Who will win Het Blok? Insiders reveal their top picks – realestate.com.au

Two veterans of The Block have revealed the homes they think could win at this Sunday’s auctions, and it appears to be a two-horse race.

Just like the thousands of Australians who will watch the action of The Block auctions unfold on their television screens next Sunday night, judge Shaynna Blaze will be doing the same.

“We are there to cheer them on on TV and because it was filmed the day before it is being kept secret so we don’t know. [the results]she told realestate.com.au. ‘That’s what I like about it, that I’m involved.’

The veteran Block judge said she quickly learned early in her time as part of the Block juggernaut that being present at the auctions wasn’t always the best.

“I went the very first year I was on it [Darren and Neale] went there to the auction and just stayed in the room with the family and the parents and realized that if they didn’t get the numbers they wanted, we weren’t welcome,” she said.

Buyer’s agent and The Block regular Frank Valentic will be holding a paddle on auction day and he thinks it will be a two-horse race between Britt and Taz’s House 3 and Robby and Mat’s House 5.

“In terms of my buyer feedback at the moment, they say Britt and Taz’s house three will win if buyers like that flow, the cohesion, the energy, the lights, their whole wellbeing theme,” Mr Valentic told realestate.com.au.

“Everyone thinks it’s a very, very connected house, given the way it all flows.

Perth duo Britt and Taz are favorites to take the win. Image: Channel 9/9Now

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“The feedback from my buyers for the boys in house 5 would be the position of their house. It is probably the best position on the block, in terms of its location at the very end, overlooking farmlands and a private, wooded view,” he said.

Robby and Mat’s House 5 is another frontrunner. Image: Channel 9/9Now

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“While on the other hand there is more of a development, so there is a bit more privacy with the prospect of problems.”

But despite these potential privacy concerns, Shaynna thinks the design of Emma and Ben’s House 1 could win over buyers with its dark Daylesford aesthetic.

The block auction date has been confirmed

With Channel 9 officially confirming that The Block auctions will air on Sunday, October 26, all five homes in Daylesford will go under the hammer the day before, on October 25.

The team whose house sells for the highest profit above the reserve price will not only walk away with money above the reserve price, but will also receive a $100,000 bonus prize.

Buyer’s agent Frank Valentic will bid at auctions again this year.

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As for which team would take home the win, Shaynna believed all of The Blockheads had a chance.

“Well, who knows? I think for me there are so many. Everyone has something special,” she said.

But she couldn’t hide her admiration for the Perth Police and Britt and Taz’s efforts in House 3.

“I think it’s very clear that every time Britt and Taz do something that I like, I just fall in love,” she said.

“As a designer who builds so many homes and is part of so many homes, I’m a big believer that the love is in the walls and you feel it and when you walk into their rooms, and you felt it every time, the care that went into it.”

Britt and Taz have focused on wellbeing in House 3. Photo: Channel 9/9Now

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She said Robby and Mat’s wine cellar was without a doubt a masterpiece.

“I give them so much credit for that,” she said. “I think Brit and Taz’s sitting room, how they created a vaulted ceiling with all the light, was absolutely breathtaking,” she said.

“And a real highlight would definitely be Han and Can with that resin bath and resin pool, like, they really hit the ground running, and they definitely nailed it.”

Adrian ‘Lambo Guy’ Portelli could be back in 2025

With one of The Block’s serial bidders, ‘Lambo Guy’, Adrian Portelli, purchasing all five of last season’s Phillip Island properties, he announced that 2024 would be his final bid for the year.

But an Instagram post from Ray White Sunbury director Aaron Hill and agent Jamee Favorito – the agency charged with selling House 1 – appears to show Mr Portelli standing in House 1’s wine cellar.

Mr. Portelli appears to be in Emma and Ben’s wine cellar with Ray White’s sales agent Aaron Hill. Photo: Instagram @aaronhill_raywhiterealestate

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Emma and Ben’s wine cellar in House 1.

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While Mr Valentic did not know Mr Portelli’s intentions for this year, he said there were rumors he attended a party at House 1 last week, and there were rumors serial bidder Danny Wallis might attend the auctions.

“Hopefully there will be more ordinary Australians bidding, but Danny and that may still be there as there are rumors he may still be looking for some interest,” he said.

“Hopefully there are more options [for other buyers] because last year we had three eager buyers, but we didn’t get in and we barely had a chance to bid because they all sold well above market value, well above our client’s budget,” he said.

“So hopefully this year it will give the normal, average investor, home buyer, an opportunity to get in.”

Danny Wallis has spent more than $40 million on homes from the series over the past decade. Image: The block.

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Shaynna said this year would be about “real prizes.”

“It’s about people who want to buy it because they want to use it to live in or rent it out,” she says.

“It’s not a business opportunity, and it’s not something to pay attention to. I think it’s really important… Daylesford is such a homely, beautiful place, so the fact that they can buy it and feel like they’re part of a community when they buy it, I think is really special.”

Shaynna’s decade-plus tenure is a Block mainstay

Reflecting on The Block’s 21st year and her 13th year as a judge, Shaynna summed up the season as “joyful.”

“It’s a really beautiful series to be a part of, as is the location. One is just amazing, and the weather just supported us, and the townspeople were amazing, and the participants were just incredible,” she said.

“And they (the teams) all did something very different from each other, like, it’s not one house where you could say, ‘Oh, I feel like it’s a bit like this’. They’re so distinctly different. They all have their own personalities. I think the participants were fantastic, I really did.”

Shaynna Blaze has been a judge on The Block for thirteen seasons. Image: Channel 9

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“The participants are really focused on the reno, they’re very excited about it and the fact that… they seem very grateful and appreciative, and it really comes across that way.”

Last week, The Block host Scott Cam appeared to accidentally confirm on radio that The Block’s 2026 location will be at Mt Eliza on the Mornington Peninsula. Channel 9 has since confirmed the location.

While some years Shaynna said she’s aware of what’s ahead, other years there have been times when the media discovered things before she did.

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Looking ahead to next year, she said she would love to judge again, saying no year of The Block was ever the same.

“There’s never been a year where I’ve shown up saying ‘rinse, lather, repeat,’ or you know, ‘This is just getting kind of old,'” she said.

“It’s like the excitement… I love building locations. I love TV, so I get to do two things that I love together, and the fact that all the participants are going to bring something different to the table.”