The Domain Listing Challenge is officially back: Scott Cam's $50k announcement could change everything come Auction Day

Get ready to cast your votes – The Domain Listings and Buyers Jury challenge is officially back!

It’s one of the most “crucial” challenges on The Block each year, one of the biggest nights in the competition, and a chance for one team to walk away with an eye-watering sum of cash ahead of Auction Day.

“We have hit The Domain Buyers Jury Open House Challenge!” host Scott Cam announced to the group of shocked Blockheads.

After weeks of renovating, teams will face a big dose of reality not from the judges, but from 100 real-world potential buyers.

By hosting the ultimate soirée, teams will show off their homes to the public for the very first time. The team with the most votes by the end of the night will walk away with a whopping $50,000 towards renovations.

It’s a challenge that could also lead to a sale come Auction Day.

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“This is big, 50K,” said Scotty. “This is the time you find out if your design choices appeal to the market.”

Working alongside their agents, each team must create compelling listings and stage their homes, ready for Open For Inspection.

Yep, on top of delivering a guest bedroom and guest en suite, teams have only the most important challenge of the year to prepare.

Cue the panic.

“This week is not about creating just a beautiful space, it’s about selling it,” Scotty reminded them.

That’s when The Block’s resident property expert Alice Stolz from Domain jumped in.

“This really is judgement day, but your judges this week are going to be potential buyers,” said Alice.

“When it comes to the presentation of these houses, it should be flawless.”

Alice’s words rang alarm bells for some contestants, including Han and Can who realised they have a half-painted blue bedroom and unfinished bathroom to get now also complete.

“This is the most important challenge,” said Britt.

And she’s right. Looking back at previous years on the show, there’s a superstition swirling that the buyers’ choice could also be a telling sign on who might win The Block.

Here, we look back at some of the previous buyers’ choice winners and how well they did at auction:

Ricky and Haydn – 2024

Despite no Room Reveal wins at the time, Ricky and Haydn’s “party house” sure captured the hearts of potential buyers during their unforgettable open night.

With an extravaganza complete with a DJ and Brazilian dancers, the boys won with 29 per cent of majority vote.

Despite their success on the night, Ricky and Haydn came fourth in the competition.

Their house sold for $2.7 million, taking home $750,000 in profit. Young sisters Maddy and Charlotte took out the win, earning $1.65 million in prize money after their house sold for $3.5 million.

Both houses sold to buyer Adrian Portelli.

Steph and Gian – 2023

Season 20 stars Steph and Gian won with a landslide 36 votes from the public during their season. They went on to win a history-making $1.7 million.

Rachel and Ryan – 2022

It was Rachel and Ryan who came out victorious in 2022 with 27 votes. Tom and Sarah-Jane following close behind with 26.

The duo bagged a cash prize of $10,000.

Unsurprisingly the pair were absolutely chuffed with the news, which came at a time when most teams were struggling with their budget.

“If you’re going to win a challenge, you want to win the Domain challenge, right?” Rachel beamed in an exclusive video for 9Entertainment.

While they didn’t win the show – Omar and Oz took that title – they did sell their home for $4,249,000.85 with a profit of $169,000.85.

Mitch and Mark – 2021

In 2021, Mitch and Mark, who received some harsh feedback during judging throughout the season, managed to impress potential buyers during the Domain Buyers Jury Challenge, scoring 34 votes.

Their lucky streak didn’t end there, with the pair blitzing the competition at the auction.

The couple managed to take out Season 17, winning $644,444.44 in profit, plus $100,000 prize money, after their incredible home in the bayside Melbourne suburb of Hampton sold for $3.4m.

Jimmy and Tam – 2020

In 2020, Jimmy and Tam were crowned the winners of the Domain Listings Challenge – but things happened a little differently that year.

Due to the pandemic, instead of 100 buyers turning up the Room Reveal scores were added and the winner was decided that way.

Jimmy and Tam went on to win the entire show. They made a $966,000 profit, plus $100,000 prize money.

They went from an incredible high on auction day to a devastating low weeks later, when it was discovered that the sale of their house had fallen through.

Despite the drama, the couple remained winners of the 2020 season of the hit renovation show, and Nine honoured both the money they won above reserve price for the sale on the day and the $100,000 in prize money.

The house eventually sold.

Mitch and Mark – 2019

Again, the grandparents were the chosen winners of the challenge. They impressed potential buyers with their bold style, making it a hard house to beat.

But the couple weren’t as lucky in Season 15, as they placed last in the competition at auction day. Instead it was Tess and Luke that took the win, who actually came last during the Buyers Jury Challenge.

Mitch and Mark still made $384,000 in profit, with their house selling for $3.374m.

Meanwhile, Tess and Luke’s home sold for $3,620,000, earning them a total profit of $630,000 and the $100,000 for winning.

Norm and Jess – 2018

Norm and Jess failed to win a single room reveal during their season of the show in 2018.

But when all the St. Kilda apartments were judged by a buyer’s advocate, the pair shocked everyone when they came out as favourites.

But that success fell short at auction, when the pair coming last in Season 14.

Their St. Kilda penthouse apartment ended up selling for $2.859m, giving the pair $209,000 in profit.

Hayden and Sara took the win in 2018, walking away with $645,000 – including the $100,000 prize money – after their home sold for $3.02m.

Ronnie and Georgia – 2017

Powerhouse couple Ronnie and Georgia impressed the buyers jury in 2017.

The potential buyers describe their house as “cohesive” and having the “sophistication of an Elsternwick home” while also being modern.

But when it came to auction day, the couple ended up placing third in the competition.

Their Elsternwick home sold for $2.781m, giving them a profit of $161,000.

On the big day it was actually Elyse and Josh’s house that impressed buyers. Their home sold for $3.067m, which meant a profit of $447,000 and the $100,000 prize money on top.

With only a few weeks left, time will tell how much influence these challenges have on predicting a winner for Season 21.

This article was originally published by nine.com.au. Reproduced with permission.