With 14 series of The Block auctions to his credit, auctioneer Damien Cooley is well versed on the unpredictability of auction day but admits he could never have envisaged the phenomenal season finale results.
Mr Cooley, who kicked off the weekend’s nail-biting Mt Eliza auctions by selling Adam and Jolene’s House 1 for $3.905 million, told realestate.com.au having all five homes sell under the hammer for significant sums was an incredible outcome.
The Block’s highly anticipated auction day resulted in all homes selling well over their $3.45 million reserves, with contestants walking away with prize money ranging from $367,000 to $1.37 million.
Adam and Jolene’s auctioneer Damien Cooley has auctioned properties on 14 seasons of The Block. Picture: Channel 9
Leading up to the day, Mr Cooley, from Cooley Auctions, said with nine registered bidders there was a lot of confidence Adam and Jolene had the best positioned house of all five homes within the development, enhanced by superior ocean views.
“From a result point of view I am incredibly thrilled for all of the contestants, disappointed in some respects for Adam and Jolene not to have sold for more, and not to have won,” he said.
“But they are absolutely over the moon with winning $450,000. These are genuine, life-changing results for all of the contestants, it was an incredibly happy mood for all involved and a great season for The Block.”
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Adam and Jolene’s house was one of the favourites to win due to its popularity with the judges and its water views. Picture: Channel 9
The new owners of House 1 are an Mt Eliza based family who bought the home for their brother, who had planned to build new but changed their minds upon viewing House 1.
“They just decided that there was no way that that they could build that property and get as good a quality finishes for the same value proposition that they could buy this home for,” Mr Cooley said.
“That’s the reason why they really wanted to buy it, and he openly said after the auction that he felt that this was the best house in The Block.”
The eleventh hour auction order change
However, Mr Cooley said he was disappointed he was not consulted about the controversial last minute change to the auction order, which saw the eventual winner, Courtney and Sev’s House 4 move to second place in a swap with House 2.
“Once they decide on an order of sale, that’s the decision, and all of the couples are consulted on where they want to be,” he said.
“In this instance, as far as I’m aware, we weren’t. I certainly was not consulted on any change. I only found out when I arrived at The Block on the day, and not being consulted on that, I was disappointed.”
Adam and Jolene walked away with half a million dollars, but their auctioneer Damien Cooley said the result could have been very different if the larger downtown houses went first. Picture: Channel 9
The five home’s Mackillop Place location, saw the homes split into an “Uptown” section consisting of Houses 1, 2 and 3, and a “Downtown” section with Houses 4 and 5.
Houses 1 and 3 were elevated two-storey homes, and for the first time in the show’s history, included water views.
Meanwhile, Houses 4 and 5 were lower on the site with a more spread-out dual-level layout, with a larger ground floor and smaller first floor.
Mr Cooley said with House 4 having the highest number of registered bidders, it was evident buyers were willing to pay more for the two downtown homes, compared to the ocean view uptown homes.
“If House 4 had have gone first and got the result that they got, and then House 5 (went next) I think that it would have really lifted the expectation of the buyers for the top three uptown homes,” he said.
The downtown houses, including Courtney and Sev’s winning House 4 (pictured) had larger backyards, which in the end proved more valuable than the water views of the uptown houses. Picture: Channel 9
Mr Cooley said in the end, the result was clear: buyers favoured the two lower located houses with bigger land sizes.
“I guess I feel some disappointment for the houses up top now knowing the result, because you know they were up against it to win as a result of land size …in real estate terms, I wouldn’t have picked that. So hindsight’s always a wonderful thing.”
The boost The Block needed
After last year’s devastating auction in Daylesford in regional Victoria where two homes failed to sell under the hammer — largely blamed on the “unrealistic” $2.99 million reserve prices — Mr Cooley, who sold winners Britt and Taz’s home, said this year’s outcome was a stark contrast.
A great result for all contestants was just what The Block needed after last year’s disappointing results. Picture: Channel 9
He labelled 2026’s success as a “real brand builder for The Block as a TV show.”
“Credit to the producers on The Block for one …buying good sites, two, building incredibly well-built homes,” he said.
“I’ve done 14 appearances on The Block, and by looking at the sheer size of the homes and the quality of the finishes, (they) were exceptional.”
