Project Intervene: Resolving serious defects in residential apartment buildings

We work with a developer and owners corporation to negotiate an agreement.

Apartment block with hanging gardens and plants on the outside

Registrations for Project Intervene are now closed

We’re no longer taking new applications for Project Intervene. For registered customers with an in-progress undertaking, the work will continue.

If you’re an owners corporation with a building that has serious defects, you can lodge a complaint with us. We will investigate the issues and work with you to develop a solution, which may include a developer undertaking or a building work rectification order.

Make a building complaint


Our approach to fixing serious defects

We aim to ensure serious defects to common property get fixed. We use the powers under the Residential Apartment Buildings Act 2020 (‘RAB’ Act) to compel a developer or builder to remediate serious defects.   

These RAB Act powers permit us to issue a developer or builder with a direction or range of orders to fix non-compliant building work.  

Project Intervene works to negotiate an agreement between a developer and an eligible owners corporation to make sure serious defects are remediated in a timely and cost effective way.

The program may be a good option if you have a class 2 residential apartment building with serious defects in the common property. The occupation certificate must have been issued in the last 10 years and the developer or builder must be active or trading still.

Using an Undertaking to fix serious defects

One option available to us under the RAB Act is a Developer Undertaking.  

An undertaking is an agreement offered by the developer to the Secretary of the Department of Customer Service for the benefit of the owners corporation.  

We work with a developer to finalise the list of serious defects and a time limit for when they will be fixed. Once the list is finalised, a Deed Poll is signed by both the developer and the owners corporation. Once signed, a Deed Poll is legally binding on both parties. 

0:40

It's about the fix, not the fight.

Read transcript
Video transcript

It's about the fix, not the fight.

Man appears on screen, dark blue vest, light blue long-sleeve shirt.  

Top left is New South Wales logo in a circle.  

Title of the video is Project Intervene: It’s about the fix, not the fight.  

As man begins to speak, a label appears. It reads: David Chandler, New South Wales Building Commissioner, New South Wales Department of Customer Service 

Hello, It’s, ah, David Chandler here, New South Wales Building Commissioner.  

And I just want to make sure that everybody is aware of Project Intervene.  

This is an important initiative where strata communities are able to refer the serious defects that might exist in their buildings into Fair Trading to make sure that, if we can help, we do us.  

There are many features of this program but most importantly, it’s about the fix, not the fight.  

We have a great team able to assist in this project with consumers and I urge you to at least consider it as you go forward.  

White screen appears and New South Wales logo.  

Progress update

Matters accepted into Project Intervene.

227

Building inspection findings issued.

200

Draft Building Work Rectification Orders issued.

126

Number of developer Deed Polls signed.

75

Number of apartments impacted.

22,307

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