In the spotlight: How The Block agents cope preparing for Australia's most public auctions

The Block apartments attract the biggest auction crowds in Australia, and sales days that border on chaos for the show’s brave real estate agents, who have not only had to price these unique properties but sort the genuine buyers from the dreamers.

Domain asked this year’s listing agents to spill the beans on how they cope with the country’s most public real estate sale.

Buying into the dream

Most of the agents were engaged early in the series, and strong visualisation skills were needed when it came time for appraisals.

HockingStuart’s Sam Inan and The Agency’s Michael Paproth have taken on the two penthouses.

“The initial appraisal was very difficult,” says Inan, who will auction apartment four for Jess and Norm. “All we had was a very light version of a floorplan.”

The agents had to work with the orientation, size, and the number of bedrooms and bathrooms to guide their appraisals.

“As the apartment started to come together we had a fair idea of the quality of the build and the finishes that add extra value,” says Inan.

For McGrath’s Michael Townsend, who has listed Sara and Hayden’s apartment, the job was a little easier.

“The good thing about their apartment was that we could visualise the space because it’s one of the established apartments,” he says. “So then we just needed to take into account the aesthetics.”

Wilson’s Jesse Raeburn says he drew comparisons with other nearby properties when appraising Courtney and Hans’ apartment, while HockingStuart’s Emily Adams said she could see the scope and potential of Kerrie and Spence’s apartment, which has a north-facing orientation and stellar location.

A voice for the potential buyers

On the up-side, all of The Block agents were able to offer the contestants advice on how their floorplan and design would best appeal to potential buyers.

“We were able to offer them the buyers’ point of view,” says Townsend. “It can be a catch-22. The contestants very much want to win the room reveals by impressing the judges, but they might lose every room and go on to win The Block if their property has the best overall feel and appeals to the greatest number of buyers.”

“We provided very the general requirements of buyers at this price point, a pre-requisites list,” says Inan. “If they stick to that we know they’ll have a very saleable product at the end.”

Related: View the five Gatwick apartments for sale

• Kerrie and Spence: 1/34 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda
• Hans and Courtney: 2/34 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda
• Sara and Hayden: 3/34 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda
• Norm and Jess: 4/34 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda
• Bianca and Carla: 5/34 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda

Stick to process

There’s no denying the extra pressure that comes with marketing an apartment on Nine’s hit show, but the agents say they still stick to a proven sales process.

“We’re putting trust in our process for selling luxe homes,” says Paproth, who is running the auction campaign for Carla and Bianca’s penthouse.

“It is a very public campaign, and coupled with the fact your clients are being critiqued on national prime-time television it’s quite personal. But the attention on social media and the feedback has been interesting and positive in the main.”

Townsend says it’s important to remove yourself from the “hysteria of the show” and focus on the finite job of extracting the best price for the property.

“There is pressure without a doubt but at the end of the day we’re working for two vendors who want the best possible outcome.”

HockingStuart has been associated with eight past seasons of The Block, giving its agents the advantage of experience.

“This will be the ninth, so we have more of an understanding of the process,” says Adams. “It’s a lot of work and preparation, but we’ll do the best job we can.”

Finding genuine buyers

“Every year without fail there is interest from people who just want to see the apartments out of curiosity,” says Inan. “So we don’t run public opens, we have qualified opens for qualified buyers, with very strict filtering.”

Most of the agents are speaking with The Block’s veteran buyers’ advocates Greville Pabst, Nicole Jacobs and Frank Valentic, but they’re also looking further afield.

“The response has been nothing short of amazing,” says Paproth of Carla and Bianca’s penthouse. “We’ve got all three buyers’ advocates in the mix and we’ve also been approached by two other well-known buyers’ agents. We’re looking for a wider market, interstate and international, we believe our apartment warrants that.”

Inan says Jess and Norm’s penthouse may also attract an out-of-town buyer.

“I think St Kilda, with its postcard reputation, gets a lot of offshore interest from tourists and ex-pats,” he says. “They’ll get competition from the locals, but they’ve got deeper pockets and aren’t as influenced by local market conditions.”

Adams believes Kerrie and Spence’s apartment will reach the broadest spectrum of buyers.

“With its coffered ceilings it’s a very soothing and calming place,” she says. “As one of the largest apartments it will suit either a family looking to settle in the area, or downsizers looking for a foothold in the city, but also corporates wanting something they can lock up and leave.”

Both Townsend and Raeburn are also anticipating strong interest from downsizers, although Townsend believes Sara and Hayden’s apartment would also make a great choice for investors.

“Our agency is managing properties from other Block apartments from previous seasons, and they perform incredibly well,” he says.

Building the brand

It can’t hurt to have your agency associated with The Block juggernaut can it?

Townsend says McGrath wouldn’t get involved if it wasn’t good for the brand.  “There is certainly a residual benefit to us and our agency,” he says.

Inan agrees a good result can translate into great business.

“You can be wonderful at your job, but winning The Block gives an extra edge to what you’re offering,” he says.