He claimed that the cracks appeared in January last year. "I bought the house in March 2003 and moved in in July. After that I did some renovation with approval from the Shah Alam City Council," said Especkerman.

He lodged his first complaint about the cracks to the developer, Malton Bukit Rimau Development Sdn Bhd, in February last year.

He also complained that the ground around his house was sinking. "The developer did some grouting works at 11 spots," he said.

However, the cracks got worse. On Sept 26, 2004, Especkerman sent a letter to the developer saying that he wanted a refund for the house.

The developer sent a reply only after he had hired a lawyer to act against the company. Especkerman's lawyer sent a letter seeking a refund but the developer said that the defect liability period had expired.

"The developer promised to send a specialist contractor to monitor the sinking ground for six months but until today, nobody turned up," he said.

Especkerman said: "I hired my own consultant and he told me that the ground had sunk by two-and-a-half inches and the original structure of the house is weak."

"I want a refund for the house and for the money I spent on the renovation. I'm not interested in the house anymore," he said.

Especkerman said his neighbours are also facing the same problem. Engineer Choo Kong Eng, 37, said that the developer inspected the kitchen area of his house and did some grouting work but the cracks got worse and had spread to the bathroom.

"I complained about the defects to the developer. They sent me the same reply letter as Especkerman's. Until today, nobody has come to rectify the cracks," he said.

When contacted, Malton Bukit Rimau director of property development, Daniel Lim said: "Although the defect liability has ended, we tried to help him with the second rectification but he refused."

Lim also said that they can only help Especkerman to rectify the defects but would not refund him the money.