After what may be the most dramatic auction day yet, Steph and Gian Ottavio from House Four have been crowned the winners of The Block 2023.
The hit — and sometimes controversial — renovation show’s 19th season came to a triumphant close on November 5, with the couple taking home $1.65 million in profit. Oh, and an extra $100,000 in prize money, making it the biggest win in the show’s history!
Steph and Gian’s victory managed to surpass the jaw-dropping $1,686,666 total winnings of 2022 The Block winners Omar Slaimankhel & Osman ‘Oz’ Said.
It was the biggest season on The Block, so we guess it’s only fitting that it would also drum up the biggest auction result ever!
Despite the lofty price guides, bidders were keen to splash some cash on Steph and Gian’s Charming Street abode, which features their signature Japandi-style decor.
What happened during Steph and Gian’s Block auction?
The property was purchased by controversial The Block bidder Adrian Portelli AKA ‘Mr Lambo’ — who was recently ranked number seven on the Australian Financial Review’s Young Rich List with an estimated $1 billion net worth.
The entrepreneur made headlines last year when he rocked up to contestants Omar and Oz’s auction and entered a bidding war with multimillionaire Danny Wallis, making them the runaway winners of the season. He later purchased Sharon Johal and Ankur Dogra‘s property after it failed to sell under the hammer.
During House Four’s auction, Adrian outbid Danny, who was rumoured to be a no-show at the auctions this year because “he wasn’t happy about how it all went down last year and felt used”.
Danny has become a staple at The Block auctions, spending over $40 million on properties from The Block over the years, including Omar and Oz’s winning Gisborne house in season 18, which he splashed $5,666,666.60 on.
Dramatic scenes unfold during Steph and Gian’s Block auction
Adding even more drama to an already intense situation, Steph and Gian’s auction was interrupted halfway through when a bidder collapsed. The woman fainted and fell to the ground.
Two doctors and a nurse, who were observing the auction from the street, rushed to provide treatment before an ambulance was called, after which the woman was taken to hospital for further treatment.
The auction recommenced with Buyer’s Advocate Frank Valenti bidding $4 million before Adrian came out swinging, increasing his bid by a whopping $1 million!
“He can have it,” Danny said, conceding defeat.
When the hammer finally dropped, House Four was sold for a cool $5 million, far above their $3.35 million reserve and shattering all previous Block records. Sheesh!
What did the other The Block 2023 houses sell for?
The auction, which took place on November 4 and aired the following day, saw four out of the five homes sell on auction day.
Eliza and Liberty: House Five
In second place were Eliza and Liberty Paschke from House Five, whose property had a reserve price of $3.25 million.
Danny kicked off the auction with $3,099,999.99 before Adrian placed a bid of $4.1 million. The LMCT+ founder, who was clearly having fun at the auction, bid against himself TWICE, repeatedly raising the price by $100,000 despite already having the highest bid.
“That’s… never happened before,” said a dumbfounded Scott Cam, while the auctioneer called it “the strangest auction [he’s] ever done”.
Adrian purchased the sisters’ home for $4.3 million, awarding them a massive profit of $1.05 million.
Kyle and Leslie: House One
In third place were Kyle and Leslie Cottone from House One, whose property — which had a reserve price of $2.97 million — was also purchased by Adrian for $3.1 million. Yep, that brings his total tally to three houses and $12.4 million in auction day spending. Not bad for a day’s shopping!
As such, Kyle and Leslie pocketed $130,000 in profit.
Kristy and Brett: House Three
In fourth place was Kristy and Brett Beams from House Three, whose made-over property had a reserve price of $2.97 million. It was purchased for $3.035 million by an unknown buyer.
Adrian failed to place a bid on Kristy and Brett’s house, while Danny remained on the sidelines.
During the auction and after, Kristy and Brett admitted they were furious with their agent, who they believe not only damaged their auction result but set a low bar for the remaining auctions too.
The duo walked away with a $65,000 profit. Not bad for 12 weeks of work, but it does pale in comparison to the other houses.
Registered bidder and The Masked Singer panellist Dave “Hughsey” Hughes described the purchase as “an absolute steal”.
Hughesy purchased Josh Barker and Elyse Knowles’ winning The Block property in Elsternwick in 2017 after paying $3.067 million, which was $447,000 over the reserve.
Leah and Ash: House Two
It was heartbreaking scenes at House Two’s auction, Leah and Ash Milton‘s home was, unfortunately, the only house not to sell, resulting in a day of record highs and absolute lows.
“We have had every possible auction scenario today,” The Block co-host Shelley Craft sighed.
With a reserve of $2.97 million, House Two’s main bidder was the woman who suffered the medical episode, so Leah and Ash (and even Scotty) were keen to pass the house in.
Their agent said Hughsey had plans on bringing his wife back to check out the property later that night.
Leah and Ash said they were relieved that things didn’t go pear-shaped and have bought themselves time to sell the house without immense time pressure potentially skewing results.
“I think we have made the right decision,” Scott assures them.
“We’ve got breathing room,” Leah agrees. The pair were consoled by the other teams, who all thought they made the right call.
“We’re so good,” Leah said quietly. “We’re fine.”
What was the auction order for The Block 2023?
Determining The Block auction order is always contentious, and it didn’t happen without a healthy dose of drama.
Steph and Gian said they felt that taking the first place would be the best position to set everyone up for success.
Eliza and Liberty secured their second-place position without contention.
However, the three remaining houses couldn’t decide on the rest of the auction order, so it was eventually drawn randomly.
Kristy and Brett went third, Kyle and Leslie fourth, and Leah and Ash last.
After weeks of drama both onscreen and off, it’s fair to assume some exhausted viewers will be glad to wave goodbye to The Block 2023.
However, with the show set on Victoria’s Phillip Island for the first time in 2024, we bet they’ll be tuning in. We know we will be!
Want even more goss? Listen to the So Dramatic! podcast with Megan Pustetto below!
Know something that we don’t? Spill the tea here!
Get the tea first! Follow So Dramatic! on Instagram and tune in on Mondays to get your reality tea fix with the So Dramatic! podcast with Megan Pustetto.
