Homeowners have revealed a history of complaints against Bathla Group for building defects and poor customer service, surfacing years before the property giant announced its voluntary administration. The company reportedly owes approximately $3.6 billion to private credit firms and other creditors.
Administrators from Teneo have been appointed to assess Bathla's finances, with the company facing the collapse of up to 25,000 unfinished homes and 500 jobs at risk. Discussions with lenders are ongoing.
Prior to the company's financial distress, a number of homeowners shared their negative experiences. In 2021, an owner took Bathla Group to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) over issues at a property in Quakers Hill, Sydney. The homeowner alleged that the company breached statutory obligations for work to be done with "due care and skill." The complaint detailed damaged personal property, a hazardous staircase, and a failure to repair faults. The tribunal ordered Bathla Group to pay the homeowner more than $7,000 in costs.
Another customer, who purchased a property in 2023, described their home-building experience as a "nightmare" and stated they had taken the builder to court. This customer reported that the company consistently refused to address significant defects, including issues with a kitchen, internal property defects, backyard flooding, and faulty plumbing. Despite numerous attempts to resolve these matters, the customer claimed Bathla Group showed "complete disregard for their obligations."
Last year, a woman detailed her first-home purchase with Bathla as a "stressful ordeal" causing mental and financial distress. She reported that items specified in the contract of sale were not installed, and the apartment was delivered in a dirty, unfinished state, with open sliding doors allowing pests inside. Following the discovery of numerous defects, she stated that Bathla became unresponsive for weeks. When repairs were eventually made, the workmanship was described as "shockingly poor," with issues such as incorrectly covered holes in tiles, patched stone benchtops, missing electrical socket covers, and rusted cabinets.
Property inspector Zeher Khalil suggested that such issues are indicative of what occurs when a high-volume builder faces financial pressure. "Supervision is usually the thing that suffers (when finances are stretched)," Khalil said. "Trades don't get paid, so they don't come back, and homes get pushed through to handover with work incomplete or rushed."
Khalil advised homeowners experiencing issues to document the property's current condition, retain all documentation, and obtain an independent report on the completion stage and any defects, noting this evidence could be useful for insurance claims. He warned that defects hidden behind walls, such as waterproofing and plumbing issues, can lead to significant repair costs long after a builder is no longer involved or has ceased to exist in its original form.
For prospective homeowners, Khalil recommended checking a builder's license on the relevant state's Fair Trading register, withholding fees until a certificate of insurance is obtained, and using an independent inspector at every construction stage. He also emphasized the importance of a pre-purchase inspection, noting that building inspection is unregulated in New South Wales and Victoria, with only Queensland licensing inspectors.
Bathla Group's managing director, Bhart Bhushan, attributed the company's downfall to a "perfect storm" of softening sales, impacts from tax changes, and increased construction costs, which he stated had affected lending markets and put further pressure on the business. He indicated the decision to enter administration was made in the best interests of stakeholders to provide the best opportunity to continue delivering homes.
Reports suggest the company has approximately $15 billion worth of affordable housing projects in its pipeline, with its website listing a broader development pipeline including 22,000 apartment dwellings and an additional 3,500 homes. The scale of the collapse has raised concerns for buyers, subcontractors, and lenders. Bathla Group's situation mirrors a trend of construction and development companies entering administration or liquidation in recent years, citing rising costs and labor shortages.