The Block

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Shannon Vos, the larrikin tradie turned interior design consultant who won The Block Glasshouse in 2014 with his brother Simon, has upsized in the Sutherland Shire with wife Lisa.

With two young boys, Dusty Mac and Raffa, they needed more space than their two-bedroom Cronulla townhouse-style apartment.

They’ve recently bought at Port Hacking where they spent $1,285,000 on a mid-’80s four- bedroom home.

<img alt="" src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2019/9/27/hacking%202.jpg">

“We wanted a home that will evolve with the kids’ needs as they grow from toddlers into teenagers and this house fits the bill perfectly. Pool, backyard, huge driveway, plenty of space, battle-axe block and a great neighbourhood,” Vos, who runs interior design practice Vos Creative, said.

“We have plans to renovate the whole home, but we don’t need to change anything or ever extend.”

They are hoping to turn the renovation into an online series with realestate.com.au, with no doubt a few mentions for Beaumont Tiles, Carpet Court and Wideline Windows and Doors for whom he is an ambassador.

“We’re excited and totally blessed to be able to be in the housing market for starters and to be able to raise our two boys in such a beautiful area,” he said.

The Block Prahran apartment renovated by the Coffs Harbour-raised brothers sold under the hammer for $1.9 million, some $335,000 over reserve, plus they also pocketed the $100,000 prizemoney.

Shannon, who had popped the question to Lisa just before filming for the Nine show, wanted to win the hit renovation show to buy a “love nest” by the beach with Lisa.

It cost $750,000 in 2015 for the two-level apartment.

The keen surfer has recently been working on a Torquay home project for a client.

This article first appeared in The Sunday Telegraph.

<h2>NSW properties currently selling:</h2>

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The Block 2014 winner Shannon Vos and wife Lisa buys Shire family home

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The former NAB banker Lukas Kamay has been sentenced to jail for seven years, three months. The minimum served with be four years, six months.

Kamay was accused of using insider Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) information to make over $7 million by trading in the Australian dollar online over 10 months.

Police alleged Kamay, of Melbourne, used confidential ABS statistics to trade online, betting against foreign exchange derivative movements in the Australian dollar after allegedly being in receipt of national economic, retail trade and labour-force statistics before the normal 11.30am release.

Kamay plead guily to the charges. His accomplice, former ABS analyst Christopher Hill, was sentenced to three years and three months, to serve a minimum of two years.

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Supreme Court Justice Elizabeth Hollingworth said it was "the worst instance of insider trading to come before the courts in this country".

Kamay spent some of the proceeds on an apartment in The Block Albert Park.

His headline grabbing Albert Park purchase was the luxury apartment decorated by the runner-up Adelaide twins, Alisa and Lysandra which sold at its April auction for $2,375,000 —<a href="https://www.dinglepartners.com.au/index.cfm?pageCall=property&amp;propertyID=2618525" style="line-height: 1.3em;" target="_blank"> a massive $616,000 above the reserve of $1,759,000</a>. 

The Sunday Herald Sun <a href="https://ow.ly/i/5wuz5/original" target="_blank">uncovered Kamay's $2,375,000 purchase</a>.

<img alt="HS_cover_SUN.jpg" src="https://static.ow.ly/photos/original/5wuz5.jpg" title="HS_cover_SUN.jpg">

Source: Ow.ly

The three bedroom apartment was marketed for Alisa and Lysandra, the former SA police officers, by the Melbourne CBD agents, Anton Wongtrakun and Rochelle Wilson from Dingle Partners.

Apartment 3 at 47 O'Grady Street (feature picture above) was resold mid-2014.

Investors paid $2,375,000 to buy after the televised initial purchase did not proceed to settlement.

The replacement buyers had the apartment advertised for rent at $2,500 a week through Dingle Partners.
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Seven years jail for The Block Albert Park-buying ABS insider trader Lukas Kamay

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The bullied Cairns couple Tess and Luke Struber took home the grand prize as the winners of The Block 2019 after 14 weeks of stressful renovation.

Channel Nine manipulated the reserves which were set at $2.990 million for all of the five three-storey terraces, although the terraces at either end were expected to have the higher longterm value.

The official price guide required by Victorian Government legislation had been $3 million to $3.3 million.

Buyers’ advocate Frank Valentic described them as "very, very comfortable reserves."

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Experienced renovators, Mitch &amp; Mark saw the hammer come down at $3.374 million, which was $384,000 over reserve.

It sold to seasoned Block bidder, Danny Wallis, who previously purchased 403 Dorcas St in South Melbourne on the fifth season of The Block for $1,400,001.01.

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The next auction was the newlyweds Tess &amp; Luke who secured $3.620 million, some $630,000 over reserve.

