Qld building company goes into liquidation

Oracle Building Corporation, which traded as both Oracle Platinum Homes and Oracle Hunter Homes, has called in administrators and entered liquidation.

The company, which immediately ceased business and terminated all staff on Wednesday (24 August), operated a business in the residential home construction industry in both Queensland and NSW.

Its activity was primarily focused in South-East Queensland and the Hunter Valley and Central Coast regions of NSW.

Approximately 300 home owners who hold building contracts – ranging from not yet commenced to nearly completed works – are set to be affected. 

Oracle Platinum Homes director Tom Orel credited several factors contributing to its collapse, including the increasing costs of materials, which have eroded the corporation’s margins and extensive delays in the process of securing supplies and labour. 

He stated that these led to cost overruns and delays in project completions, impacting the cash flow of the company and its ability to continue normal operations despite the best endeavours of Oracle’s operators and staff. 

Robson Cotter Insolvency Group has now been appointed liquidator for the creditors voluntary liquidation.

Though inquiries are in their preliminary stages, it is believed that total creditor claims – both secured and unsecured – are potentially in the vicinity of $14 million. 

A statement from Robson Cotter Insolvency Group read: “The liquidators and their team have commenced a process to secure the Company’s assets and to review the Company’s financial position and communicate with all affected stakeholders. The liquidator’s role is to take control of the business, property, and affairs for the benefit of the creditors.

“We have commenced this process and initial communications to the affected parties will be issued in the coming days”.

Oracle has become the latest building company to collapse in recent months, as rising costs of materials and delays hit bottom lines.

Several large companies have collapsed in the past year, leaving thousands of subcontractors, tradies and soon-to-be home owners falling victim.

Since December 2021, nearly 20 large building firms have wound up – including large companies such as Condev and Probuild. Many more are on the brink of going under, with Metricon having engaged in crisis talks with both the NSW and Victorian governments and moving to sell nearly 50 of its display homes as it seeks to protect cash flow.

Find out more about the construction crisis, and its impact on mortgagors, in the August edition of The Adviser magazine.

[Related: New residential construction continues to decline nationally: ABS]