Leaky Building and remedial work

[Propertytrader]

Hi guys, i bought an apartment in a leaky building,and i was told by the building manager that once the remedial work starts,everyone has to move out of the building, but i wonder if this is true.

As my apartment is not leaking,and i don't see why they have to empty the building as the builders can work day time as to no disturb the tenants.

And if anyone has had similar experience,please share, as i dont want to have my apartment empty, for a over a month or so.

thanks very much for your help and advise

[Maccachic]

As my apartment is not leaking,and i don't see why they have to empty the building as the builders can work day time as to no disturb the tenants.

Hmmm...are you sure yours isn't leaking?

[Propertytrader]

a tricky question,but the tenant and sale agent assured me mine is not leaking, and also i could not see any marks or patches inside my apartment

[Maccachic]

a tricky question,but the tenant and sale agent assured me mine is not leaking, and also i could not see any marks or patches inside my apartment

Did you get it in writing from the agent? Did you request reports and minutes from the body corporate?

[garrett]

a tricky question,but the tenant and sale agent assured me mine is not leaking, and also i could not see any marks or patches inside my apartment

The majority of leaks show no manifestation internally (about 9 out of 10) so while you may have no visible damage you may have significant damage behind the plasterboard. You could be facing 100% external wall framing replacement and you simply will not know until the cladding is removed.

It is possible to stay in an apartment or house whilst being remediated but this drives the construction cost up as it slows down work on site having to work around a tenant and it requires hoardings or similar site protection and may need a certificate for public use from the council.

Some people simply can not afford to move out and we always manage to work out a way to allow that to happen. However, it is a rare and patient individual that can stand living in a construction site and by most accounts is absolutely horrible - "Like living in a dusty noisy black tent for 10 weeks with no natural light and a constantly changing family of workmen that are there when you wake up each morning and are still there when you get home from work."

After listening to years of feedback - I always recommend moving out. In your case your body corporate will have decided to move everyone out to minimise construction costs so you wont have a choice. It may be cheaper in the long run. If you have a valid legal claim against a party with enough money the cost of renting alternative accommodation or lost rent from your unit during the repair is likely claimable.

[Damap]

The likelihood of your apartment not leaking will be infintesimal but you could get a moisture tester and run around the walls to see if there i anything obvious going on.
My agents keep them in their car you probably know someone who has one if you ask around.

Impossible for anybody to answer on the need for vacancy it depends on what they have to do. It may mean disconnecting water or power depending on what work is required, or may mean the roof has to come off. All of those sorts of things would require vacancy of the property

[marief]

Hi guys, i bought an apartment in a leaky building,and i was told by the building manager that once the remedial work starts,everyone has to move out of the building, but i wonder if this is true.

As my apartment is not leaking,and i don't see why they have to empty the building as the builders can work day time as to no disturb the tenants.

And if anyone has had similar experience,please share, as i dont want to have my apartment empty, for a over a month or so.

thanks very much for your help and advise

I have / had an apartment in a building which had weather tightness issues. My apartment is mostly concrete block and the small area which had cladding , had no rotting or problems. Nevertheless, being part of a Body Corp I have had to pay my share of the costs for remedial work. I have had to move out as have all residents. We were told it would take about 4 months. It is now 9 months and I am still "homeless". The construction company insisted on all residents moving out "for safety reasons", and even now, as it nears completion, I am not allowed access to paint the interior. Once they started
the work far more issues besides weather tightness came to light - severe issues. It has been a nightmare and is ongoing. I hope you paid very little for the apartment.

[John the builder]

Once they started
the work far more issues besides weather tightness came to light - severe issues.

who were the experts supervising?

what other problems surfaced?

[Keithw]

Once they started the work far more issues besides weather tightness came to light - severe issues.

This is exactly what most people don't understand when they first get dragged into a leaky building problem.
I note from your other thread that at the start you were convinced that your place did not have any problems, yet as it turns out there are hidden issues. Please expand on what these were.

