The Block finale 2018: Live coverage of the auctions

• Read more: Sara and Hayden win $645,000 in shock auction finale
• Read more: Ex-Gatwick owners buy Hans and Courtney’s apartment

Welcome to Domain’s live coverage of The Block auctions for season 14. Good to be with you.

• This live article is no longer being updated

8.52pm: And that’s a wrap! Thanks for your company.

8.52pm: 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)

8.51pm: So Sara and Hayden go home with $545,000 in winnings + a $100,000 winner’s prize.

8.50pm: And the former owners of The Gatwick are now the owners of Hans and Courtney’s apartment.

8.49pm: So for those playing along at home, this means Sara and Hayden have won season 14 of The Block

8.48pm: No one expected this result for Courtney and Hans at all.

8.48pm: This is completely spirited bidding that took everyone by surprise.

8.46pm: This tug of war was quite exhausting… I get the feeling it’s not quite over yet.

8.45pm: And there’s an emphatic bid from Frank Valentic! We’re upto $150,000 over reserve.

8.45pm: Hans and Courtney have always doubted themselves too much. Get those lifejackets off!

8.44pm: So Greville is representing Rose and Yvette! There’s quite the revelation.

8.44pm: It seemed a bit dead yesterday in the room at this point. I was standing near very nervous family members of Hans and Courtney who were looking quite down at this stage.

8.43pm: We are getting into quite the game of bid-tennis between Greville and Frank now.

8.42pm:  Jesse Raeburn wins the award for smiliest auctioneer. And Gavl places the first bid of $2.2m.

8.41pm: And here are Rose Banks and Yvette Kelly, the Gatwick’s former owners.

8.40pm: Interestingly, Hans and Courtney’s agent opted to livestream on Gavl and accept online bids. Will it work?

8.40pm: Sorry for the delay there, folks. How are we all doing? Ready for bubbles? I certainly am!

8.36pm: Just one auction to go now. Hans and Courtney are arguably the underdogs given the lack of terrace.

8.35pm: SOLD! $2.991m means $301,000 profit for the ex-netballers.

8.34pm: The profit has hit $301,000. At $2.991m, some would say this is a bit of a bargain.

8.33pm: $2.98m bid from Nicole is quickly bettered by Greville.

8.32pm: And Pabst’s offers of $1000 and $2500 bids are still being knocked back.

8.31pm: Nicole still hitting the phones. And puts in a $5000 bid.

8.31pm: Frank’s out. Is Nicole out?

8.30pm: At $2.95m, it’s still tense with the buyers’ advocates.

8.30pm: Nicole on the phones now as Cooley finally relents to the pressure of accepting small bids.

8.30pm: Are you on the market seems to be a constant question.

8.29pm: Quick auction’s a good auction, surely.

8.28pm: Cooley still not accepting small increment bids.

8.27pm: Urgency is key, Cooley tells Bianca and Carla. Certainly got that impression in the room!

8.26pm: The woman with the great hat holds the bid; everyone else seems quiet. Greville’s offer of a $1000 bid is knocked back.

8.25pm: Interesting tactic that he is not accepting anything below $100,000 bids.

8.25pm: Bianca and Carla have five-time Block winner Damien Cooley as their auctioneer. He sold Dea and Darren’s place in Triple Threat.

8.24pm: Now the real test: Are there enough buyers for a penthouse to ensure Bianca and Carla will sell?

8.20pm: I had the pleasure of meeting some of Norm and Jess’ family yesterday during the auction and they were utterly delightful.

8.20pm: All class from Jess. “Thanks for having us,” she says to host Scott Cam.

8.19pm: SOLD! $2.859m. That’s profit of $209,000 for the Queenslanders.

8.19pm: “I’m so emotionally confused,” says Jess. Spare a thought for the bidders, Jess!

8.18pm: “I’m out,” says Frank. Nekk minnit…

8.17pm: And a $5,000 bid – and another – from Greville Pabst is very strong at what must be the tail end of this auction.

