Despite The Block 2026 auction being weeks away, Shelley Craft has finally revealed this year’s reserve price for all five homes.
Even though the date of the auction hasn’t been confirmed by Channel Nine, there has been a great deal of intrigue about how much this year’s homes in Mount Eliza are expected to fetch.
While last year’s $2.99 million reserve price caused an uproar, with two of the homes not selling on the day, in 2026, the price will be much higher.
Speaking on The Today Show on October 16, Shelley told hosts Sylvia Jeffreys and Tom Steinfort that she knew what the price would be during filming, and found it hard not to spill the beans.
What is The Block 2026 auction reserve?
So, what will the reserve actually be? Shelley has revealed that it will sit at a huge $3.45 million.
Before this, this year’s homes were listed on Domain with price guides between $3.6 million and $3.9 million. The current median house price for Mount Eliza is $1.65 million.
“That’s what we’re aiming for,” Shelly said of the $150,000 gap between the reserve and minimum price listed online. “This is our starting point. I’m hoping that the auctioneers kick off with, let’s open the bids at $3.45 million, and we can go up from there.”
The reserve price has been announced before the auction for the first time ever due to a new Victorian law change.
“What we’re hoping is created here, it’s all about transparency in the industry, is that the people that have been through the homes, and we’ve had hundreds of inspections, they are live on Domain now, so everyone can look through the homes and see what they’re going,” Shelley said.
The reserve price has already got fans talking.
“Popcorn ready.. If its anything like the last season, disastrous 😮😮,” one wrote on Instagram.
“Dreamin,” another added, with a third responding in dibelief with “In this economy? 😂”
A fourth fan already made their predictions, saying that “House 2 and [House] 5 are out then.”
New Idea spoke with Lisa and Rosco’s auctioneer, Mark Nunn Buxton, about the reserve prices, and he initially recommended $3.6 million.
“These properties represent really, really good value with the views of the ocean,” he exclusively told us. “They’ve got elevators in them. They’re extremely high-end homes, great locations. The first season The Block’s ever had of ocean views, so it’s a really big drawcard.”
Even though it will be much higher than last year’s reserve, he explains that the surrounding properties are worth between $3 million and $6 million.
“It’s certainly a different ball game this season; you’re surrounded by really high calibre homes.”
Mark believes all five homes will have the same reserve price; however, another property expert previously told New Idea that isn’t the best idea.
Of the five property lots, Houses 1, 2 and 3 have unobstructed views of the sea, while Houses 4 and 5’s views are blocked by trees.
Rebecca Cardamone, the Property Developer and Owner of iSubdivide, previously told New Idea that the sea views would add value to the homes.
Matt Jackson, the CEO of David Reid Homes added that coastal homes with picturesque views usually add between 20 per cent and 25 per cent to its value.
The first three houses sit on about 1,000 square metres of land and are positioned on a higher slope, with the whole of Port Phillip Bay visible from the top floor.
Because of this, Senior Buyer Agent at Industry Insider Property in Toorak, Andrew Date, said two reserve prices should be set to reflect their differences.
“If they’re not, they’re crazy because the high side has significantly better views, so they’re worth more,” he told New Idea before the 2026 season aired.
“If they’re not different in reserve prices, I’d be flabbergasted.”
“A lot of the time on The Block, the reserve prices are very, very similar, but the two on the low side are clearly worth less.”