Barrister Rick Horsley, SC, was the buyer of the Tess and Luke’s terrace at 38B Gray Street. He had bid unsuccessfully last year.

“The first time I walked into this one, I hated it,” Mr Horsley told Nine Entertainment after the auction.

Perth parents El’ise &amp; Matt got $3.450 million, which was $460,000 over their reserve, and the runners-up.

It sold to expatriates who plan on leasing the property out while they remain overseas.

Andy &amp; Deb sold their house for $3.420 million, $430,000 over reserve.

The latest auction was real estate agent Jesse and girlfriend Mel who secured $388,000 over the reserve when their house sold for $3.378 million.

Buyers’ advocate Greville Pabst bought Jesse and Mel’s house on behalf of a Melbourne professional couple.

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Highlighting the limited buyer pool, Pabst also bidding on behalf of Aconex co-founder Rob Phillpot, for whom he bought both penthouses last year, but the tech entrepreneur did not win any of the auctions on Saturday.

Valentic's buyer of Andy and Deb’s house were underbidders in the Gatwick last year. 

Valentic bid on all five properties for a number of investors.

They are a Caulfield North family.

The buyers’ advocate Nicole Jacobs did not have any clients purchase any of the Oslo terraces. 
  
Tess and Luke took home an extra $100,000, delivering them $730,000 in winnings. 

Hocking Stuart Albert Park agent auctioneer David Wood sold Tess and Luke’s home at 38B Grey Street. 

Wood also sold the winning home in the 2017 season.

He said the acoustic separation and self-contained flat at the back of the home secured the victory for 38B.

Host Scott Cam, along with Shelley Craft, are back for the program's 16th series in Brighton in 2020. 
  
The latest winnings taking total prizemoney across 15 seasons to $23.1 million.

Tess and Luke, the team who couldn’t bear to watch The Block because they’d been so bullied by producers, once said they wished they’d never gone on.

“Tell you what, they love The Block now," host Scott Cam, said after the result, showing he still couldn't help himself. 

Meanwhile the finale ratings fell yet again with 1.924m tuning in.

Last year’s (time-adjusted figures) had 2.021m tuning in while the year prior had 2.462m.

PREVIOUS BLOCK WINNERS 2003 - BONDI – Adam &amp; Fiona, $256,000 2004 - MANLY – Jamie &amp; Andrew, $178,000 2010 - VAUCLUSE – John &amp; Neisha, $305,000 2011 - RICHMOND – Polly &amp; Waz, $115,000 2012 - SOUTH MELBOURNE – Brad &amp; Lara, $606,000 2013 - ALL STARS (BONDI) – Phil &amp; Amity, $395,000 2013 - SKY HIGH (SOUTH MELBOURNE) – Alisa &amp; Lysandra, $395,000 2014 - FANS v FAVES (ALBERT PARK) – Steve &amp; Chantelle, $736,000 2014 - GLASSHOUSE (PRAHRAN) – Shannon &amp; Simon, $435,000 2015 - TRIPLE THREAT (SOUTH YARRA) – Darren &amp; Deanne, $935,000 2015 - THE BLOCKTAGON (SOUTH YARRA) – Dean &amp; Shay, $755,000 2016 - THE BLOCK 2016 (PORT MELBOURNE) – Will &amp; Karlie, $815,000 2017 – THE BLOCK 2017 (ELSTERNWICK) – Josh &amp; Elyse, $547,000 2018 - THE BLOCK GATWICK (ST KILDA) – Hayden &amp; Sara, $645,000
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Rick Horsley SC spends $3.62 million to buy Tess and Luke's The Block Oslo terrace

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With this year's television program The Block ending, here is a list compiled of the most successful and unsuccessful scores on The Block since the show started.

The highest scorers from this year's judging were Kingi and Carlo, but how did they fare against previous years?