8.16pm: Very small bids now but at least they are continuing.

8.15pm: It’s hard not to like Jess. She looks so stoked that they even got above $50,000 profit.

8.14pm: Jess is so excited she hit Norm with a cushion. Please explain.

8.13pm: The bids are in smaller increments but at least they’re continuous now.

8.12pm: Frank has been spending a *lot* of time on the phone. Who does he think he is, Shane Warne?!

8.11pm: We’re looking a bit similar to the Glass House season of 2015 here, where the first two properties sold well but the rest struggled. But at least we’re now $50k over reserve.

8.10pm: OK so at least for Norm and Jess’ sake, we’re above reserve now.

8.09pm: The view in Jess and Norm’s apartment is killer though, I must admit. I’d happily live there. I just don’t have $2.65m+ for it! Do you reckon they’d let me live rent-free if I just write nice things about them?

8.07pm: That downbeat music certainly wasn’t playing in the room!

8.06pm:  Norm and Jess look devastated. It certainly felt like a long time while Sam was calling for bids.

8.04pm: We hit reserve within three bids but now we’re back to silence. Bianca and Carla look like Christmas has been cancelled.

8.03pm: Auctioneer Sam Inan worked the crowd by painting the story of Jess and Norm’s battle to appeal to “rich people”.

8.02pm: Overshare aside, Jess has been one of the most entertaining contestants we’ve ever had. See below:

8.02pm: Jess and Norm’s turn now. Trust Jess to overshare: “I’ve got the worst chafe”. Thanks for that visual!

8.00pm:  Sara and Hayden are frontrunners. Given the less than stellar predictions for the penthouses, can they defy expectations?

8.00pm: SOLD! For $3.02m, $545,000 over reserve.

7.59pm: We’re $535,000 over reserve. That’s life-changing.

7.58pm: Sara’s excitement at getting to $3m was so high-pitched I’m consulting the local dogs to interpret it for you.

7.57pm: Nicole has a steely glint in her eye here. Watch out!

7.57pm: Sara looks ecstatic but the rest of the contestants look a little tense. Still.

7.57pm: $2.9 million is astronomical and is a bid that has put Sara and Hayden in the lead.

7.56pm: Nicole seems particularly determined here.

7.55pm: And suddenly the silence stops, with quick bidding from three parties, including an unidentified man in a fetching black hat.

7.54pm: Nicole is grinning at the idea of snapping this pad up for a bargain price.

7.52pm: It was certainly very tense in the room. There’s something about silence on TV. Unlike peoples’ weight, it isn’t exaggerated.

7.50pm: One bid. And a long silence. Not a great start.

7.49pm: Why is Frank Valentic loitering in the corridor?

7.49pm: With a reserve of $2.475m, they are already above reserve thanks to a Nicole Jacobs bid.

7.48pm: The mood in the room when the auctioneer announced the pregnancy was pretty electric. Sara’s mum’s expression nearly blew my ear drum out!

7.47pm: It’s a boy!

7.46pm: “You’ve made The Block very interesting,” says Scott Cam. That’s an understatement. And that continues: Sara has announced she is pregnant.

7.45pm: Sara looks upbeat. I’m suspicious!

7.44pm: “This is enough,” says Spence. That $415,000 certainly puts them in the box seat.

7.44pm: Those women walking up the stairs just then were the inspectors from Consumer Affairs Victoria, checking everything went to plan and was above board.

7.42pm: Sara and Hayden up next. Will be interesting to see if buyers are more interested in it given the judges were often cold on their efforts.

7.42pm: That’ll buy a lot more land in the Barossa for a lot of space to make wine. Can’t wait.

7.41pm: SOLD! Kerrie and Spence at least have $415,000 in winnings. That is a very strong result.

7.41pm: And in just a matter of a few bids, we’re up to $2.85m, $415,000 over reserve thanks to a knockout bid from Greville Pabst.

