Adriane and Gillian Creamer have finally moved into their renovated house, in Tasmania's Huon Valley, three and a half years after works began.
But what was expected to be a $400,000 renovation has cost an extra $180,000 in repairs, and more than $100,000 in legal fees to take their builder to court.
"Currently in Tasmania, it appears you have more protection buying a toaster from Kmart with Australian law, than you do spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on the biggest thing you'll ever buy in your life — a house," Adriane Creamer said.
"This whole house has been clad twice now, with brand new materials both times, and the deck has been redone twice now.
"The amount of material that's been thrown away from this is just a disgusting waste."
On advice from their property lawyer, the Creamers terminated their building contract, paid other tradesmen to repair the 30 defects in their home and resorted to legal action, because they believed going through the regulator — the Consumer, Building and Occupation Services (CBOS) — would take too long.
CBOS can force builders to fix defects, but the Creamers did not trust their original builder to fix the defects.
They are hoping new legislation will mean no other Tasmanians have to go through what they have been through to get into their new home.
More protections for consumers set to pass Lower House
Tasmania's Lower House began debating a bill to improve protections for home builders on Tuesday.
The bill will give the newly established Tasmanian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (TasCAT) the power to resolve residential building disputes and create new "defective work orders" so defects can be rectified after building works are complete.
The new legislation also introduces two new mandatory inspection stages in a bid to reduce the rate of defective work across the state.
It will also consolidate the responsibilities of local councils under the Building Act 2016 to increase their accountability.
TasCAT will only be able to hear disputes relating to issues that have occurred since July 2021, after a proposed amendment from the opposition to back-date that to January 2017 failed.
Attorney-General Elise Archer told parliament the bill would bring Tasmania into line with other jurisdictions.
"And [it] will be an important step in providing a more timely and cost-effective dispute resolution pathway for Tasmanian property owners and building contractors alike.
"The importance of consumer protections within our building regulatory framework cannot be understated, as building a home is likely to be the most significant investment that many Tasmanians may make."
Opposition spokeswoman Jen Butler, who has been campaigning for changes to consumer protections, told parliament that Labor would support the bill.
"We do not consider that this bill goes far enough but we consider this bill as a really positive start."
Adriane Creamer said he also believed the Bill was a step in the right direction.,
"If we can get some kind of genuine consumer protection, that would be really nice."
The state government has also released a draft bill that would re-introduce a home warranty insurance scheme for Tasmania.
The scheme would cover home owners for loss incurred due to incomplete or defective building work in the event that a builder has died, disappeared or become insolvent.
Consultation on that draft bill closes on 31 March.
