ALANNAH KERR
“A man’s house is his castle” is the famous quote from the 1997 film, The Castle.
It’s the Australian dream to own your own home, but for two Brisbane residents, their homes are compromised by the chaotic Brisbane construction market.
Morningside neighbours Sally Jongejan and Debra Kerr are concerned about a new apartment building being built in their backyard that impacts their view, plants and fence.
“At first I agreed to the construction,” said Ms Kerr, “But the developers failed to convey exactly how big the construction would be and how it would affect our view,”
“If I knew it would be like this, I would have never agreed to it,”
Brisbane is a real estate hotbed for construction; CommSec’s latest State of the State report Queensland ranked fourth in the country for construction applications.
Brisbane may add 50,000 units to its skyline, pandering to the inner-city apartment market boom. Brue Goddard from Place Projects Real Estate told the ABC that the Brisbane boom signified Queensland finally playing “catch up” from the Global Financial Crisis (GFC).
“We had no construction for three or four years,” said Mr Goddard, noting that people lured to Brisbane property market because of the skyrocketing prices of Sydney and Melbourne.
“Brisbane is approximately 50 per cent cheaper than Sydney and 35 to 40 per cent cheaper than Melbourne,” said Mr Goddard.
However, the influx of construction proposals into the Brisbane market means developments are carried out hostility, and with little regard for already established residents.
“My problem is the size of it – it [the apartment block] goes up so high, and it’s all you can see which is quite overwhelming for the three houses,” said Ms Jongejan, who added the construction company has broken their agreement by failing to set up a block wall, and instead, knocking down her fence and disturbing her plants.
“Basically they [the construction company] do what they see fit to do without consulting any of us,” said Ms Jongejan.
Some of these builders can be like that. Have you tried taking your objections to the city council? They may take your side and you may be able to get some concessions from the builder.