Sydney off-the-plan buyer discovers finished apartment is a bedroom short

http://www.domain.com.au/news/sydne...apartment-is-a-bedroom-short-20151014-gk902m/

Key quotes:

When excited first home buyer Jae Jun Kim went to inspect the one-bedroom apartment he’d bought off the plan in Sydney’s CBD, he discovered something vital was missing: the bedroom.

Where the wall to the bedroom and the much-lauded feature decorative glass sliding screen door should have been was … nothing.

Instead, the slick one-bedroom apartment in the new 15-storey building The Castlereagh that Kim had paid $560,000 for in October 2012 was actually a studio.

they’d had to remove the bedroom wall and sliding doors that created the room. They noted that was a “substantial and detrimental” change to the property but passed the blame to Sydney City Council.

According to Building Code of Australia design rules, the council had no choice; the unit in the block, on the corner of Bathurst Street and Castlereagh Street, should never ever have been classified, marketed and sold, as a one-bedroom apartment.

 

Maybe JJK should give the ACCC a call, given they have some expertise in the "false or misleading conduct" type issues that cause constenation with with purchasers of various products...

 

How much value has that poor guy lost? Not to mention the very limited potential buyer pool he now has.

 

Ok...how stupid do you have to be to think a sliding plastic Japanese style privacy screen can turn a corner of a studio into a 1 bedroom apartment.

 

Poor sod...his vals just went down the toilet...this will end in grief. One of the reasons why don't like off the plan apartments much particularly if they don;t have a name brand behind them.

 

In what universe do one bedroom apartments ever have the bedroom with no windows?

 

Yep...correct...to call a unit a 1 brm...the unit needs to have a window....

 

My point exactly.

When I was building my PPOR in Queensland, the builder gave me a couple of sample designs, and I adapted them into what I thought would be a good house. Somehow in my final cut, a bedroom ended up in the middle of the house.

Builder: "You can't have a bedroom without a window."
Me: "Fine, let's call it a library."

 

If he is holding the original marketing brochures and information then he will at the least be able to sue the agent for misrepresentation.

 

"Artist’s impression of a one-bedroom apartment in The Castlereagh."
"Artist’s impression of a bathroom in The Castlereagh. Photo: Supplied"

Just not this particular apartment or bathroom!

I can see how the developer can get away with this. Did the buyer consult an independent solicitor at the start?

 

Which is why you should be provided a floor plan with layout and fittings. You should also read the contract to see how the variation process will work. Reputable developers will consult you...not do a swifty....

 

Old news article isn't it?

 

Any idea on the success rates of this? I remember reading that some OTP contracts have a clause that states you can't rely on any materials/info presented by the agents and that it's worded in a way that says they can do pretty much whatever they want without repercussion. Most people wouldn't do a background check on their builders previous projects before committing.

The fact they changed it without consulting him meant they knew they were doing the wrong thing.

 

If it's just a separator, but the size of the place is still the same, I'm wondering if he can install his own separator later

 

Artist's impressions......so misleading aren't they? My favourite was the one that show's the balcony with an open city view. Then in the actual photo there is another building right in front of it blocking any views or light. What happened to the 'solar access requirement?' Not much 'solar' getting in with that building in the way...

 

It will get worse. The NSW govt is also bringing in new laws where if a majority is reached a strata building can be sold to developers.

Also on the positive side from Jan next year it will be harder to advise properties with from $xxx figures. ...

 

Section 51 of the Property, Stock and Business Agents Act 2002 forbids a licensee in the course of carrying on their business from publishing or causing others to publish any statement that:

• is intended or apparently intended by the licensee to promote the sale or lease of any property, and
• is materially false, misleading or deceptive (whether to the licensee’s knowledge or not).

A statement is published if it is:

• in any newspaper, periodical publication or other publication, or
• publicly displayed in, on, over or under any building, vehicle or place (land or water), or in the air in view of persons on any street or public place, or
• in any document sent or delivered to any person or thrown or left at premises occupied by a person, or
• broadcast by radio or television, or
• circulated on an internet website or by electronic mail.

Penalties apply for breaches of the provision of section 51 of the Property, Stock and Business Agents Act 2002. The maximum penalty is 200 penalty units – presently $22,000.

Section 51 of the Property, Stock and Business Agents Act 2002 applies in addition to other legislation that relates to misleading or deceptive conduct and false representations, including the Australian Consumer Law.

Section 18 of the Australian Consumer Law prohibits a person, in trade or commerce, from engaging in misleading or deceptive conduct.

 

It's spreading.. It's contagious!
http://www.domain.com.au/news/seven...edroom-units-are-now-studios-20151021-gkef99/

 

Class action??

 

http://www.domain.com.au/news/seven...edroom-units-are-now-studios-20151021-gkef99/ more news.