7.40pm: Despite the long faces, to be $315,000 over reserve is strong, and now it’s $325,000. This is a good result.

7.39pm: Kerrie and Spence are looking quite relieved given they nearly walked off after the ceiling screw drama.

7.38pm: That Pokemon Go gag was a bit outdated, hey? Nothing like a dad joke!

7.36pm: Already $140k over reserve in just a couple of bids is very strong.

7.35pm: OK, we got above reserve very quickly!

7.32pm: Kerrie and Spence are considered to be the dark horses of the competition given their excellent finishes and their lower position in the building. It will appeal for sure to downsizers and overseas investors.

7.31pm: They’re just under reserve on the first bid thanks to buyers’ advocate Nicole Jacobs.

7.30pm: And Kerrie and Spence are up. Love Kerrie’s outfit. Here’s last year’s winning auctioneer, David Wood of Hocking Stuart.

7.30pm: Spence’s shirt is … interesting and Norm, couldn’t you have found some shoes that weren’t thongs?!

7.28pm: That grand piano in the challenge apartment is to die for.

7.27pm: There’s the crowd outside the building. It’s surprising the number of people who stayed outside the building for a couple of hours just to get a glimpse of what was happening inside.

7.26pm: Bianca and Carla are taking the outcome of a multimillion-dollar coin toss quite well.

7:25pm: It’s coming down to a coin toss. The most expensive decision of their lives is down to a coin toss. I can’t believe it.

7.24pm: Bianca looks close to tears. Jess has another buyer. It’s all happening.

7.23pm: Be selfish or selfless? Sophie’s Choice: 2018 faces Jess.

7.21pm: So jealous of whoever wins the challenge apartment through the Monopoly game, just quietly. It’s pretty super. See what it has here.

7.20pm: Tears before the first ad break. Told you not to make a drinking game out of tears.

7.18pm: Third is an interesting position to be in at auction – it doesn’t always lead to a winner. Last year, Josh and Elyse were first, Will and Karlie in 2016 were first and Dean and Shay in 2015 were fifth.

7.17pm: That’s an interesting move – Bianca and Carla and Norm and Jess get to have more time to decide their auction order.

7.17pm: Mates trying to decide what’s best for one is always tough.

7.17pm: Jess reckons they won’t sell if they go fourth. Bianca and Carla are really taking one for the team by going fourth.

7.16pm: I am really digging Bianca and Carla’s relaxed fashion vibe for this, btw.

7.15pm: Really sounds like our penthouse apartments could be in trouble tonight.

7.14pm: There are more confirmed buyers for the older apartments. That’s very interesting.

7.13pm: Dr Powell is 100% right, this is Melbourne’s fastest property price downturn in 25 years.  (And that graph there is her handiwork.)

7:12pm: Jess seems very impressed that our senior research analyst Nicola Powell is a “Dr”. We all are, Jess.

7.11pm: Don’t forget they then have the following discounts:

• Courtney and Hans: $40,000
• Hayden and Sara: $25,000
• Kerrie and Spence: $15,000
• Bianca and Carla: $10,000
• Norm and Jess: $0

7.11pm: Bianca and Carla have a $2.7m reserve and Jess and Norm $2.65m.

7.11pm: So it’s a $2.4m reserve for Courtney and Hans, $2.45m for Kerrie and Spence and $2.5 for Sara and Hayden.

7.10pm: Courtney looks like she’d rather be giving an organ for donation while still alive rather than dealing with her reserve.

7.09pm: Very few smiles. Very few.

7.08pm: Seems an odd place to collect briefcases from. It’s all looking a bit Deal or No Deal, isn’t it? Where’s Andrew O’Keefe?!

7.07pm: Our Prosegur friends don’t look like they’re having fun, anyway. At least that’s in keeping with the contestants’ feelings.

7.06pm: Don’t these Prosegur employees know they’re not being paid to play games?!

7.05pm: Now, to business. The reserves. At Luna Park, which seems a little off-putting given the face at the front of the park is smiling and the contestants will not be.

