Administrators Permit Unpaid Subbies To Strip The Copper Out Of All Unfinished Bathla Projects

CLANCY OVERELL | Editor | CONTACT

The embattled property developer Bathla is somehow still standing.

The construction giant, that specialises in medium density wage cages in the flight path, and tree-less NPC blocks on the rural outskirts, was entered into voluntary administration late last month.

Property experts and media pundits are labelling this unexpected collapse the 'first victim' of Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmer's attempts to de-incentivise needless boomer wealth hoarding by removing the capital gains tax discount and negative gearing loopholes that caused Australia's housing crisis.

In a market that has not slowed down for the first homebuyers that have spent the last decade being outbid by apathetic investors, our elected officials will now turn their attention to the topic of 'developer margins'.

How much do they actually need to make to justify getting out of bed to build homes that they can definitely sell at a profit?

The answer to these questions remain unanswered until the dust settles after the Bathla collapse.

Right now, it appears that hundreds of aspiring home owners and tradesmen could be left in the lurch, as homes remain unfinished and invoices remain unpaid.

It is unknown what went wrong and when the alarm bells should have been sounded - with administrators initially suggesting that $20 million was needed to keep construction operating for five weeks.

Last week, five lenders agreed to provide between $3 and $5 million to keep a much smaller Bathla running for another two weeks. This meant standing down more than 60 per cent their 350 staff members.

While the immediate restructuring has caused heartbreak in the community, with hundreds of working men and women left without a job in the lead up to Christmas, there is also grave concerns about whether or not there will be a ripple effect that bankrupts countless other subcontractors and tradesmen who are now overextended and waiting on invoices from Bathla.

In the meanwhile, adminstrators of basically told the unpaid subbies "We didn't see nothing" - as banged up work utes begin convoying off worksites with trays full to the brim of copper wire, dry-laid bricks and ceiling tiles.