We can’t say we weren’t warned that the past week would be one of the strangest in The Block NZ’s history, and for once that wasn’t one of host Mark Richardson’s typical overstatements. Things really were weird.
It began with Covid-19 storm clouds building overhead, yet at first it seemed like business as usual at Point Chevalier, albeit in an increasingly surreal atmosphere as social distancing was introduced between the teams and a new and urgent emphasis was placed on the importance of washing hands frequently.
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However, when Meg and Dan decided that their kids were more important than choosing bathroom tiles and decamped home to Rangiora, the enormity of what was happening began dawning on the team and the crew.
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Shortly afterwards, The Block NZ 2020 was no more, as all the contestants went home and the houses themselves were locked down every bit as tightly as New Zealand’s team of five million.
At the time, the real estate industry suffered the same nervous anticipation as anybody. Ahead was the possibility of sickness on a scale never seen before.
With the country’s borders closed to the rest of the world, the fear was that the pandemic would hammer the economy and cause house prices to drop.
Ray White Kingsland principal Tim Hawes, whose patch covers The Block suburb of Pt Chev, agrees that people in his industry were apprehensive when the Covid crisis struck.
The level four lockdown put the whole real estate industry on ice, with agents unable to hold open homes.
“We were coming off the back of an intense time in the market from January to March last year and what concerned us most was definitely the possibility of massive job losses and the effect that might have.
“For the first two weeks or so we used a wait and see approach, especially as we felt sure the government would support us, keen to avoid a property shock - if you like, and before long we saw confidence was rising again while unemployment remained low.”
Block foreman Peter Wolfkamp locks up the houses. Photo / Three
He says that Ray White stays up to date with emerging technology, and virtual open homes and online auctions were soon the new normal in the real estate business.
“One of the biggest challenges was changing how we did things to comply with the different rules during each level of lockdown and much of what we did was so successful, we’ve kept it on.
“Covid’s undoubtedly been a big test and we were able to be very resourceful.”
Also resourceful are the Block NZ’s producers. This week our Block NZ teams were right back in business in a transition that went pretty well and 2020 has morphed into 2021.
Sure, Tim had had made some fairly dramatic changes in the hair department, with a new short haircut, but Dan’s man-bun was still intact, which meant the only thing really missing was Janah, who couldn’t return for personal reasons.
Enter Connie the new purple team member. She’s an old mate of Rach’s from their army days and just happens to be an electrician, so expect to see sparks flying about the place.
Being resourceful will remain a big test on The Block NZ this season because tradies are in short supply right now, thanks to the property market boom which has seen Kiwis putting overseas travel savings into renovating their homes, and this week has seen our newly reunited teams tackling their family bathrooms.
It’s always one of the most challenging jobs each year, so this weekend’s reveals are going to be interesting.
