This ARC Linkage project addresses the serious and growing problem of building defects in the trillion dollar multi-unit housing sector, which now provides almost half of new Australian housing. The research investigates three critical questions:

• How prevalent are building defects?
• Why do they occur?
• How can multi-unit housing quality be improved?

The findings are intended to inform changes to planning and development policy and regulation, leading to improved building quality and safety, lower costs and stress for owners, more resilient urban communities, and better urban planning outcomes.

Final report

Click here to download the project final report:

This pamphlet sets out the key report findings and recommendations of for strata buyers and owners.  

To watch a short video of Dr Laura Crommelin discussing the report findings with project partners Chris Duggan (SCA NSW) and Karen Stiles (OCN), click on the video below:

Public submissions 

In July 2019, we made two public submissions discussing our research on building defects, which are available below:

• CFRC submission to the NSW Parliamentary Inquiry into the regulation of building standards, quality and disputes; and
• CFRC response to the NSW Fair Trading discussion paper on Building Stronger Foundations. 

Defects how-to guide for owners and buyers

For our step by step guide to identifying, documenting, reporting and rectifying defects, click here. You can also watch a brief webinar on how the how-to guide works and what it's designed to achieve by clicking here.