Some have reported that they feel financially disadvantaged throughout the process and that the Canberra community had not fully recognised their plight. Some reported that they felt the real estate industry had behaved in a predatory manner.

An in-depth focus group report from the Australian National University's ACT Asbestos Health Study has shown extreme levels of anxiety among victims, with some manifesting physical illnesses as a result of stress.

Two focus groups containing 19 individuals, sampled from the Mr Fluffy population across Canberra, spoke at length to researchers from the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health about their experiences.

Their responses have informed the third stage of the ANU's two-year study, which will roll out from Thursday as a large-scale confidential survey of all Mr Fluffy residents and tenants. The Asbestos Response Taskforce was writing to all residents on Thursday informing them of the survey and would send them a link to the focus group report.

While the focus group reported quite high levels of understanding about the dangers of exposure to amosite asbestos and the 30-40 year dormancy for mesothelioma, victims had had to deal with the immediate effects of psychological distress and mental health problems.

"These psychological responses may have impacted on their physical wellbeing," the report said.

"One man admitted himself to hospital with chest pains related to stress and others relayed accounts of physical manifestations of stress and anxiety."

The report chronicles a number of direct criticisms of the taskforce and government buy-back scheme including the belief that the taskforce did not recognise people's real and emotional connection to their home.

"A number of participants expressed emotions like sorrow and anger at feeling they needed to leave their house, their garden or their neighbours. People described the lengthy investment of time, energy and creativity which they had invested in their house and garden. Some mentioned that they were hoping to rebuild on their own block so that they could retain their neighbours and gardens but this was proving difficult. It was felt that these aspects of domestic living arrangements were not acknowledged sufficiently by the Taskforce response".

There was some positive feedback from those owners who had known about the provision of caseworkers through the Taskforce, and how they had been assisted by caseworkers in navigating the process.

The report revealed that "most people thought that they had been financially disadvantaged by owning and the process of selling a Mr Fluffy Home" and several mentioned a community perception that they had somehow benefited from owning a Mr Fluffy house – which was not the case.

The financial aspects of the buyback process were complex and not always clear to study participants. Within the focus groups, people shared conflicting information about stamp duty and discussed how house valuations appeared to be inconsistent – leading to perceptions of unfairness.

House valuers and real estate agents were described in ways that made them sound predatory. Mr Fluffy residents thought that they were considered to be vulnerable and participants observed that they were commonly called 'Fluffies' by real estate agents.

Many said they could not afford to buy another property in the same suburb as the one in which they had previously lived. Leaving a suburb had a flow-on effect on other aspects of their families' lives, such as children's schooling and friendships with neighbours.

The focus group was conducted last July, with many Mr Fluffy victims now further stressed by the huge increases in value of the first empty blocks to hit the market in recent months.

Chief ANU Investigator Associate Professor Martyn Kirk said the survey launched on Thursday would aim to "give a clear picture of self-reported health impacts of living in a house which contained loose fill asbestos. It will examine the physical health effects as well as the psychological issues associated with living in a Mr Fluffy house".

"We hope to provide a clearer understanding of the health risks, both physical and psychological, associated with living in a Mr Fluffy house," Professor Kirk said.

"The survey will be strictly confidential and represents an opportunity for owners, tenants and their families to have input and provide information on how loose-fill asbestos has impacted on (their) health."