The association said that unless Knox Council acted promptly to help the Goulburn Drive residents, ratepayers could face a hefty bill.

Residents told the Journal building permits should not have been granted in the area, with rumours the homes are on an old creek bed and that gum trees have sapped water from the soil.

But the council's director of engineering and infrastructure, Ian Bell, said the cracks and crumbling homes could be caused by the prolonged drought rather than land movement and the council had exhausted all lines of inquiry.

He said the council needed a link between negligent action or inaction and the alleged ground movement, and the responsibility to provide such evidence rested with the owners.

Residents of the street have commissioned engineering reports on the damage to their houses.

Cr Darren Pearce, who is acting as a go-between for residents and the council, said the parties should await the findings of the reports. "I'm not an engineer so I can't say what the problem is but hopefully we can get it sorted when we know what's wrong."

Retired engineer and KRA committee member David McKenzie said the houses were built over 25 years ago. "This has been going on for around six months and the council needs to accept the reports by the engineers and fix it as soon as possible, otherwise there will be a substantial cost to the ratepayer.

"The council's main function is to protect the ratepayers but as soon as something goes wrong, they don't want to know."

Mr McKenzie said the reports were costing up to $6000. "Some houses have visible damage on the outside and others are starting to crack on the inside. [Residents] have got a raw deal so far and it really is disgraceful how they have been treated."

The association said new sales were unthinkable and repairs could be futile until the underlying causes were addressed.

Speaking on behalf of some of the residents, advocate Shaddy Cameron, said some of the houses had started to tilt.

"People have threatened to sell up and get out but with the current condition of houses, they can't do that. There are times when residents just want to give up and cry and others when they are so angry because of what they are going through. They just want some help and guidance."