The Block's best houses: A look back at Domain's favourites over the past 20 years
There are a few of us at Domain who have been watching – and covering – The Block for more years than it takes to save for a house.
So, a long time.
We are invested in each and every season. Sometimes it’s the extraordinary efforts of the contestants that get us hooked. Other times it’s the ideas: the sheer beauty of the interiors, the cleverness of the design, the inspiration we can draw from, or more likely dream of, for our own homes. And, not gonna lie, sometimes it’s also the drama.
Every season is different in its own way, of course. The building and interior trends that are surfaced by contestants drawn from across the nation often highlight the different ways Australians live, work and play.
Queenslanders trying to build a house in a tree-change Victorian location in Melbourne weather? Bonkers.
Western Australians designing and renovating an inner-city Melbourne apartment? How on earth do they do it?
Fortune favours the bold, and contestants of The Block are certainly bold. It’s a joy to watch these properties come together each season, and every year we wonder, how on earth do they manage to survive it? They’re all amazing.
But we do have our favourites. There are just some houses or apartments, and contestants, that have stood out for us over the 20 years that The Block has been on our TVs. Here are our picks:
Alexandra Spangaro, head of content marketing
- Team: Jess and Norm
- House: 4
- Year: Season 14, 2018
The 2018 season of The Block, when contestants renovated the former Gatwick Hotel, delivered my all time favourite Block property. From a season of high drama (aren’t they all?) that saw five very distinct (hello gold bath!) properties created, it was the penthouse apartment by Queenslanders Jess and Norm that still lives rent-free in my brain.
I’ve been lucky enough to tour a number of The Block properties over the years, yet the feeling of stepping into their light-flooded penthouse, with its soaring ceilings and soft colour palette, is one that hasn’t left me. Floating high above the hustle and bustle of St Kilda’s iconic Fitzroy Street, the couple’s apartment filled me with an instant sense of calm, which is what I crave in a home.
The kitchens (yes, plural because that butler’s pantry is almost as big as my own kitchen) is what dreams are made of for someone like me who loves to cook. I love that you can take in the whole living space, right out into the green of the terrace, from the vantage of the island bench, or hide away in the butler’s pantry when you want to escape your family.
I thought their use of styling to create zones on the terrace was smart, as did the judges who gave them a perfect score for their efforts in this space. They extended the footprint of the interior with the covered outdoor dining space (essential in Melbourne) and added a separate lounge spot to relax in the sunshine.
Jess and Norm’s efforts won them the Domain Magazine cover, so I was a little shocked at the time that they didn’t have better traction at auction, coming in last place.
Six years on though, they are still winners in my eyes.
Alice Stolz, national property editor
- Team: Rachel and Ryan
- House: 2
- Year: Tree Change, Season 18, 2022
Among my greatest hits of The Block, I loved Rachel and Ryan’s house from season 18 in 2022.
It was such a brilliant execution of a family home. The layout was considered and the feel and style of the house had that quiet luxury vibe – not too loud and proud but not at all lean and mean.
Ultimately what I loved was that it was just such a cracking family house – communal and inviting, but with enough nooks and crannies for children to roam and for parents to hide. That’s my way of living!
And for the runners-up, I loved Ronnie and Georgia’s house in Regent Street, Elsternwick, in 2017. I love period houses and I thought they created such a stylish and practical inner-Melbourne family abode in a gorgeous part of our city.
Jessica Dale, advice & living editor
- Team: Michael & Carlene
- House: 1
- Year: The Glasshouse, Season 9, 2014
I’m going back to the archives for my favourite house (apartment) on The Block.
I’m not sure how it’s happened, but it’s close to 10 years ago that five couples took on the transformation of an old office space in Prahran for the season dubbed Glasshouse.
At the time, it was the biggest Block ever completed – but it pales in comparison to last year’s Tree Change season.
A lot can change in 10 years, but Michael and Carlene’s apartment is still a stand-out for me.
I loved the inherent style the couple had. I loved the bold choices they made. I loved the brick wall they built in their living room and the warmth it brought to that space. I loved the artwork. I loved the colour combinations throughout – those green cupboards and that blue-grey wall in the bedroom, divine! I loved the warmth they bought to inner-city living.
But most of all, what I love to this day, is the way it made me feel. This season was the one that ignited my love for architecture, interior design and styling, and is why I keep watching each year.
Watching their auction unfold was agony – I couldn’t believe that people hadn’t fallen in love with the place, as I had, and the couple left with only $10,000 for their efforts.
Ellen Lutton, news & insights editor
- Team: Kirsty & Jesse
- House: 5
- Year: Fans v Faves, Season 17, 2021
I’ve been in a relationship with The Block for longer than I’ve loved my husband, so you can take my word for it when I say it will never not be a travesty and an outrage that Kirsty and Jesse’s Hamptons-inspired two-storey dream house did not win the series in 2021.