35. Polly and Waz - Cameron Street, Richmond.

34. Mike and Andrew - Dorcas Street, South Melbourne

33. Amie and Katrina - Cameron Street, Richmond

32. Dan and Dani - Dorcas Street, South Melbourne

31. Tim and Anatasia - Triple Threat - Lowest room score in history (eight out of 30 for their study and staircase)

30. Rod and Tania - Cameron Street, Richmond

29. Dan and Dani - All Stars

28. Brad and Lara - Dorcas Street, South Melbourne

27. Josh and Jenna - Cameron Street, Richmond

26. Mark and Duncan - All Stars

25. Andrew and Whitney - Blocktagon.

24. Luke and Ebony - Blocktagon.

23. Chris and Jenna - Glasshouse

22. Dale and Sophie - Dorcas Street, South Melbourne

21. Josh and Jenna - All Stars

20. Chantelle and Steve - Fans v Faves

19. Ayden and Jess - Triple Threat

18. Suzi and Vonni - Blocktagon

17. Phil and Amity - All Stars

16. Darren and Diane - Triple Threat

15. Alisa and Lysandra - Fans v Faves

14. Madi and Jarrod - Sky High

13. Dean and Shay - Blocktagon

12. Trixie and Johnno - Sky High

11. Bec and George - Sky High

10. Josh and Charlotte - Triple Threat

9. Karstan and Max - Glasshouse

8. Kyal and Kara - Fans v Faves

7. Brad and Dale - Fans v Faves

6. Alisa and Lysandra - Sky High

5. Matt and Kim - Sky High

4. Shannon and Simon - Glasshouse

3. Darren and Deanna - Glasshouse

2. Kingi and Carlo - Blocktagon

1. Michael and Carlene - Glasshouse

With four properties in the top 10, the Glasshouse had the strongest average whereas the weakest judging scores came at Cameron Street, Richmond. 

We will no doubt get a bunch of newbie contestants next year, for Fairfax Media to further dwell on, though there's no indication yet that another site has been selected for another series.

<h2>Recently listed properties:</h2>

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The best and worst contestants on The Block of all time

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An apartment in the Port Melbourne The Block 2016 conversion has been sold having come with an asking price between $1.8 million and $1.98 million.

The three-level apartment at 7/164 Ingles Street was not one of the apartments whose renovation was aired.

It was instead renovated by builders from Liefting Merlo Homes who bought the space in 2017, after the reality TV show had wrapped.

Bekdon Richards Hawthorn agent Paul Richards had the listing of the three bedroom, three bathroom apartment. The sale price has not been revealed.

It was briefly listed in 2019, with $1.78 million to $1.9 million hopes, and up for rent when offered last year with a $1200 weekly asking rental.

The ground floor comes with bedroom, study nook and bathroom with heated flooring. 

The first floor has an open plan lounge, dining space, and a stone kitchen with large wine fridge.  

The very top level boasts two bedrooms including the master retreat.

The building was a Velvet soap factory.

The 12th season of the Channel 9 show saw Queensland contestants William Bethune and Karlie Cicero take home $815,000 prize money after their winning $2.6 million sale.

The show’s host Scott Cam spent $2.2 million in 2017 to secure the apartment that all five contestant couples renovated.
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The three-level apartment at 7/164 Ingles Street was not one of the apartments whose renovation was aired

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Apartment in Port Melbourne The Block 2016 conversion sold

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The Prahran apartment renovated on The Block in 2014 by contestants Darren and Dea Jolly has been resold at $2.2 million.

The apartment from the Glasshouse season of The Block fetched $820,000 more than its $1.38 million sale on the show’s finale.

The three-bedroom apartment at 6/125 High Street fetched above its $1.9 million price guide at its mid-February auction given four bidders.

“I think Prahran is a bit of an iffy suburb,’’ Dea said after its 2014 result.

“It was a bizarre result,’’ she told the Herald Sun.

“You have two apartments who kill it, and three just die, it’s just not what nobody would have guessed.

“One apartment that did well was facing the south with all that noise, and the other had no external windows.”
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The apartment from the Glasshouse season of The Block fetched $820,000 more than its $1.38 million sale on the show’s finale

Prahran apartment from The Block 2014 resold for a profit

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One of the Block Prahran Glasshouse apartments from last year’s season of The Block renovation series has been snappily resold.
It fetched $2.01 million, making a quick $285,000 gain in just eight months for investor Tina Brandi.
The three-bedroom apartment at 5/125 High Street was the one renovated in the group challenge where all five teams collaborated during the final Glasshouse episodes last October.
The apartment sold to a local businessman for $2.01 million through Biggin &amp; Scott Richmond agents Russell Cambridge and Allan Cove.
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<div class="image-frame"><img src="https://resources0.news.com.au/images/2015/07/27/1227458/554344-a518cedc-30de-11e5-b8b7-8c65da63768b.jpg" alt="The apartment at 5/125 High St, Prahran sold for $2.01 million last month." width="650" height="366"></div>
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The townhouse was sold a week after the show last October for $1.725 million. 
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Resale in the Prahran Block Glasshouse

