The Block winners make $1.27 million above reserve
Queensland friends Courtney Kain and Sevilay Keser won The Block’s 2026 season after their Mount Eliza home sold for $4.72 million, $1.27 million above…
Queensland friends Courtney Kain and Sevilay Keser won The Block’s 2026 season after their Mount Eliza home sold for $4.72 million, $1.27 million above reserve. All five properties sold at auction, even as Melbourne’s property market remained weak.
The sale secured the pair the $100,000 winner’s cheque, along with a new prize package valued at about $500,000. Their result stood out against the wider market, where Melbourne house prices had fallen 6.7 per cent since their December peak.
All five homes in Mount Eliza sold above their $3.45 million reserves. Even the couple who placed fifth made $367,000, while the winning property at 9 Mackillop Place went to a couple looking for a weekender.
How did the winning home sell for $4.72 million?
Buyers Kevin and Rochelle paid $4.72 million for the house after looking at other homes from the show. They had first planned to find a weekender in Phillip Island, but Rochelle’s interest in The Block brought them to Mount Eliza.
“We looked at a couple of other [Block houses] … but this one had everything – it was an easy decision,” Kevin said. Rochelle pointed to the location, layout and the contestants’ experience as reasons for choosing the property.
Kain and Keser had renovation experience before joining the series. Their choices still drew questions from judges, including their spending and their decision to choose a house without a standout ocean view.
“We took a lot of risks during the show, and everyone thought we were nuts when we picked House 4 over the uptown and the views,” Courtney said after the auction. Keser replied: “Eat your words.”
The prize includes a collection of cash, vehicles, luxury items and home upgrades. Keser joked that the pair still had to decide who would get the boat, calling it a possible first fight.
All five homes sold despite a soft Melbourne market
The auction results contrasted with conditions across Melbourne. Of 574 auctions scheduled in the city last week, Domain recorded a preliminary clearance rate of 56 per cent from 380 reported results by Saturday evening. Seventy-three auctions were withdrawn and counted as unsold properties in the clearance-rate calculation.
Mount Eliza’s median house price is $1,650,000, according to Domain data. The five television properties all cleared their reserves, while the city’s broader home prices continued to slide.
Second place went to Victoria father and daughter Rick and Tayla Peroomal. Their home at 10 Mackillop Place sold for $4,355,000 in a fast auction where bids jumped from $3.5 million to $4 million within seconds.
Tayla said she had expected to be excited by a $10,000 result, but the pair ended up with $905,000. She plans to use the money to buy a home and travel.
Lisa and Rosco Wilson, who welcomed their second son a week earlier, placed third after a slower auction for 4 Mackillop Place. The property sold for $4 million following competition that included buyer Danny Wallis, who opened with a bid of $3,777,000.77.
This was the first season to air under Victoria’s new rules requiring vendors to publish reserve prices seven days before an auction or fixed-date sale. The rules aim to address underquoting in the property market.
The winning home sold for $4.72 million.
