Billionaire entrepreneur Adrian Portelli turned heads at The Block auction for the second year in a row, dropping a total of $12.4 million on three homes.
In an attempt to redeem himself from last year’s fake bidding scandal, “Mr Lambo” broke his own record.
The self-proclaimed “billionaire” handed Steph and Gian a huge win before bidding against himself for Eliza and Liberty’s house.
In the exciting finale on Sunday, Steph and Gian were the absolute winners when their house sold for an incredible $5 million.
They walked away with $1.65 million in winnings and $100,000 in prize money, bringing their total winnings to a record-breaking $1.75 million.
Adrian Portelli turned heads at The Block auction for the second year in a row, dropping a total of $12.4 million on three homes
House 4 was the first to go to auction and it was a tense time for the couple, who described their $3.35 million reserve as “hell” and feared they wouldn’t make any money from the sale.
Thanks to series bidder Danny Wallace, the bidding quickly reached $4 million, but the promotion was cut short when a woman fainted on set and was taken to the hospital.
After the break, the bidding stalled at $4 million before Adrian increased the bid by $1 million to $5 million – and the hammer fell when House 4 sold.
In an attempt to redeem himself from last year’s “fake bidder” scandal, “Mr Lambo” broke his own record
Steph and Gian’s House 4 was the first to be auctioned. The $5 million meant they made $1.65 million in winnings as well as $100,000 in prize money, bringing their total winnings to a record-breaking $1.75 million
The $5 million sale netted the couple a profit of $1.65 million. Steph and Gian hugged each other and burst into tears as they described the money as “life-changing”.
Adrian said he broke another Block record because he wanted to prove he was a real bidder following controversy at last season’s auction.
“After the gap I filled last year, I had to prove I wasn’t a fake bidder and I came out tough and strong,” he said.
“I feel like it’s the most appealing house to a wide audience and yes, it was the favorite and I won it.”
They became instant millionaires
It was a tense time for the couple, who described their $3.35 million reserve as “hell” and feared they wouldn’t make any money from the sale
The house was sold to Adrian Portelli (pictured), known as “Mr. Lambo,” who said after controversy last season that he wanted to prove he was a real bidder
Steph and Gian hugged and called the money “life-changing”
The other participants were happy for the couple
He continued: “And Steph and Gian really deserve it too. Incredible people. You did a great job.’
Last year, Adrian got into a bidding war with Block veteran Danny, which led the IT entrepreneur to give Omar Slaimankhel and Ozman “Oz” Abu Malik a massive win.
Steph and Gian’s $1.75 million surpassed Omar and Oz’s record winnings of $1,686,666.
“It’s an incredible feeling. “We are so overwhelmed at the moment and can’t believe it,” said Steph and Gian.
“It was such a surreal day and to end on such a high after all the hard work is incredible.”
Steph and Gian’s win also surpassed last year’s record of $1.68 million
House 4 is pictured
“We are so grateful that Adrian Portelli saw something in our home that we love so much.” “This will change our lives,” they said
They continued: “We are so grateful that Adrian Portelli saw something in our home that we love so much.” This will change our lives.
“We have no idea what we will do with the money.” It will pay off our debts in Sydney.
“It will prepare us for the next stage. It’s just incredible.”
But Adrian wasn’t done yet as sisters Eliza and Liberty were up next, with House 5 up for grabs with a reserve of $3.25 million.
The bidding reached $4.1 million during a showdown between Danny and Adrian and stalled for some time while the two men considered their options.
Adrian rose to $4.2 million by making the strange move of bidding against himself – something that had never happened before on the show.
Sisters Eliza and Liberty were next up for grabs, with House 5 up for grabs with a reserve of $3.25 million. House 5 sold for $4.3 million, netting the siblings a profit of $1.050 million
Adrian rose to $4.2 million by making the strange move of bidding against himself – something that had never happened before on the show
A moment later he did it again, outdoing himself and shocking those around him again when he made another offer of $4.3 million.
House 5 sold for $4.3 million, netting the siblings a $1.050 million profit after a telephone bidder withdrew.
The couple cried they would have “never made so much money in their lives” if it hadn’t been for the Channel Nine renovation show.
Despite helping two teams make a combined $2.7 million in winnings, Adrian wasn’t done showing off his deep pockets just yet as he swooped in to snag Kyle and Leslie’s house.
Next up was House 1 with a reserve of $2.97 million, and there was hope since Danny hadn’t bought a house yet and neither had celebrity bidder Dave Hughes.
However, Kyle and Leslie’s home struggled to reach reserve as the auction ran rapidly before Adrian stepped in and raised the price to $3.1 million.
Next up was Kyle and Leslie’s House 1 with a reserve of $2.97 million
House 3 sold for $3.1 and netted the couple $130,000, which was bittersweet
House 1 is pictured
House 3 sold for $3.1 million and netted the couple $130,000, which was bittersweet.
Leslie said she was “happy” with the money but wiped away tears as fellow contestants congratulated her.
It seemed like Adrian was tired of showing off at this point as he sat back and watched couples Kristy and Brett and Leah and Ash struggle to sell their homes.
Kristy and Brett’s House 3 had a reserve of $2.97 million and the couple said they were “not calm” going into the auction.
The couple were very frustrated when the bidding stalled and the price barely exceeded the reserve.
He did it again, outdoing himself again and making an offer of $4.3 million
The couple cried that they “would never have made this much money in their lives” if it hadn’t been for the show
House 5 is pictured
They called an auction break twice to speak to their auctioneer and flew into a rage when the bids didn’t increase much and the auctioneer upset Danny and Adrian with his jokes.
As both Adrian and Danny held out, the price rose so slowly that the couple were “devastated”.
“How can we tank so heavily after 1 and 2?” Kristy said angrily, adding that the $65,000 they had raised through the reserve wouldn’t cover three months of their work.
“It’s an absolute bargain.” “At this level it’s almost free,” said comedian Dave Hughes, who attended the auction.
Kristy and Brett’s House 3 had a reserve of $2.97 million. The two were very frustrated when the bidding stalled and the price barely exceeded the reserve
They called a break in the auction twice to speak to the auctioneer and became angry that the bidding did not start at a higher amount. It was no use and House 3 sold for just $3 million, with the couple taking home just $65,000
Kristy broke down in tears as she said her agent had “screwed it up for us” and that “Australia got what they wanted”.
House three is pictured
However, Kristy and Brett’s frustration was of no avail and House 3 sold for just $3 million, with the couple taking home just $65,000 in profit.
Kristy broke down in tears as she said her agent had “screwed it up for us” and that “Australia got what they wanted”.
Leah and Ash were the last to be auctioned off. Their House 2 had a reserve of $2.97 million and Danny still hadn’t made a purchase.
However, it turned out that the main buyer who had shown interest in the property was the woman who had previously been hospitalized and now no one was interested.
Leah and Ash were most recently auctioned, with their House 2 having a reserve of $2.97 million
There was another fight to get the house to meet the reserve price
After intensive negotiations, the house was actually handed over and was not sold that day
There was another fight to get the house even to meet the reserve price, and there was talk of passing on it.
After intensive negotiations, the house was actually handed over and was not sold that day.
Dave Hughes expressed interest but said he would have to contact his wife and the house would instead go on sale on Monday, leaving the couple empty-handed.
However, they decided this was the best decision for them and hoped to speak to the interested bidder, who was in hospital, to see if she was still interested.
House 2 is pictured