Dream family home turns to nightmare

Kitchen sink drama: The bankrupt former owner wanted to be paid to leave in the chattels. Photo / Supplied

A North Shore couple are horrified about the wrecking of their $800,000 house, which they bought via a mortgagee sale.

Jay and Moira Taylor-Innes bought the family home of bankrupt Merlot Homes director Stuart Herron.

When they saw the Rutland Rd, Devonport, property before the auction, it was in pristine condition and the couple with three young children bid successfully, securing it for $400,000 less than the $1.2 million the owner had wanted.

But when they shifted in, they found extensive damage, which Mrs Taylor-Innes yesterday likened to the home being booby-trapped.

Electrical wiring was torn out of wall cavities and left exposed.

Internal plumbing fixtures were disconnected so waste from an upstairs bath fed into the ceiling cavity.

An entire upstairs deck was ripped off. Wooden planks and the substructure underneath had been taken down.

Doors were torn down, door-frame architraves had been yanked off the walls and palms were attacked with what Mr Taylor-Innes said appeared to be either a large knife or a machete.

The oven, dishwasher and hob had gone, light fittings were missing, kitchen cabinet doors were removed, marks were carved into a floor, carpet was taken up and tiles were smashed.

Waste connections in the laundry and elsewhere had been unscrewed.

The couple made inquiries to the police about laying a complaint but were told it was a civil matter, not a case of criminal damage.

Mr Taylor-Innes said he was talking to his insurers. The couple said they expected some curtains to have been removed, but they never expected what they believe is malicious damage.

Mrs Taylor-Innes said her neighbours had been extremely supportive and she has vowed to have the house put to rights.

Harcourts agent Jackie Mark said she sold the home and was disappointed about what had happened. But people should take care when buying mortgagee-sale properties, she warned.

Ms Mark advised people to carefully read contracts when they were buying houses being sold in a forced-sale situation.

She forwarded an email to the couple from Stuart Herron in which he offered to sell chattels from the house that he said were owned by a company.

For $15,000, he offered a $30,000 package including an oven, dishwasher, kitchen door, wardrobe door, light fittings, decking, blinds and remote controls for a garage door.

Mr Herron could not be reached for comment about the damage.