From the outside, it looked like things were going swimmingly.
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It was June this year and Samy Saad's Shiloh Properties had just received approval that buyers who put down a deposit for apartments in a luxury complex in Shellharbour could move in.
But what the buyers, who together were about to send more than $20 million Mr Saad's way, didn't know was that Daascon, the building arm of his web of companies, was about to collapse.
Daascon's downfall has now raised questions about whether the company had been trading while insolvent since late last year, and why Mr Saad paid himself and his son $1.2 million just a month before the administrators were called in.
And as Mr Saad attempts to restructure his company while paying creditors just 11c in the dollar, those with a stake will wonder how he bought a $20 million development site on the Gold Coast while his firms were starting to show signs of financial stress.
Mr Saad owns no property under his name and blamed the collapse of Daascon on the rise in the cost of materials.
Shellharbour's Elevation 77
On June 22 this year, building certifiers Steve Watson & partners signed off on the 77 unit apartment complex Elevation 77 at College Ave, Shellharbour City Centre.
This allowed those who had put down deposits on units in the building to move in, and released a fire hose of cash into the accounts of Shiloh Properties as the new owners settled.
Shiloh Properties has sold 44 units out of the complex, sales data from CoreLogic shows. While prices are not disclosed for all properties, assuming a minimum price of $500,000, settlement would have unleashed upwards of $20 million in sales balances, after the 10 per cent deposit already paid.
What the buyers could not have known was that at the same time, the builder of the complex, the Saad-controlled entity Daascon, was preparing to enter administration, with notional debts of $1.6 million.
The proposed restructure of the company will enable Mr Saad to pocket millions in sales, while contractors who built the seven storey building were left with debts in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
In 2018, Mr Saad purchased the 3220 square metre block bounded by College Ave, Cygnet Ave, Memorial Dr and Moolawang Pl for $6,655,000 as Shiloh Properties Pty Ltd and secured development consent for a seven storey building including shops, 77 residential apartments and a rooftop common area.
Construction later started under Daascon, solely owned and controlled by Mr Saad.
![Samy Saad pictured in 2009 created a web of trusts and companies around his construction business. Picture from file Samy Saad pictured in 2009 created a web of trusts and companies around his construction business. Picture from file](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/123041529/1f8d68cc-6421-497b-8f2a-7cd6826ceb46.jpg/r0_0_2592_3888_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Debt mounts
Multiple contractors who spoke to the Mercury said construction progressed on the Shellharbour project, albeit somewhat haphazardly, and it was not until late 2022 that late payment of bills was leading some to ask questions about the stability of the builder.
In June 2022, the company owed suppliers nearly $4 million, with most of the debts less than 30 days old. By January 2023, the company owed more than $5 million to suppliers and debts more than 60 days old totalled $627,324.
As the company was starting to show signs of financial stress, Mr Saad turned up on the Gold Coast to spend.
![The proposed tower on the Gold Coast. Picture supplied The proposed tower on the Gold Coast. Picture supplied](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/123041529/5936b741-c629-462f-ac43-5276acd7b288.png/r0_0_1160_858_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Hello Gold Coast
Using various trusts, Mr Saad purchased multiple adjoining properties on the Gold Coast Highway at Palm Beach.
In October 2022, property press trumpeted "experienced developer" Mr Saad filing a development application for an amalgamated site at 1177 and 1179 Gold Coast Hwy that backed onto Jefferson Lane.
Plans for a 14 storey apartment tower with 38 units were described by Gold Coast firm BDA Architects as "a high-quality residential apartment building that achieves a high standard of architecture, liveability and appropriate scale within the Palm Beach site context".
The relationship didn't last long. A spokesperson for BDA Architects said the company was no longer involved in the project as of late last year.
![The empty lot at 9 Minga Avenue, also owned by a trust connected to Samy Saad, with Elevation 77 rising in the background. Picture from Google The empty lot at 9 Minga Avenue, also owned by a trust connected to Samy Saad, with Elevation 77 rising in the background. Picture from Google](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/123041529/6091c72f-2a6a-4543-a823-9b978fab1380.png/r55_0_1242_668_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Matters of trust
The trip to the Gold Coast was meant to prepare for Mr Saad's next venture, after the Shellharbour complex finished and buyers started moving in.
Mr Saad's multi-million dollar purchases across two states were conducted through separate trusts, linked to one another by millions of dollars in loans.
With various trust linked to properties in Shellharbour, Kiama and the Gold Coast, Mr Saad borrowed millions against these properties to continue to finance his property empire.
But as debts mounted on the Shellharbour project, the complex web of trusts was pushed towards breaking point, before Mr Saad placed Daascon in voluntary administration, and was subsequently able to repay his debts at a discount.
This manoeuvre has left contractors, with outstanding bills in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, paid 11 cents for every dollar they are owed, and the taxpayer has been dudded out of $200,000.
![A diagram of trusts controlled by Samy Saad and the properties they are connected to. A diagram of trusts controlled by Samy Saad and the properties they are connected to.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/123041529/6fbe96f3-cc49-451f-a011-90f689f6647b.jpg/r0_0_5760_3238_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Loans to related parties
Amid these knots tying together each of the trusts, one transaction stands out.
The Samy Saad Family Trust owed Daascon $1.186 million. On June 15, 2023, less than a month before calling in administrators, the trust charged Daascon $1.2 million for services rendered to Daascon by Mr Saad and his son, Jeremy.
This transaction in effect eliminated the debt the Samy Saad Family Trust owed Daascon.
As Daascon was likely trading insolvent from December 31, 2022, the administrators state that the $1.2 million from Daascon to the Samy Saad Family Trust in June is potentially a "preferential transaction, an uncommercial transaction or an unreasonable director related transaction".
This means that the transaction is could be cancelled - but the administrators note the trust would be unable to pay the money back, as its primary asset is a debt to another related trust.
According to the O'Brien Palmer report, Mr Saad owns no property under his name and blamed the collapse of Daascon on the rise in the cost of materials.
Questions to Mr Saad via email went unanswered and his phone number was disconnected.
If Daascon and the trusts were to survive the administration process, others involved will be wondering how the web of companies could have allowed Mr Saad to rise again, and which corporate vehicles he would choose to use for his next venture.
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