One team are millionaires and others have been left empty-handed in one of the most inexplicable Block auctions in history.
Taking the show to dizzying new heights, freshly minted millionaires Oz and Omar were crowned winners of The Block: Tree Change 2022, taking home a record-breaking $1,686,666.66 in prizemoney after selling their four-bedroom, 10-acre property for $5,666,666.66, which was $1,586,666.66 above their reserve price.
The pair made the largest sum any Blockheads have ever made over a reserve price in 18 series of The Block, netting them an additional $100,000 in prizemoney as the 2022 winners.
From Oz and Omar’s incredible result, there was also heartache, with two couples, Ankur and Sharon, and Dylan and Jenny, failing to sell their homes at auction. Both properties were passed in when they failed to attract a bidder over their $4.08 million reserve price, also both attracting a highest bid of $4,075,000.
Both couples continued to negotiate with their highest bidders after filming, but as of 9.00pm Sunday, November 6, Ankur and Sharon, and Dylan and Jenny, are still open to other offers to buy their homes.
It’s the first time that a Block property has failed to sell at auction since Series 4 in 2011, when the houses created by Josh and Jenna, and Rod and Tania, in Cameron Street, Richmond (Vic) were passed in.
Fan favourites Tom and Sarah-Jane chose to go second in the auction order, but their home only sold for only $4,100,000.99, which was just $20,000.99 above their $4.08 million reserve price.
It’s the lowest profit a Block house has made since Series 9 Glasshouse in 2014.
Faring a bit better, Block latecomers Rachel and Ryan’s home went for $4,249,999.85 in a post-auction negotiation, getting them $169,000.85 over their $4.08 million reserve price.
Speaking about their stunning victory, Oz said: “We’re absolutely stoked that we took out the win this year – we had a plan and stuck to it. It is a competition, but seeing each team come in after us and not getting the results that they wanted really hurt.”
Omar said: “It took a while to sink in, but it felt amazing to get a win after the hard work we put in. But it’s very hard seeing others obviously not doing so well.”
Host Scott Cam said: “It was a bittersweet day. We had one incredible high and some crushing lows for our Blockheads, who all worked the hardest I’ve ever seen to deliver these houses.
“As we’ve seen many times before, we’ll continue to negotiate with interested buyers to sell these homes, which are still on the market. I’m gunning for a positive result.”
Speaking about the shock results, The Block co-creator and Executive Producer, Julian Cress, said: “We’re in a very volatile real estate market and we’ve seen large and unexpected interest rate increases, including one just this week.
“While we had many registered bidders, clearly something has spooked the market. But we believe the properties are of incredible value and we think they will find new owners very soon, to deliver a well-deserved reward for our contestants’ hard work.”
It was Melbourne philanthropist Danny Wallis who saved the day by purchasing the only three houses that sold on auction day.
Danny said: “I probably spent too much at the first auction, but was surprised to pick up two more homes at what I feel was a bargain price, so I guess it all evened out in the end for me at least.”
This season of The Block was the biggest ever undertaken, with the couples each spending 12 weeks building 500-square metre homesteads complete with tennis courts, pools and wineries on 10 acres of land in Victoria’s Macedon Ranges.
