That post was in 2020, it sounds like long suffering owners are finally going to get out, at a loss but at least they can get out.
What an ungodly shambles this issue was, terrible for the owners, an absolute nightmare.
Embattled owners in the troubled Mascot Towers buildings could soon walk away from the defect-riddled buildings debt-free.
Owners of apartments in Sydney’s defect-riddled Mascot Towers buildings have been thrown a lifeline with an offer to cancel their massive strata debts and outstanding mortgages so that they can restart their lives elsewhere.
It means most will end up bearing a financial loss on their apartments by agreeing to sell their homes to a new commercial consortium, but they would then be free of their multi-year legal nightmare.
NSW Building Commissioner David Chandler is now involved in a series of meetings to explain the strategy to owner-occupiers who were forced to evacuate the two towers almost five years ago.
“Some might not see it as the best option, but I think it’s now the only option,” he said. “This will mean people can walk away with no debt, although they will lose part of their equity.
“I’ve told them to get their own advice, but the bottom line is, if they can walk away debt-free and they’re under 65, then they’ve got time to get on with their lives and rebuild. They won’t have this hanging over them for the rest of their lives. You can’t rewrite history, but what you can do is start to map your future.”
Chandler is proposing a “sale of individual lots” after the
NSW Supreme Court in November ruled against a bid by residents to wind up their strata scheme – so a liquidator could conduct a collective sale of the two towers – and is negotiating with the strata loan provider Lannock Strata Finance and the big four banks who are supplying most of the mortgages.
The new plan hinges on more than 75 per cent of owners, as calculated by their unit entitlements, voting next month to sell their apartments to a third-party syndicate – an entity that includes Lannock – which will likely pay to remediate the 11-year-old building and then resell the 131 units.
Each owner would be entitled to a percentage of the yet-to-be-determined sale price, minus the repayment of the building’s strata debt – with owners having already taken out a $15.3 million strata loan to pay for some remediation work and legal costs.
The banks have also agreed to discount the amount owed on outstanding owner-occupier loans, with the government agreeing to top up the balance.
Investors would not receive the same assistance under the proposal.
The plan will mean those with big mortgages will end up debt-free, while those with smaller mortgages will have their loans paid off and be means-tested to see what further funds they should receive. Those over the age of 65 or who have a particular hardship will also be means-tested to see if they are entitled to an additional payment.
If the proposal passes, those who vote against it will be entitled to stay but will have to continue paying their mortgages and strata debts while negotiating with the new owners. All ongoing rental support for the displaced owners will cease in June.