A reputable building company from the United States that creates ‘hobbit’ homes of the future is furious and fighting to repair its reputation in Australia after a builder allegedly went rogue and defrauded heartbroken bushfire victims out of their life savings.
Eco builder Green Magic Homes started in the US but has since expanded to 29 countries, building sustainable homes.
The environmentally-friendly properties, that look like something straight out of Lord of the Rings, have been built all over the world including in the US, Norway and India.
The tiny eco-friendly houses are designed to exist under layer of grass and soil. Built from a collection of prefabricated shells made from fibre-reinforced polymer, the quaint homes are entirely waterproof and designed to withstand strong winds and fire.
The company was hoping for success in Australia but ever since June 20, when Fair Trading NSW announced it was ending Green Magic Homes’ licence in Australia, the company has been fighting to get it back.
One client spoke to Daily Mail Australia about her shocking treatment and the moment she was approached by an Aussie builder named Glenn Stevenson.
Mr Stevenson, the alleged victim claims, promised an eco-friendly ‘hobbit’ home that would be built into the earth to keep it cool, with builders eventually laying moss across the roof to also regulate temperature.
The clients, most of whom were grieving the loss of their possessions after the devastating bushfire season in early 2021, were also promised the homes would be completely fire-proof.
Australians who lost their homes to bushfires claim they’ve also lost money to a man running a company that makes eco-friendly hobbit-style homes
The homes have been built in nearly 30 countries around the world but have never been finished in Australia
Sarah*, from southern NSW, said the wreckage of her home was still smouldering when she was approached by Mr Stevenson, who promised to rebuild everything from the ashes.
Sarah said she paid Green Magic Homes Australia $535,000 – everything she had left – to build two hobbit-style homes on her property.
Instead of the two homes, Sarah has been left with ‘two holes in the ground’ and nowhere to live.
After failing to see any progress and getting ‘suspicious’, Sarah eventually asked for her money back.
In documents seen by Daily Mail Australia, Sarah was paid back $130,000 of her money – but said she was left fearing the rest of the cash would not be returned.
As of July 22, Sarah is still waiting for the remaining $405,000 to be returned.
‘All his stories kept changing about where my shells (for the homes) are, that’s when I realised I was just being d**ked about,’ she said.
‘All I’ve got is two big holes in the ground.
‘The ashes (from the fires) were still hot when Glenn came down here.
‘He stood with me in the ashes, gave me a handkerchief to wipe my tears away and told me not to worry and that all I have to do is turn the key in the lock… everything that comes out of his mouth is a lie.’
One NSW resident said she paid more than $500,000 for two homes but was left with a pile of dirt instead (pictured, her building site)
Glenn Stevenson (pictured) was using the American company’s name but Green Magic Homes claims he was ‘never contracted directly’ to do it
Sarah hopes that will have all of her money returned after the parent company became involved and started to contact alleged victims.
Speaking to Daily Mail Australia, Green Magic Homes spokesperson Alexander Grieg said the company was still speaking with the NSW Fair Trading Commissioner and chief investigator to get its licence back and was ‘working closely with those impacted’.
‘Although Green Magic Homes in the United States is not responsible for Glenn Stevenson’s activities and behaviour, our company has been devastated to learn about the Australians impacted by his actions and want to help those individuals move forward with their lives,’ Mr Grieg said.
‘Green Magic Homes is a reputable company run by idealists focused on improving people’s lives through our innovative products. We work to serve and find injustice reprehensible so we are going to fix this situation.
‘We are working with an Australian company who are going to rectify any wrong doings that have been made. In short we plan to complete the build for the couple in Verona and we plan to provide a full refund to the other people affected.’
The tiny eco-friendly houses are designed to exist under layer of grass and soil and protect against the elements
Green Magic Homes maintains it never agreed Mr Stevenson could use its name – or patented green modular construction system.
‘Rather, he became involved with the global brand as a sub-distributor for regional distributors Green Magic Homes Australasia, led by established New Zealand eco-architect Alex Grieg,’ the company said.