I am not a Melbourne local. I am so very far from a sophisticated inner-city dweller and I am most definitely no interior design expert. I am, by my own admission, basic, which is perhaps why their Hamptons-slash-coastal – is that even right? – vibe felt so good to me.
Their house was somehow gorgeous and yet ordinary at the same time; all the white, the timber floors, the soft blues and the natural light. The sheer prettiness of it all. It felt relatable – less like a design statement and more like a home.
I loved the spaciousness of House 5. The fact there was room to move and grow and change, as families inevitably do, rather than tiny spaces stacked on top of one another, made it seem a real home someone could live in. Inside and outside, there was space. I like space.
Kirsty and Jesse, you were robbed.
My runner-up: Dylan and Jenny, from the 2022 Gisborne season.
Beats me why this house didn’t win last year. Even more shocking is that it was the last to sell, taking until three months after the auctions to land a buyer.
Again, I am no design expert, but honestly – how? I blame last year’s tanking property market.
Their property was beautiful. Wasn’t a fan of the yellow-brick fireplace surround and the pool was too far from the house but otherwise, this was a GEM. A spectacular, luxurious and liveable gem that hands down had the best kitchen of the season.
They did nothing weird. They made the most of the views and kept the interiors of the house in line with the spectacular surroundings. They built the biggest deck. They are from Queensland.
Dylan and Jenny: you were also robbed.
Danielle Giannopoulos, head of production
- Team: Andy & Deb
- House: 3
- Year: The Oslo, Season 15, 2019
After six years of covering The Block for Domain, Andy and Deb’s 2019 home beats the pack by a mile for me. Not only is the St Kilda apartment easy on the eye, but it also holds a special story that had me gripped at its auction.
Week after week, The Oslo renovation was a delight to watch unfold. The home glowed with natural light and was designed with ease of living in mind. Neutral tones intermixed with pinks and greens (despite Neale Whitaker comparing the second guest bedroom bedspread to a “prawn cocktail”) balanced mass buyer appeal with their unique style.
The pièce de résistance was the kitchen. Scoring a 29.5 out of 30 from the judges, the gargantuan void, island bench, stools and styling made it particularly memorable. When my parents renovated their kitchen the following year and asked for my advice, Andy and Deb’s vision was where I drew my inspiration from.
I’ll never forget when, in the days before the auctions, Andy and Deb’s Wallabi Point home on the mid-north coast became threatened by some of the worst bushfires the country had seen. The family had neighbours protecting their home as their Block auction was taking place.
It was wonderful to watch them take home $430,000 in prize money despite coming third, knowing what they were experiencing behind the scenes.
Runner up: Tom & Sarah-Jane’s 2022 Gisborne home. It’s safe to say the judges’ favourites don’t always walk away with the most cash, but their result had me floored. Stunning home, which is even more so in the flesh, and the perfect example of injecting colour into a home without completely alienating minimalists at heart.
Hailey Coules, senior editorial producer
- Team: Josh and Elyse
- House: 5
- Year: Elsternwick, Season 13, 2017
The Blockhead in me comes out in full force when tasked with choosing a favourite, and it’s hard not to reminisce on truly iconic design choices like the golden bath at The Gatwick or the “crime scene” paint-splatter room from Sky High, but alas, my top pick has got to be Season 13’s Josh and Elyse.
The land at 46 Regent Street was divided into five blocks and had rundown weatherboards plonked down as each couple’s soon-to-be project. Josh and Elyse were assigned House 5, dubbed “Brighton” as a nod to its original location.
These guys were the couple to beat, winning a whopping six out of 12 room reveals, not to mention scoring two perfect scores of 30 and another two close calls of 29.5 – classic Shaynna not happy with perfection.
Their uptake of classic, clean and relaxed style combined with their hard-working attitude won the viewers’ and the judges’ hearts, and in my opinion has resulted in one of the most timeless Block builds we have ever seen. Not all of the seasons have choices that will stand the test of time like this one (I’m looking at you, floral wallpaper circa 2017).
On auction day, the couple took the win with a massive $447,000 over reserve, thanks to radio legend Dave “Hughesy” Hughes placing the winning bid of $3.067 million, leaving Josh and Elyse with a healthy $547,00 in their pockets once the winners’ prize had been added.
Just this week on air with co-host Erin Molan, Hughesy has hinted that he has received offers “similar” to $5 million for his investment, but since his purchase the home has been rented for $2000 a week, according to the property’s profile on Domain.
A close runner-up for me would have to be Ronnie & Georgia’s Bronte Court, Hampton, house from 2021’s season. It’s flooded with light, has stunning parquetry flooring, and who could go past the starry ceiling of their winning basement theatre room?
It is flat-out unbelievable they made the least amount of cash on auction day, and I hate to say it, Ronnie’s tantrum did make bloody good TV.
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