The Block NZ's secret auction: What locals think the houses sold for

The four teams taking part in the 10th season of The Block NZ went to auction at the end of last week, but what their homes sold for – if they sold at all – are being kept firmly under wraps.

The three-bedroom terrace houses on the hills above Orewa, north of Auckland city, were offered to bidders at a private auction on September 17, but the results won't be revealed until the final episode is screened next month.

In TV-land work on the exteriors of the four terraced houses on Ringi Lane, in the Pacific Heights suburb above the north Auckland beach town of Orewa has just reached our screens, but in real life the listings have come down and marketing is over.

OneRoof asked agents in the town what they thought the houses would sell for, based on the spring market in the beachtown.

Most expected the homes to fetch around $1.3 million under the hammer.

That’s well short of the $2.825m that last year’s winners, Tim and Arthur, got for their stylish stand-alone townhouse in the inner-city Auckland suburb of Point Chevalier. The other three houses in that season of the show sold for between $2.745m and $2.692m - at the height of the market.

Recent settled sales figures from OneRoof’s data partner Valocity figures show that new four-bedroom standalone houses in Orewa are selling for $1.5m while a three-bed townhouse around Arran Point, Milldale, a more desirable area closer to the water, fetched $1.15m back in May.

The top price in the Pacific Heights area, where The Block NZ homes were filmed, was $1.925m for a six-bedroom standalone house. Five-bedroom homes sold for between $1.56m and $1.75m and four-bedroom standalone homes went for $1.39m to $1.45m.

The top price for a comparable three-bedroom terrace house, $1.485m, was paid in April for an end terrace located down on the Orewa flats, six blocks from the beach.

Since then, in the last quarter, property values in Silverdale have dropped 3.6% but only 1% in Orewa, according to Valocity.

Winners of last year's The Block NZ Tim and Arthur celebrate their win outside their house in Point Chevalier which sold for $2.825m. Photo / Supplied

The Block NZ houses sell with all the decoration, furnishings and appliances adding to the value of the homes. Photo / Supplied

“There’s quite a glut of townhouses. That market is a little slow,” said Lane Sanger, owner of Mike Pero real estate’s Orewa office.

“[In February] we got $1.4m for a townhouse right on the beach on Hibiscus Coast Highway, otherwise you’d get $1.2m. But The Block houses are fully furnished, better appointed so you might be around the $1.3m mark.”

Sanger said buyers looking at the Pacific Heights area were drawn to the affordable new builds, but would be comparing them to the more affluent master-planned communities of decade-old Millwater and Silverdale, and newer Milldale next door.

However, timing might have helped, as Sanger said that after a slow winter, sales in Orewa were picking up, with deals closing between $1m and $1.6m in the past two weeks.

Kirsty Macky, owner and manager of Bayleys Orewa, said that she’d expect The Block NZ sellers would be hoping for $1.3m.

“Their biggest challenge is that there is a lot of property to choose from in that new-build segment. And there’s some very good buys in Millwater and Milldale, as well as the Orewa Heights. People would be looking at what you can get for your money,” she said, adding that buyers these days were not as worried about buying a terrace, rather than the more traditional standalone house.

“Those buyers don’t need a big garden, with busy lives terraces are a popular choice. They can use the green spaces all around and people are happy with that.”

She added that around 70% of buyers in Orewa and surrounds were new to the area, up from 50% pre-Covid as people were attracted by the lower prices further out.

Artist’s impression of the remaining terrace houses next to The Block NZ homes on Ringi Lane, Pacific Heights, which are also for sale. Photo / Supplied

“Orewa always follows the Auckland trend with a bit of a lag, it’s a ripple effect,” she said.

Like Sanger, Macky said that after a tough winter, sales in the $1m to $1.5m price points, where The Block NZ properties sit, had picked up over the past couple of weeks.

Harcourts Orewa sales manager Harvey Zhang said that three and four-bedroom standalone houses around Pacific Heights could fetch $1.4m to $1.5m, less than similar houses nearer the town centre which could fetch $1.8m.

“If the price is right, people will buy more properties in central Orewa, where you’re closer to transport and can walk to everything.”

While he wouldn’t speculate on the likely selling price for The Block NZ terraces, Zhang said buyers would pay a bit more than in neighbouring Milldale where brand-new terraces can be found for under $800,000.

“The Block has helped to catch attention, but Orewa is already a popular lifestyle destination,” he said.

Harcourts agent Rachel Zhang said that the profile of Orewa buyers has changed from older people looking for homes on the flat to young families and new immigrants attracted by the good schools.

“The young ones are looking from $1.2m to $1.5m, and that will get you not just a terrace but also a single-family house,” Zhang said.

- Click here to see more properties for sale in Orewa.