Mr Stevenson denies all the allegations levelled against him and told Daily Mail Australia he was working to pay Sarah the rest of her money.
He claimed the Australian arm of Green Magic Homes had to stop work on Sarah’s two homes because she didn’t want to go through council.
‘I told her unless you go through the council you can’t receive the home owners warranty insurance,’ he said.
‘We said “it’s too hard, we’re given you back your money”.’
Sarah said Glenn Stevenson arrived on her property while the ashes were ‘still hot’, promising to rebuild her a home
Pictured is a burnt car that was left behind on Sarah’s property from the fires in southern NSW
Another couple who lost their home to the fires in Cobargo, in southern NSW, also allege they lost money to GMHA and have been left with a house that’s just 40 per cent complete.
Mr Stevenson said the delay of the Cobargo couple’s home was due to Covid and weather factors but admitted it was being made ‘a lot slower than we would have liked’.
Mr Stevenson described the controversy surrounding his business as a ‘storm in a teacup’.
Construction stopped completely after the licence cancellation, with the couple now forced to live in a demountable.
However Green Magic Homes in the US is already working to get another licenced builder to finish the project.
‘They are correct in being disappointed that we didn’t build the house quickly but there were things at hand,’ Mr Stevenson said, pointing the finger at Covid lockdowns.
The contractor licence for Green Magic Homes Australia was cancelled by NSW Fair Trading this month with the organisation warning Aussies against dealing with the company
Mr Stevenson said there was only six weeks’ worth of work left on the home which now wasn’t possible because of the licence being cancelled.
‘The team in the US are committed to social causes and one of their biggest concerns is that people in NSW do not realise we are there to help,’ Green Magic Homes spokesperson Carlos Taminez said.
‘We will work with licensed builders in Australia, teach them how to build the product and even provide homes at cost.
‘Our concern about the victims of the situation is even more acute due to our personal and institutional passion for and dedication to ecological and social-impact projects.’
The woman from southern NSW lost everything to the horror bushfire season in 2020 and 2021
NSW Fair Trading issued a stark warning to Australians considering contracting a home with Green Magic Homes Australia last month.
At the time, Fair Trading Minister Eleni Petinos said consumers had paid large amounts to GMHA ‘with their builds yet to be completed’.
‘Green Magic Homes was found to have contracted to undertake work without appropriate insurance,’ she said.
‘At this point in the investigation, it appears that funds from customers may have been used for personal expenses including travel, groceries, restaurants, liquor stores, gambling, and accommodation.
‘The director of the company at the time it was licensed failed to disclose prior convictions for fraud-related offences when applying for a contractor licence in 2021.’
When Daily Mail Australia questioned Mr Stevenson about not disclosing his fraud convictions, he said he pleaded guilty to fraud after signing documents six years ago he says didn’t know were dodgy.
Mr Stevenson said he was given community service to complete and didn’t think that meant he had to declare previous convictions because he didn’t serve jail time.
‘I didn’t make any money out of it, as I understand it I have no criminal convictions,’ he said.
He also denied he’d been using customer’s funds for personal expenses.
Mr Stevenson said he wasn’t earning a wage when the business started to get off the ground, and would use the company card for things such as groceries.
‘I wasn’t getting paid a wage, it wasn’t like I was being paid and I was using the company account on personal expenses,’ he said.
Sarah’s home was destroyed in the fires before she was approached by Glenn Stevenson
According to the Green Magic Homes website there has been 18 homes built around the world and 239 under planning and permitting.
In a list of completed projects, projects under construction and upcoming, there are none in Australia.
The Green Magic Homes Australia Facebook page has been removed while the Australia-specific website only offers an email about inquiries into builders training.
A recent employee shared on Facebook he had quit and was ‘disgusted’ with the company.
‘Not only disgusted but also gutted for all the other people that have been effected by this,’ they wrote.
Another website also shows the plans for a development of Green Magic Home builds in Lismore dubbed Platypus Park.
Ninety homes had been slated for the block of land but nothing has been done and the number listed to the site rings out.
*Sarah is not her real name.
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