Anyone build with icon homes

I can only share our recent experience with Icon Homes. At sales stage, they highlighted the internal inclusions in their homes and offered to create a customisable layout for our ‘dream home.’ At tender/contract stage, we were presented with house plans we liked. We had assumed that they did all their due diligence when these plans were presented to us (as written on the final tender). So we spent the next 3 months fine tuning the architectural details and internals of the house. Just before approval stage, they realised that they did not reflect the correct side and back easements on the house plans. For the past 3 months, we were working on plans that reflected the wrong orientation. On top of that, the house plans had the slab built on top of a sewer. Our options: Pay $20,000 for a sewer encasement or make the house significantly smaller (and pay $2,000). The reason for this error? They did not get a contour survey which is step 1 for all other builders. Now we know that all other builders would have reflected those easements at tender stage, but it took Icon Homes 3 months to figure this out. They proposed solutions to sweep their error under the rug. However, their solutions significantly changed the house size, layout and individual room dimensions. We then decided to terminate the contract, because the house was not what we signed for anymore and we simply lost confidence in them. Although we know they hadn’t spent all of our 5% deposit, Icon Homes took a hard stance that none of it was refundable ‘as per contract.’ We couldn’t believe how unreasonable and unjust they were. We lost our 5% deposit and 3 months of our time, but take comfort in the fact that Icon Homes is NOT building our house. Imagine what other errors they could do at building stage when they couldn’t even get the slab on house plans right.

Thanks for your reply. You’re right - The reason we’re putting our experience out there is for others to be aware. Icon Homes boasted to build many houses in the estate, so they supposedly knew all the easements/restrictions.

Also, the final tender stated: “[This tender] is based upon our recent site inspection, known council and statutory requirements and the disclosure of all related information about your land including restrictions and/or covenants.” As this was part of the contract, we trusted that they did all of the above. Apparently not, because in our case, they only figured out their error 3 months later.

Don't know if I could accept just walking away without fighting for a refund. You have a good case. Think about going to your State's consumer authority (they have building dispute services). You might also consider going to your State's Tribunal for relief. Their hopeless incompetence needs to be addressed.