Q1 Homes assets hole revealed

CREDITORS of collapsed Gold Coast builder Queensland One Homes are still owed more than $5.8 million, but will only recoup $2.07 million from the company’s assets – and that’s the best-case scenario, according to the latest report from the company’s liquidator.

Queensland One Homes, also known as Q1 Homes, collapsed in 2017 owing more than $5.8 million to more than 130 tradies and taxpayers and leaving families with incomplete homes.

Victims found out in July they would finally have their day in court, with the five-day public examination to be held in the Federal Court at Brisbane from September 30.

Liquidator Michael Caspaney has issued 10 summonses for examination in the case, which left scores of tradies and home buyers millions of dollars out of pocket.

Among those expected to take the stand is bankrupt and unlicensed builder Paul Callender, 36, the sole director of Q1, and his cosmetic surgery nurse wife Amber Callender, 38, director of related unlicensed company Empire Constructions, which took on Q1 Homes contracts after the collapse in 2017.

In the company’s annual administration return, Mr Caspaney said $5.75 million was still outstanding to unsecured creditors, with $39,420 owed to former staff and $21,613 to priority creditors.

The liquidator has managed to recoup $280,000 in tax payments made when the company was believed to be insolvent, as well as $60,3754 from a GST clearing account and small amounts from electricity account refunds and bank interest.

Funding for the examination, secured in an electioneve funding promise from the State Government, has been paid through the QBCC, which the liquidator revealed had come to $123,522.

Mr Caspaney named “a commercially unrealistic business model” and “a systematic drawing down of the company’s liquid assets in favour of related parties” had caused the insolvency.

The court was told important company records had been water damaged when computers were left in the back of a ute and that phone records were lost by the previous liquidator.

Mr Caspaney’s report states he found emails and other evidence that actions were taken to change contracts and display home signage from Queensland One Homes to Mr Callender’s wife’s company, Empire Constructions, a few weeks before the company collapsed.

The Queensland Building and Construction Commission referred allegations of illegal phoenix activities to corporate regulator ASIC.

Mr Callender then started a brazenly-named new company, Phoenix Rural Fencing with his wife as the director.