The Block St Kilda set for largest renovation yet in 2018
When it comes to property stars, like every year since 2010, The Block returns to our screens next year when they take on their seventh consecutive Melbourne project.
It will be on seedy Fitzroy Street, St Kilda with filming set to start next month.
The infamous 64 room Spanish Mission Gatwick Hotel boarding house cost the biggest outlay yet for the Channel 9 venture, some $10 million.
Elsternwick cost $9.4 million.
According to plans designed by Brenchley Architects, there will be eight St Kilda apartments (below).
The existing roof will be partly demolished, with a new top storey level built to house two rooftop apartments.
The other six will have three bedrooms.
The first and second floor apartments will feature “winter garden” style balconies within glass Louvre windows.
The building’s car park will have six car spaces and bicycle parking.
The top rating renovation series has all but quit Sydney, and never embraced the Gold Coast as long suggested.
They have only done two Sydney series, Vaucluse and Bondi since its return to television in 2010, having filmed its initial two series at Bondi Beach and Manly back in 2003 and 2004.
The producers claim Melbourne councils are easier to work with although there were some 11 infringement notices each at $1586 handed out during Elsternwick renovations.
Their alumni of contestant couples always provide the weekend auction pages with aplenty.
Just last weekend couple Bec and George Douros - who competed in the Sky High series - were weekend buyers in Melbourne's Williamstown and Kyal and Kara Demmrich sold on the NSW Central Coast.
Bec and George paid $1,115,000 for their cottage where there had been $940,000 to $970,000 price guidance through Michael Harvey at Williams Real Estate.
It had sold in 1985 at $73,000.
After the auction, a heavily pregnant Bec posted her joy on Instagram.
Bec spoke of her "excitement of finally buying a home in our dream location after 12 months of looking."
She added they now have two mortgages, two builds and another baby coming next year.
"We will be renting this while we get some designs made up.
"Moving straight into this would have been much easier but no rest for the wicked!" she advised, adding they are officially booked out next year with design seeking clients.
Serial renovators Kyal and Kara Demmrich pocketed $1.59 million when their Long Jetty renovation project went to auction.
The expectant reno duo who starred in the 2014 Fans V Faves series on The Block had paid $710,000 earlier this year before their rebuild.
There were 13 registered bidder fans of the retro-influenced feel of the Palm Springs.
Earlier this year Block originals Gavin Atkins and Warren Sonin, or 'Gav and Waz', bought back into Potts Point.
They have snapped up an $890,000 one bedroom apartment in the Zenith building that was on the market for just eight days.
Their purchase was merely another investment as they remain living on the Sunshine Coast hinterland at Cooroy Mountain.
Dea and Darren Jolly, stars of two series of Channel 9 show, The Block, secured a $1.8 million charming unrenovated Sorrento cottage on Melbourne's pricey Mornington Peninsula coastal playground.
This time last year Blockheads Dan Reilly and Dani Wales secured a $1.3 million sale for the inner-west Seddon period home which was bought by the Griffiths family from Crookwell in country New South Wales.