Metricon Going Bust: Should They Be Bailed out?

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-05-19/metricon-denies-insol…

Looks like the Victorian Government is meeting with Metricon to 'sort out' the situation in which it is on the verge of bankruptcy and could leave a 'large' number of properties not completed.

Simple question should we just let them go bust or should the tax payers prop them?

Also anyone caught up in the terrible situation happening at Metricon atm

My 2 cents: Let them go bust help the 'individual' and families who might of lost there deposit etc instead of the builder that was happy to ride the gravy train for this long. Ill not meticon has been sued in the past for 'dodgy slabs' in a development in the Sydenham Taylors Hill Suburbs of Victoria - so them going bust doesnt surprise.

Poll Options

  • 11
    Tax payers should bail them out
  • 701
    We should let them go bust
  • 19
    Government will prop them up but id rather they went bust

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Comments

  • Does the Govt feel guilty for driving the increase in fixed price house builds (with home grants) and also the significant cost inflation (with QE)

    Feels like it screwed up with all its interventions in the market

    • No it's the LNP they don't care.

  • +1

    An example of quote, “In 2020-21, the top 100 builders accounted for 80 per cent of the detached homes built in, with revenue earned from home construction amounting $31.7 billion”.

    This doesn’t cover the whole of construction sector and building type. If you multiple the annual average for the last ten years or so, it’s huge amount of billions or even half billions in revenue. Net profit may be less. But then who pocketed the income?!

    When times were good, construction companies didn’t give back much, when times are bad they should just suck up and pour out the fund. Rather than asking for government or declare insolvency/bankrupt.

    Ethic of business please.

  • The people and Metricon should ask government to pass the law where all those companies not allowed to have multiple ABN just for the purpose of by passing and channel the fund elsewhere. Construction cheaters.

    • -1

      Yes, because every big corporate out there does the right thing and pays full taxes, only has 1 legitimate company etc.

      Wake up.

  • -3

    Metricon should get a bailout now that their frens are in power.

  • I feel sorry for its employees who have unused leave entitlements. Probably cash out AL and start taking LSL if eligible?

    • -1

      Are worker entitlements not protected by law?

      • LoL do you even need to ask that question. Just google the answer.

  • The market valuation was very strong during COVID, a higher inflation was known since mid 2021. These folks play the game and know they are big cats that can't go busted.

    It is too much coincidence for the liberal money for FHB policy be annoucned and this happenning. As with job keeper, the taxpayers will pay the bill, bailing out or not. The lack of protection for this kind of stuff is on purpose - the big cats feed the politicians.

    I'm now curious to see what labour will dig and hide in the first 6mo of government.

  • Kind of feel for builders right now, not just the volume builders.

    The rising costs of materials is having multiple flow on effects, not just for the end builder, but trades all along the pipeline.

    I understand it's how these volume builders can build on smaller margins, but by taking orders so far in advance, with the rising costs of manufacturing its just asking for trouble.

    Builders are stuck with options to cop it, try and get the client to pay more, or just buy their way back out of contracts.

    • -1

      Builders like any other industry have to adapt or die.

      They've to cut their fat or find another job.

      • +4

        i got Zero sympathy for Builders it is an least of all Metricon they poured a bunch of dud slabs 2 decades ago and screwed a lot of young families.

  • Bailouts should be buyouts. If the government is putting money in then they would be getting equity. The US actually made money bailing out some of the US banks.

    • You are describing the Labour home equity scheme to help first home buyers.

      • I meant it more about bailing out businesses rather than bailing out individuals. If the government has to prop up business to stop it going bankrupt then they should get an equivalent equity stake in the company. Corporate charity has to stop.

        • If you are a director of a company that is trading insolvent you get banned from being directors. Never trust dodgy builders to be directors with you. The government would be disqualified until the sun dies.

  • This is a perfect storm between a pandemic, resource max outs, import delays, labour shortages, massive cost increases, government incentives, capitalist culture, and yes questionable corporate governance. In any case when the governement is pouring more fuel onto the fire they do have something to answer for. Aussie government cranking up first home owner grants and renovation grants just put more pressure on the industry and material plus staff shortages.

    We are at a point in time where globalisation and global capitalism is starting to eat itself.
    Every country is trying to pull the same levers to boost their economies at a time where the resources arent available for all countries to thrive in all sectors.

    It amazes me that in 2022 we dont have better analytics in government to aid better decision making so that we spend money in an area that actually has the resources to make good without falling to peices. Right now there are some critical commoditised construction materials that have an 8-9 month lead time.

    I recently built with an individual builder and when the pandemic hit we worked with him and went outside the contract to help him out during unprecedented times. It is the worst thing for everyone involved for their builder to go broke, I hope that everyone can come to a reasonable outcome.

    I'm feeling for the many small subbies that Metricon engages and property owners out there…

  • Well the original stuff that seemed to go down did seem like a good hit piece, wonder who paid for it?

    Seems there are various other suppliers who are happy to say they've not got issues with metricon, all of their bills are paid and that this hype for nothing could become their undoing by scaring away customers and creating mistrust because of a series of lies that the media was willing to publish.
    https://www.news.com.au/finance/business/other-industries/hu…

    Good that this article was tucked away and not an obvious find, unlike the days of top of the page click bait that was unsubstantiated which ran on most "news" outlets.

    • Well there was another piece on the age today.

      To be honest, a lot of the examples lack details especially with new estates.

      I'd actually like to hear from anyone who is actually building with metricon now. Would imagine they have thousands of sites, hearing from 1-2 hand picked people from a newspaper isn't very accurate.

  • +2

    How's everyone feeling now that metricon will likely be bailed out in NSW? I'm fkn furious, massive ongoing moral hazard and likely big bonuses for building bosses straight from tax payer $$$

    • -2

      Mostly Victorian Government lead by the most incompetent premier in history Dan Andrews but OZ-ALP love the criminal

  • Does bailing out actually work? Unless a company has a serious restructure it will usually still go bust further down the track. Also note the owners will have significant assets build over time completely separate from the metricon brand so if it goes bust they are protected. Would the owners step up and use their assets to help the business stay afloat and look after the workers and new home owners?

    • -1

      Holden and Ford got millions of free taxpayers 💵 for years.

      The CEO took the 💵 and closed up shop when the money dried up.

  • +1

    More and more policies pumping money into the housing market. Prices going insane. Buyers going insane. Homebuilder adding to the demand, further driving up building costs. We're still giving billions of dollars of tax cuts to capital gains and handing out free money to investors via negative gearing.

    Next we'll bail out builders and people who borrowed beyond their means.

    Let's keep going and pump the entirety of tax payers' money into the housing market.

    Properties will start at $2 mil.

    Yay.

    • I work in an industry that is called a Ponzi by 99% of the population.

      The real Ponzi are industries that get tax breaks, gov subsidies, favourable gov policies like home grants, and taxpayer bailouts when it crashes.

      Too big to fail for the rich while destroying the poor.

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