Leaky house costs owner's life

One leaky home owner has committed suicide, and dozens of others are on suicide watch. Photo / Martin Sykes

The distraught owner of a leaky home has taken his own life - one of three self-inflicted deaths attributed to the crisis - and dozens of others are on suicide watch.

The Auckland businessman hit the wall after his leaky home woes affected his efforts to support his business.

He was trying to borrow money against his home but the lender rejected his application when the it found out his home was leaky.

Leaky home campaigner John Gray said investigations had shown the cost of repair would have been around $750,000 - almost the cost of a rebuild. "He couldn't afford to repair it, and so he wasn't able to borrow money. It all became too much.

"It highlights how much of a reliance we have on our homes as an investment. Most New Zealanders consider that as their bedrock for investment."

Gray said the man was one of three who had taken their own lives as a direct result of having a leaky home. He knew many more who were suffering from severe depression.

"They're backed into that corner of absolute hopelessness," said Gray, president of the Home Owners and Buyers Association New Zealand.

"I've seen several people have real breakdowns purely and simply as a consequence of having a leaky home and battling for years to get through the process."

In 2007, Gray told the Herald on Sunday he knew of at least 10 leaky home victims on suicide watch. Two years on that figure has risen sharply. "It's the insidious and quite hidden cost of this problem that is of great concern to us," he said.

"Dozens of people are suffering really badly. They need a lot of support to get through this sorry mess because they've got the financial worries and the loss of security. For some people there's no hope."

Gray said local authorities and lawyers who charged huge fees shouldered much of the blame.

"The result is they don't have enough money to fix their homes and they're just dying a slow and miserable death in their rotten, defective homes."

Many were once successful businesspeople who were struggling to cope with the stigma of mental illness. "We've got high-profile people in executive jobs who won't get help because of the stigma of depression - they fear how that will impact on their future and their career," said Gray.

He knew of one "very well-known businessman" who had been hit particularly hard. "He's saying 'I'm tough, but this has just brought me to my knees'."

Gray wants the Government to put more effort into helping homeowners fix their properties and offer help to people who aren't eligible to go to the tribunal or can't afford litigation.

Leaky home owners' advocate Bill Duval said there was a huge social cost in broken marriages, stress, and continuing health problems related to damp and mould.

He had previously estimated 100,000 homes could be affected but now felt the numbers could be higher.

A report into the extent of the problem, commissioned by the Government, is expected to show far more homes are affected than previously thought.

The rising cost of the crisis would force councils to be "ultra conservative" with building consents, Auckland City Council finance committee chairman Doug Armstrong warned. He said unless the Government shouldered more responsibility, the cost of building a house would rise.

"If we're expected to guarantee the building we would have to put someone on the job fulltime to make sure every little detail was right, and building consent costs would be $50,000."

The Government has called for a full report on the Weathertight Homes Resolution Service, and commissioned a review by Pricewaterhouse Coopers into the extent of the crisis. Building and Construction Minister Maurice Williamson wouldn't comment before the review was complete.