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GUEST OBSERVER
Washington Brown has crunched the numbers on The Block’s latest development in Melbourne’s inner-city bayside suburb of Port Melbourne, and something just doesn’t add up.
From a financial point of view the development, which consisted of transforming a 1920s art deco building into a luxury apartment block, was one of the worst I have ever seen.
While I understand the magic of television, Channel 9 have outdone David Copperfield in creating the illusion of a profit to the public!.
Let's look at the numbers:
According to reports Channel 9 bought the site for around $5 million, which allowed for 6 apartments. Only 5 were sold on TV and for calculation purposes let’s say the acquisition costs is $4.2 million.
The construction cost and depreciation allowances totalled over $11 million, for the 5 apartments.  
That’s $15.2 million alone in construction and acquisition costs.
It’s worth noting that under the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 the initial vendor (ie. the developer) has an obligation to pass on the actual costs of construction to the purchaser, where the costs are known.
Let’s not forget there’s then a variety of other costs involved in buying and selling, and undertaking the development, including:
<ul>
<li>Stamp duty</li>
<li>GST on the sale</li>
<li>Demolition</li>
<li>Marketing</li>
<li>Agents’ fees</li>
<li>Legal fees</li>
<li>Interest</li>
<li>Rates</li>
</ul>
Whilst some of these costs may have been avoided due to contra deals, the bulk would have to be outlaid by Channel 9.
I estimate these additional costs to conservatively be $2 million, which brings the total cost to $17.2 million.
The Block’s<a href="https://www.domain.com.au/news/the-block-2016-will-and-karlie-win-and-take-home-815000-in-prize-money-20161113-gsoefv/" target="_blank"> total sales </a>realised just a little over $12 million, leaving the development in the red by around $5 million, yet it has been indicated that <a href="https://www.domain.com.au/news/the-block-2016-the-auctions/" target="_blank">profits</a> of up to $715,000 were made by the contestants. 
That something David Copperfield would be in awe of.
You know it’s the peak of the market when reality TV shows are pulling rabbits out of a hat to show a profit.
Whilst the contestants may have walked away with some ‘profit’, if the numbers are to be believed as shown on the show that development was a stinker.
Tyron Hyde is director, Washington Brown, and can be contacted <a href="https://www.washingtonbrown.com.au" target="_blank">here</a>.
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How successful was The Block Port Melbourne as a development?

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The Prahran apartment renovated by Darren and Dee Jolly on the 2014 series of The Block has hit the market for the first time.

The two-level warehouse conversion last sold for $1.38 million in 2014.

It has just been listed again through Marshall White Fraser Cahill with a price range of $1.65 million to $1.75 million.

The three bedroom, two bathroom space at 6/125 High Street was one of the five residences in a building known as The Glasshouse.

It comes with a gourmet kitchen with four Bosch ovens, including a steamer, and a butler’s pantry.

It was previously office space.

Offers are due February 23.

The marketing advises the addresses of recently sold comparable property as:

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<li>14/7 Gordon Street Toorak 3142 - $1,800,000</li>
	<li>1901/572 St Kilda Road Melbourne 3004 - $1,800,000</li>
	<li>1003/454 St Kilda Road Melbourne 3004 - $1,690,000</li>
</ol>
There was a resale of 5/125 High Street in 2019 with its 232 sqm space fetching $2,275,000 having fetched $1,724,000 at its 2014 auction.
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The Prahran apartment renovated by Darren and Dee Jolly on the 2014 series of The Block has hit the market for the first time

Darren and Dee Jolly's 2014 The Block unit offered for the first time

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The Killarney Vale couple Kara and Kyal Demmrich – contestants on Channel Nine's The Block Albert Park series – have bought again on the NSW Central Coast.
Their new home is a cottage at Bateau Bay in the Wyong municipality that cost $580,000, with the prize money they earnt coming in handy. 
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It is an original cottage,<a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-nsw-bateau+bay-117226003" target="_blank"> </a>with a north facing front yard on a level 639 square metre block, within easy walk to Shelly and Blue Lagoon Beaches.  
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They sold this week for $735,000 at Killarney Vale, which is five ams away from their next project.
They bought, then renovated their first home in 2008 having paid $285,000, after getting married in February 2007.
Agent Chantel Laing-Chadwick at George Brand Real Estate Avoca Beach/Copacabana described their recently sold house as an "architectural masterpiece".
Last year the couple appeared in The Block: Fans v Faves as the so-called Super Ks.
Around the time of the April Albert Park auction, the couple indicated they were planning to launch a boutique renovations company called Diverse Design and Construct.
The couple also suggested they were considering a move from their home in the Tuggerah Lakes precinct.
“We haven’t thought about it too seriously, but our long-term goal is to get ourselves as close to the coast as possible. So we’re thinking about selling, maybe in the next 12 months," Kyal told Property Observer.
The Super Ks were given the highest reserve of any apartment – $1.9 million – after a stellar number of winning challenges and room reveals.
But they finished third behind Steve and Chantelle and Alisa and Lysandra on auction day.
They indicated they could pay off the mortgage with their $567,250 in prize money.
Bateau Bay's médian house price sits at <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/property-observer" target="_blank">$500,000</a>, record levels, while Killarney Vale's median house price likewise tav record levels, but <a href="https://www.urban.com.au/property-observer" target="_blank">$375,000</a>, according to CoreLogic RP Data.
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