Since the home was initially damaged by fire in May 2013, a number of residents who live near the Jervis Street property, opposite Nowra East Public School, have called for the home to be demolished.

Work on removing the home, which has been described as “an eyesore and a danger”, started on Monday morning.

Nowra firm Smith’s Plant Hire removed the asbestos from the property over the weekend and is now removing parts of the home which can be recycled.

Using an excavator, the painstaking work of removing certain sections of the home is under way.

“There is a lot of good old hardwood in the property which can be salvaged,” Wayne Smith said.

“There is lots of timber which can be saved and recycled. We will be taking our time and removing what we can.

“Big old timber beams, joists, and outside wallboards that weren’t damaged in the fire are fine.”

Shoalhaven City Council had served a demolition order on the property owner in March 2014 but a dispute between insurers, a property owner and other relatives held up the work.

Demolition is expected to take most of the week.