(Heath Parkes-Hupton’s article from The NEWS.COM.AU on 25 August 2026.)
Home builder Bathla Group collapses into voluntary administration: The major developer has announced it has been placed into voluntary administration as it creaked under $3b in debt. The major western Sydney-based home builder has collapsed into voluntary administration as it strained under more than $3 billion in debts.
Bathla
Group’s managing director Bhart Bhushan announced on Tuesday he had placed the
firm into voluntary administration, per a statement on its website. “Our first
thoughts are with our employees and the customers who have put their faith in
us to deliver their dream of home ownership,” he said.
“It is my sincere hope this process can allow that to happen by working collaboratively with the administrators, our suppliers, contractors and lending partners.” Bathla currently has about 15,000 properties under construction across Sydney’s west but had racked up more than $3 billion in debt, largely to private creditors.
Teneo
has been appointed administrators to Bathla entities including Universal
Property and Raj & Jai Construction. The Australian Financial Review
reported Universal Property had debts of nearly $3.2 billion, while Raj and Jai
had $304 million in liabilities as of June 30, 2025.
“Our
priority is to stabilise the business so that construction activity and
property settlements can continue in the ordinary course,” Teneo head of
financial advisory Stephen Longley said. “Our objective is to ensure project
continuity wherever practicable, and work with lenders to minimise disruption
for employees, customers and contractors.”
Teneo’s
statement said it had commenced “urgent discussions” with Bathla’s lenders to
maintain construction activity and support the business’ ongoing operations.
Bathla, founded by former taxi driver Mr Bhushan, has built budget-friendly properties in estates and apartment blocks around Sydney’s fringe in suburbs like Schofields, Marsden Park and Tallawong.
It
recently shared updates on construction of its unit development at Butu Wargun
Dr, in Pemulwuy, and another 339-apartment project at Rouse Hill. Bathla had in
July plugged new plans for a massive housing estate located in Muswellbrook, in
the Hunter Valley, called Alpine. The company was also a major sponsor of
A-League club the Western Sydney Wanderers.
Mr
Bhushan said the Group had confronted a perfect storm of circumstances that had
contributed to the group’s circumstances. He cited a significant softening in
sales, impacts from the changes made in the federal government’s May budget and
falling confidence in key markets.
This
coincided with significant increases in construction costs which have been
absorbed by the group, he said. These changes in market conditions have had
flow-on effects to lending markets, putting further pressure on the business.
Mr
Bhushan said the appointment of administrators provided the clearest pathway to
placing the Bathla Group on a sustainable footing and supporting the completion
of projects under construction.
Bathla
chief executive Robert Loader said in a statement the business had “been
through a period of declining sales and falling property prices, while
construction costs have increased”. “We will work constructively with the
administrators to support the continued delivery of much needed housing for
Western Sydney,” he said.
News of the company’s collapse comes just days after a report in the Sydney Morning Herald owners who bought off the plan for Bathla’s Kembla Range project near Wollongong being left stranded by extended completion dates. The project was meant to be finished in late 2025 but was now due for November, according to a spokesperson.
One
owner told the Herald she contacted her real estate agent after news of the
Bathla collapse, who assured her the project would continue. There has been
media reports on Bathla’s precarious financial position for several months.
In
January the firm hit out over “several inaccuracies” contained in media
articles regarding the business and its lending relationships. It said a
decision to refinance its loan portfolio was made for “sound commercial
reasons” and that it “continues to attract interest from a broad range of
financiers, reflecting confidence in our track record, land holdings, and
development pipeline”.