I wouldn't wish a leaky building problem on my worst enemy and understand what you are going through.
Having contractors locking you out of your own home is very frustrating and can be for many reasons, from site insurance, site safety, convenience of the contractor so they don't have to supervise you, to outright control issues on behalf of the contractor or program manager.
Having untrained personnel on a building site can be a major risk.
However, providing you undergo site safety induction, there should be no reason that you cannot get on site in order to paint or whatever during the same work hours as the contractors. It is probably less likely that you can get on site after hours.
Talk to the contractor / program manager. Sometimes they have to be reminded that they are dealing with peoples homes and lives, not just their building site.

[marief]

who were the experts supervising?

what other problems surfaced?

There was no communication whatsoever from anyone after I moved out but a short time before we were initially meant to return we received notification that the time would be extended.
The units are being repaired in blocks and the project management are a very reputable company. I don't know about the actual building contractors. They were not ones I would have chosen however my preference was a million higher for their estimated fee and our Body Corp recommended this other one. Needless to say with the extended time fee for the repairs has increased by 1K anyway!!

There was a meeting held after we were told of the extra time needed for the repairs and to show us videos of the extra problems they encountered which were all to do with the construction of the building. It was hard to follow as I could not hear the Surveyor who was pointing out the issues but something about the roof not being correctly installed, floors that would collapse if the problems hadn't been discovered and now that at last a date has been given for most of the residents (all rented except mine).... I have been told that some "huge power problem" means I, and the tenants of two other nearby units, cannot return yet. Apparently they discovered underground cables that were faulty and "are working on these" although I have seen no sign of any underground work going on at the site. This latter problem with the power is the one and only issue that affected my unit. I had no rotten wood or failing floors or missing roof joints in either mine or nearby units. For the money I had to pay, all I've gained out of it is a different cladding on two rooms of the unit and the outside walls will be painted which was due to be done anyway.

I have been at a disadvantage because the Property Managers advise the owners of tenanted units when there are changes to the access date but no one communicates with me.

[marief]

This is exactly what most people don't understand when they first get dragged into a leaky building problem.
I note from your other thread that at the start you were convinced that your place did not have any problems, yet as it turns out there are hidden issues. Please expand on what these were.

I wouldn't wish a leaky building problem on my worst enemy and understand what you are going through.
Having contractors locking you out of your own home is very frustrating and can be for many reasons, from site insurance, site safety, convenience of the contractor so they don't have to supervise you, to outright control issues on behalf of the contractor or program manager.
Having untrained personnel on a building site can be a major risk.
However, providing you undergo site safety induction, there should be no reason that you cannot get on site in order to paint or whatever during the same work hours as the contractors. It is probably less likely that you can get on site after hours.
Talk to the contractor / program manager. Sometimes they have to be reminded that they are dealing with peoples homes and lives, not just their building site.

Thank you for the suggestion Keithw. I will see if I can find some way of contacting them.
I visited the complex last week and was only then advised that the most recent end date that we had been given would not apply to me because of "power problems". The Property Manager was in a bad way and
didn't want to talk as she was fed up with owners asking her about what was happening. She did send me an apology email the following day and told me that they may have resolved the problem by 3rd July.
I replied asking if I would be able to access my unit on 26th June (when the tenants are being moved back to the units in my block) but she hasn't responded.

For all their concern about safety - which I do understand, another block to which residents returned several weeks ago is a shambles, still encased with scaffolding and the carports blocked off as they have not been completed. I feel like telling the world about the contractors who are working on the building and warning everyone to steer clear of them, but perhaps they are very thorough and have done a good job for all I know.

[Maccachic]

When our guys run sites there are fortnightly (depending on contract, agreement etc) stakeholder meetings held - I would see if this is occurring and ask for the minutes this should hold all the information you require.

[marief]

Thanks Maccachic. I think you are with the same company that is managing our project although in a different city, so I may be able to do just that.

[Maccachic]

Thanks Maccachic. I think you are with the same company that is managing our project although in a different city, so I may be able to do just that.

Your point of contact would be your body corporate and too bad if your PM is sick of dealing with owners perhaps they should be in a different job if that is their attitude.

[marief]

I wish they were!!!!!