As we enter the last chance for renovations on The Block, the Blockheads can finally see the end of the road.
With the highly anticipated auction approaching soon, New Idea can reveal tensions are brewing as contestants fear their position in the order could cost them hugely.
New Idea hears that Rick and Tayla face “the ultimate nightmare” while Lisa and Rosco fear Chantel and Wyatt could trigger an auction disaster…
“Everyone is on edge,” our TV insider explains.
Traditionally, the auction order has been the final dramatic moment of the competition, with contestants fighting for the most advantageous position as their homes go under the hammer.
But this season, our insider says, “production decided to lock the order away well before auction day – so this year’s teams have had months to worry about where they will land in the order. It’s causing chaos.”
While, understandably, the five teams have spent months dreaming of life-changing profits, our insider says some are also “genuinely concerned they could walk away with absolutely nothing.”
At the centre of the drama are father-and-daughter team Rick, 63, and Tayla, 32, whose House 5, New Idea hears, could be going under the hammer last.
While being in this position can sometimes prove advantageous if buyers are still competing aggressively, it can also be a nightmare if the biggest bidders have already spent their money or lost interest.
And following the disappointing auction results from 2025, contestants have good reason to be nervous.
House 3’s Lisa, 34, and Rosco, 38, are also understood to be particularly anxious about their position in the auction order, with concerns that following controversial couple Chantel, 32, and Wyatt, 30, could prove disastrous.
Their biggest fear? That their House 2 could start a domino effect of properties being passed in.
“The problem with going after Chantel and Wyatt is that nobody really knows what’s going to happen with their house,” explains our insider.
They tell us that if House 2 doesn’t sell, it could completely drop the temperature at the auction.
“Suddenly, buyers might start questioning what these homes are actually worth”, they say, “nobody wants to follow a house that’s been passed in.
“Once buyers see a property fail to sell, there’s a concern they might become more cautious about bidding on the next one.”
But while the contestants are losing sleep over their positions in the auction order, host Scott Cam is understood to be taking a surprisingly different view!
Our source says Scotty believes the order may not carry the same significance it has in previous seasons, largely because the five Mount Eliza properties have already been publicly marketed for months.
And with all five homes carrying identical reserve prices of a hefty $3.45 million, “buyers already know the minimum price each property needs to achieve at auction,” our insider says.
The thinking, they add, “is that serious buyers have already done their homework, inspected the properties and decided which house they want”, and are therefore “less likely to change their minds just because another property comes up for auction first.”
Only time will tell. Meanwhile, the anxious Blockheads are crossing their fingers…
Get all the auction details here.