7.04pm: This highlights package has reminded me just how long ago bathroom week was.

7.03pm: Perhaps underrated in this series is how big a challenge it was to do the penthouses: it was literally a new build with frames going up all around the teams.

7.02pm: Also if you plan to not die of alcohol poisoning tonight, do not drink every time a contestant looks nervous or cries. Trust me. Please.

7.01pm: It’s been quite a journey. Ooops, the J word in reality TV. DRINK!

7.00pm: Oops, first a look ahead at a lot of other programs that aren’t The Block, if you can believe that that is possible.

6.59pm: Annnnnddddd we’re just seconds away, folks. Up first, deciding the auction order.

6.55pm: Believe me, you will be on the edge of your seat tonight. The contestants were particularly nervous this year given current Melbourne market conditions.

6.50pm: Be also watching at the start of one of the auctions in particular for a special announcement! No, it is not that I have found my lifelong love. I think I’ll be headed to another reality show for that.

6.45pm: Bianca and Carla also had an array of semi-naked men this season.

Exhibit A:

6.40pm: Also, a moment to remember the milk man. The random stranger who stunningly appeared in Bianca and Carla’s apartment without explanation.

6.35pm: One thing to look out for tonight is how many of the three regularly featured buyers’ advocates will bid, given they haven’t been particularly optimistic. One criticism of the apartments is that each only has one car space. Will that be an issue tonight?

6.30pm:  Take a look again at the properties about to go under the hammer:

• 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

6.28pm: Last year’s winners, Josh Barker and Elyse Knowles, wrote earlier this week that the teams should remember not to argue about the auction reserves because even though they seem high, they are fair. Let’s see how that pans out, hey?

6.20pm: Who do you think will win, and who do you want to win? Yes, they’re two different concepts. Tweet me @adrianlowe

6.15pm: The discounts on reserves for the auction tonight:

• Courtney and Hans: $40,000
• Hayden and Sara: $25,000
• Kerrie and Spence: $15,000
• Bianca and Carla: $10,000
• Norm and Jess: $0

6.10pm: The most recent winners of the room reveals were Hans and Courtney. Their victories in the two challenge apartment room reveals means they have a $40,000 discount on their reserve price.

6.00pm: The most controversial room reveal of the season was master ensuite week, when Sara stormed off the show, only to return when she realised how much money was at stake. Three weeks of coming bottom of the ladder really got to her.

5.50pm: Norm and Jess took out the Domain magazine cover prize, awarded by national managing editor Alice Stolz. Here, read Alice’s explanation as to why Norm and Jess won the coveted prize.

5.45pm: Less than 90 minutes to go! Hope you’ve got something strong to drink because I don’t – the boss wouldn’t let me because I tend to get a bit *too* sassy-mean. And while I’m no Fashion Critical, sure, I’ll certainly be giving you my thoughts on some of the outfits the contestants chose. I was at the auctions and let’s just say some fared better in the fashion stakes than others.

5.35pm: Equally, three Block tradies also spilled the dirt on what you don’t see that happens behind the scenes.

5.20pm: Earlier this year, Domain columnist and Block judge Darren Palmer wrote on what you don’t see on the show and warned prospective contestants to “be careful what you wish for”.

5.05pm: If you’re watching from outside Victoria, it’s probably worthwhile brushing up to see how auctions work in Victoria. Melbourne is regarded as the property auction capital of the world. There were 1399 auctions outside The Block yesterday in Melbourne.

4.50pm: There’s concern this year that with a cooling Melbourne property market that not all the apartments will sell under the hammer.

4.30pm: Every year, the auction order is decided by the contestants and is always contentious. But does the auction order really matter?

4.14pm: Who do the experts think will take out the prize? Take a look here.

3.51pm: While we’re waiting for the finale to begin, take a look back at our coverage of this season and get up to speed.

3.46pm: Thanks for joining us today, good to have your company.