The Block 2018: Who is the buyer of the penthouses?

The buyer who splurged almost $6 million on the two penthouses on The Block had inspected the former Gatwick only two nights before the auction.

The tech entrepreneur and property investor, who spoke to Domain on condition of anonymity, said he had snapped up two bargains.

He bought Norm and Jess’s apartment for $2,859,000 before strolling next door and buying Bianca and Carla’s apartment for $2,991,000.

“I’m very, very happy with the price,” he said. “I got two bargains.”

Minutes earlier, Hayden and Sara’s winning apartment in the original Gatwick building sold to a Malvern family for $3.02 million, defying expectations the penthouses would bring the highest prices.

Against a reserve of $2.65 million, Norm and Jess took home $209,000 while Bianca and Carla scored $301,000 against their $2.7 million reserve (reduced to $2.69 million after an in-show challenge awarded them $10,000 off their official reserve).

Surprisingly, the two couples who renovated the penthouses ended up taking home the least amount of money after a bumper finale saw all five properties soar over their reserves.

How much did The Block apartments sell for?

• Sara and Hayden: 3/34 Fitzroy Street sold for $3.02 million  (prize money $645,000)
• Kerrie and Spence:  1/34 Fitzroy Street sold for $2.85 million (prize money $415,000)
• Courtney and Hans: 2/34 Fitzroy Street   sold for $2,770,000 (prize money$410,000)
• Bianca and Carla: 5/34 Fitzroy Street sold for $2,991,000 (prize money $301,000)
• Norm and Jess: 4/34 Fitzroy Street sold for $2,859,000 (prize money $209,000)

The buyer of the penthouses, a Melbourne local who grew up in regional Victoria, said he had not watched any episodes of The Block, and first inspected the apartments on Thursday evening, fewer than 48 hours before they went under the hammer.

“I came and looked at the penthouses, and they were both amazing,” he said after the auctions. “I couldn’t pick.

“There are very few times where there is something that has got the right building and the right location. And, the ceiling heights are amazing, and the views both ways are actually great.”

His purchases will add to his property investment portfolio, but he said he had not yet decided if he would rent them to long-term tenants or look at short-stay options such as Airbnb. Experts have tipped the penthouses could fetch between $2000 and $2500 a night on Airbnb.

He was confident in his purchases, and strongly believed St Kilda prices would improve.

“I think they’re going to be great investments,” he said. “Pockets of St Kilda are great and pockets of it have been, over the years, a bit more seedy.

“But, I think turning what was the Gatwick into this is going to change this block and this street, and, then with the Oslo around the corner changing, too, I think things are on the up.”

Although the buyer attended the auctions, buyer’s agent Greville Pabst bid on his behalf for the penthouses.

Pabst successfully bid on four of the five apartments, including for Rose Banks and Yvette Kelly, the twins who ran the Gatwick for decades. The sisters paid $2,777,000 for the apartment renovated by Courtney and Hans.

The Australian Financial Review has since reported the buyer to be Aconex co-founder Robert Phillpot. Aconex was bought by Oracle earlier this year for $1.6 billion.

This story has been amended since publication.