NSW Lawyer Withholding Documents

Charlie Long said:

G'day!

My wife and I decided to buy land, then we got our home built based on the design of a display home of our choosing. When construction completed, we found out a certain area of the house was different. The floor was timber(our actual house) instead of tiles(display home).

We immediately voiced out our concern to the home design/building company(this was when construction already finished), and it was only then we realised our land, along with 3 others on the same street, are directly above a sewage line, so certain parts of the house do not allow a concrete/tile floor for safety reasons. I did a bit of research and the "zone of influence" explanation that they provided us with checked out.

However, what I do not feel comfortable with is that they failed to mention this before we bought the house. When we paid our deposit, we were given a floor plan that indicated tiles for that area. The display home design we picked was obviously tile as well. As mentioned, the floor of a certain area was changed to timber instead of tiles without our consent. Although I feel uncomfortable about the home-design/building company failing to mention anything from the very start, but we found out they did have a revised construction plan of the house on the day contract was exchanged. The plan clearly states the area would be timber.

This is where it gets a little tricky:

• The lawyer that represented us had me signed a few pages. He did not give us a copy of what I signed. So, from what I can recall, it was pretty much saying we now have ownership over the property at our address.
• The lawyer did not show us anything else they ever received from the housing company. This includes the final revised construction plan. (I only found out about that because we voiced out our concern about the floor being timber directly to the housing company.
• When the lawyer exchanged contract, he must have agreed to or given consent for any changes that were indicated on the revised construction plan without consulting us.

My question is whether this lawyer provided a service that was worth almost $1000. And whether he can be held accountable for negligence. Because if he passed on all necessary documents to me, or consulted me about anything that has been revised, I would have been made aware of the situation earlier on, therefore:

1. I could have chosen another land on the same street(same price) that did not have a sewage line under it.
2. Even if we stuck with the same land, I could have had a say in alternative options, say synthetic timber or plastic instead of what they decided for us.
3. I would have negotiated differently regarding the final amount we had to pay because we believe tiles cost more than timber. (I am not even sure if the sewage line affects house value.)

I know this issue might seem a little trivial, but it is more about a matter of principle and work ethics. Thank you to anyone who takes the time to read this, and any advice would be highly appreciated.

cheers,


Charlie

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