How to sell and buy a flood-affected property

Another friend of Nurse Betty’s later enquired as a mystery shopper about flooding with the principal of the real estate agency. The agency, part of a national real estate group, kept no flood maps. It did not ask sellers about past floods but said it would give prospective buyers whatever local flood knowledge the principal had - if they asked.

Nurse Betty bought the house anyway, although I advised her to cancel for misrepresentation and claim her expenses - or else keep a dinghy on the front verandah.

She loved her new home and trusted that when my complaints on her behalf were properly investigated, the Office of Fair Trading might give more than a tetanus shot to one dishonest, incompetent and unprofessional real estate agency. No one held their breath on that issue.

In the meantime, would you believe, Nurse Betty sold her Oxley home (with full flood disclosure to her buyers, mind), but then - wait for it - happily (and fully informed) bought another in nearby Graceville. Her new home had, need I say, been fully submerged in 1974! 

Nurse Betty, her daughter and baby grand-daughter have been staying in my home. Friends and family helped them evacuate and move the furniture shortly before the latest flood waters rose almost to the ceiling of her Graceville home. We, the same friends and family, are now sharing in storing her furniture and helping with her distressing post-flood clean-up.

With the clean-up almost finished, Nurse Betty must now face the almost overwhelming challenges involved in making her home habitable again.