$240,000 repair bill for leaky home owners

Six Mount Maunganui homeowners are facing a hefty repair bill of $240,000 after their modern townhouses near the beach developed extensive leaks.
They are now waiting for mediation through the Weathertight Homes Resolution Service - but there are very few parties left to claim against.
Their builder and developer, who were a father and son-in-law combination, both died suddenly just eight weeks apart last year.
The complex of six townhouses called Mainbeach Villas in Commons Ave - built three years ago - began leaking more than 12 months ago and each owner will have to pay at least $40,000 for repairs.
One of the owners, Graham McColl, told the Bay of Plenty Times this morning his only real hope for compensation lay with the council.
Bay Building Certifiers, who inspected the apartments when they were built, closed down because of the new Building Act. The firm has since re-opened under a new name and is now working more closely with Tauranga City Council.
"The Government makes the building rules and the council makes sure they are carried out. They contracted Bay Certifiers. We are hoping we have a claim against the council but of course they deny that. We are keeping our fingers crossed," Mr McColl said.
After operating a guesthouse and restaurant in Cambridge, Mr McColl and his wife, Trish, retired to the Mount two years ago.
They fixed up the leaks through the ceiling and had the roof capped and sealed. But a weathertight report showed wood underneath had rotted.
"It's been very stressful. We wanted to enjoy our retirement at the beach but now we feel battered around by the leaky home," said Mr McColl.
He said one of his neighbours had water leaking through the light fittings. He also knew of two more leaky apartment complexes nearby - constructed by the same builder.
Mr McColl was hoping there would be further support for leaky homeowners from the Government.
Minister of Building Issues Chris Carter said there was a group of people affected by companies that have changed their trading names and these homeowners were unable to access funds to fix up the problem.
Mr Carter said one of the options was to provide interest-free loans so people could complete the repairs to their homes and repay the money out of compensation later.
Resident Diana Jones who lives at Mainbeach's apartment number five, first noticed cracks appearing around the windows and in the corners of her kitchen and lounge about 18 months ago.
Last year, her husband Bryan found a pool of water forming on the living room floor.
"It's really upsetting to see our homes rotting. We really didn't think it was possible."
The Jones had the problem fixed but have since had to fix three further leaks in the kitchen and one around the windows.
They tried to contact Master Builders but were told they couldn't do anything because the building's guarantee hadn't been changed over to the new owners by the original builder and therefore did not apply.
A report done by the Weathertight Homes Resolution Service showed 99.9 per cent moisture in some places around the house.
"It is certainly a complicated process that has caused a lot of problems," Mrs Jones said.
Having mould growing was bad for the couple's health and had caused a lot of stress and upset.
Having visited three different Mainbeach apartments this morning, the Bay Times found water was pooling inside the walls. Bubbles were visible beneath the paintwork, nails were popping out, cracks snaked across the walls and ceilings were sagging.
Terry Wynward, Tauranga City Council group manager of environmental services, confirmed today that the council was not the subject of any legal action by Mainbeach residents.
"We have not been served notice and until such time as we were, the council doesn't have an opinion on it," he said.
"The process is that if council is joined, our lawyers would take over the matter and deal with it at that point."
He said there was a number of issues surrounding the demise of the certification process that remained of concern, but it was important to recognise that Bay Building Certifiers had not gone into liquidation. "It is an unfortunate situation these people now find themselves in."