in Applecross say their million dollar-plus homes are plagued with building defects, including plumbing failures that cause sewage to flood living areas. The residents have spent tens of thousands of dollars on specialist reports as part of their long fight with the builder. What should have been happy retirement days since downsizing and moving into the strata complex in 2021 have been anything such for the group, due to the myriad of issues they’re desperate to get fixed. WA’s building industry regulator has indicated it plans to refer the residents’ complaints to the State Administrative Tribunal for determination. One severely disabled resident has copped the worst of the sewage backups. The woman, who lives with incomplete quadriplegia and didn’t want her name used, said she expected her ground floor to flood again if the plumbing wasn’t fixed. “Because of my situation it took a couple of weeks (to clean up) and I had to go without personal care like a shower,” she said. “Given it was sewage-laced water this was less than ideal. “It is frustrating that in a build of over a million dollars for a property that you’re facing basic issues such as plumbing. You expect the plumbing to work for the money you paid.” A specialist investigation, using CCTV drain cameras, located sections of the drainage system appeared bowed or not installed at an appropriate gradient, leaving a large amount of stranded waste. “Due to this, it is directing waste from (three adjacent) units up the drain of my unit, which means my waste can’t get out into the system,” she said. On one occasion, an overflow incident got within 10cm of entering her liftwell. Had the water got in there it could have caused the lift to malfunction and left her stranded. The complex has also had sewage backups in the courtyard, the first occurring just three days after some owners moved in. “They found there was a brick in it,” one owner, Michael, said. “Whatever work they did didn’t fix the issue.” To get to the pipes and carry out repairs will require the concrete-aggregate courtyard and pathways to be excavated and re-laid. “We’re having the air come up through the pipes,” Michael said. “At night time in here, you’re sitting here, and all of a sudden there’s air forcing its way up the pipe, making a gurgling sound.” The residents also complain of water ingress, faulty installation of concrete beams, building rubble behind wall cavities and dangerously steep stairs they claim don’t comply with building standards. There were many other alleged defects. “All our top level has water ingress,” another resident, Anne, said. “We’ve got mould in the floorboards.” “Right from day one, we were completely disappointed,” said her husband Wayne. Michael’s wife Lorraine said it had been “nearly four years of stress and a lot of paperwork we’ve had to do.” “At one stage Michael and I worked 16 hours every day for 14 days to get the paperwork done,” she said. Michael said there were items that were promised by the developer that weren’t included. Samantha Reece of Australian Apartment Advocacy said she was appalled at the situation. “This is a disgrace that seniors aged in their 80’s are facing this level of stress and construction defects which we believe to be over $1 million,” she said. “While the State Government is promoting apartment living, the lack of consumer protection is creating a crisis in consumer confidence. “WA is the last State in Australia to introduce buyer protection measures, and with increasing builder defects, we are expecting that this will become a priority and be dealt with in 2025.” The residents claim the City of Melville has been less than helpful and should not have issued an occupancy permit for the complex. The City of Melville has defended its own track record. “It is not the role of Local Government within the regulatory framework to undertake these inspections during the construction process,” City of Melville chief executive Gail Bowman said. “This has been the case since the introduction of the Building Act in 2011.” Ms Bowman said the City took its responsibility as a certifier and permit authority seriously. “The State Government’s Building and Energy agency has the role of investigating and resolving disputes between consumers and builders, and in the case of complaints the City can provide the required level of assistance to that agency to support an investigation,” she added. “The City has provided relevant information to the agency with respect to this (Applecross) dispute and cannot provide further comment.” Rob Biagioni on behalf of the builder Legacy Developments Pty Ltd declined to respond to the owners’ complaints. “At this stage, the matter is going through the (Building and Energy) review process, and we are currently awaiting their determination on the matter,” he said.