A man’s six-year war against a social housing monstrosity next door has left him “shocked” and forced to sell his own home.
Ben Slater, from Geelong in Victoria, says he had to sell his home in St Albans Park due to the poor condition of the neighboring house owned by Aboriginal Housing Victoria (AHV).
Slater lived in the same house for more than a decade, but says he can no longer stand dealing with AHV after years of repair requests and complaints.
Their complaints include that the neighboring property’s gutter is overflowing and pouring into their property, garbage continues to accumulate, weeds have taken over the garden, and finally, there was a rat problem.
Slater said AHV and several other Victorian housing authorities have everyone ‘wiped their hands’ of their multiple complaints.
Ben Slater was left in shock and forced to sell his Geelong home after the Aboriginal Housing Victoria property next door continued to deteriorate.
The whole situation has been a “nightmare”, according to Mr Slater.
“Having to deal with a rotten façade and having the most basic requests for support and maintenance ignored has been an absolute nightmare,” he said. he told the Geelong Advertiser.
‘They have completely ignored me, it has affected my quality of life. Trying to get someone to listen or acknowledge that there is a problem here has been impactful.”
Mr Slater believes he is not alone in complaining about social housing and that there are major problems with his maintenance and management.
Another nearby AHV property on Dulcify Street is also believed to have been the source of many complaints.
AHV provides accommodation to more than 1,700 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people across Victoria.
A spokesperson told the publication that the agency has never breached its duties as a housing provider.
The spokesperson added that officers responded to many calls.particularly in the last two years, from neighbors about unmaintained properties.
The agency claimed to have provided Mr Slater’s neighbour’with permanent link’ to remove trash and clean the yard from August 2023.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Aboriginal Housing Victoria for comment.
Slater said the house’s gutters are overflowing and trash continues to pile up, but he says his years-long complaints have gone unheard.
