The eighth season of New Zealand reality television series The Block NZ, titled The Block NZ: Firehouse, premiered on 17 June 2019. It is set in the Auckland suburb of Kingsland, with the south side of the block overlooking the Outer Oval of Eden Park. The entire apartment complex was formerly a fire station that later turned into a boarding house. It is, overall, the most difficult and expensive renovation.
The judges are Lizzi Whaley and Jason Bonham, the hosts are Mark Richardson and former judge Shelly Ferguson and the site foreman is Peter Wolfkamp.
The show also has a revamped sponsors list. The financial bank is TSB Bank, also a New Zealand-owned bank, replacing Kiwibank. There is no coffee sponsor due to the proximity to local cafes and bars on New North Road and Kingsland railway station; the lunch and breakfast sponsor is Subway. The car prizes for People's Choice award remains with Suzuki.
Contestants The teams selected for this season are as follows: ApartmentCouple (ages) Relationship Hometown1 Stacy Heyman (25) & Adam Middleton (25) Couple Wellington2 Lisa Ridout-Gordon (37) & Chris "Ribz" Gordon (34) Married Wellington3 Ethan Ordish (26) & Sam Whatarangi (27) Mates Hamilton/Te Kūiti4 Sophia Gardiner (31) & Mikaere Gardiner (32) Married Tūrangi
Score history The prize for winning room reveal is $7000 cash. For weeks 4 and 5, it was changed to $10,000.
To offset Apartment 2's least desirable position, small usable floor area and low ceiling, a safe containing game-changing bonuses are hidden there. They include a +2 card, an undo card and The Big Steal - the ability to steal $5000 off a team's overall budget. Lisa & Ribz used this to steal $5000 off Sophia & Mikaere at the end of week 4.
Amy & Stu, who won the seventh season, returned for the third week to compete against the four teams to create a bathroom for Apartment 5 (not-for-auction communal space), and won $7,000 cash.
In week 4, the teams were scored out of 40 (10 per judge per room); Sophia and Mikaere were eliminated for continuing to style their room after the tools down deadline.
In week 5, the teams worked on Apartment 5 with a separate budget. Stacy & Adam did the living room with a budget of $7000, Lisa & Ribz did the laundry and second bedroom with a budget of $8200, Ethan & Sam did the first bedroom and hallway with a budget of $8300, and Sophia & Mikaere did the kitchen and dining room with a budget of $8500.
In week 8, Stacy & Adam scored the first genuine perfect score (i.e. no bonus +1 cards being used) since Alex & Corban's garage in season 3.
In week 9, teams chose a room to redo. Lisa & Ribz chose the entranceway, hallway and laundry, Ethan & Sam chose the kids bedroom, and Stacy & Adam chose the guest bedroom. Each team was given $10,000, as they all scored higher than they originally did with the room they redid. Sophia and Mikaere also scored a perfect 20 points, despite a -1 played on them.
In week 12, due to the overall low scores of Common lobby and stairwell, they were given half a day to redo the space, along with other adjustments for the final week.
+Teams' progress through the competition Teams Guests Stacy & Adam Lisa & Ribz Ethan & Sam Sophia & MikaereWeek RoomsScores (cash spend)1 Guest bedroom 13 ($13,701.02)9.5 ($11,252.26) 14 ($14,615.86)15 ($14,912.39)rowspan=2 2Kids bedroom16 ($12,351.95)8 ($12,297.90)4 ($13,235.51)13 ($10,586.41)3Family bathroom 0 ($15,296.02) 0 ($17,133.99)3.5 ($16,089.83) 17 ($25,161.37) 18.5 ($21,695.04)4Master bedroom and ensuite 23 ($33,611.27)29.5 ($27,199.24) 6 ($33,882.10) Disqualified ($31,417.07)rowspan=100 5 Rooms of Apartment 513 ($6,676.50)5 ($8,150.82)3 ($6,484.68)12.5 ($7,044.04)6Kitchen and dining18.5 ($24,382.58)17.5 ($24,931.70)16.5 ($29,365.21)13.5 ($19,908.57)7Living and media rooms17 ($36,732.76)16.5 ($20,786.18)16 ($20,490.51)12.5 ($16,600.43)8Entranceway, hallway and laundry20 ($36,497.89)11 ($18,241.27)12.5 ($20,365.72)7 Eliminated ($20,474.63)9Redo18 ($10,011.07) 14.5 ($2,731.25) 13 ($6,942.18)19 ($8,545.59)10 Outdoor terraces 17.5 ($20,918.96) 14.5 ($6,605.47) 12.5 ($3,857.47) 15.5 ($10,326.56)11 Common lobby and stairwell 8.5 ($7,615.64) 4 ($8,109.75) 4 ($9,006.41)11.5 ($11,825.05)12Redo Week 2N/A
Auction results Only Lisa & Ribz's unit was sold for $50,000 over the reserve price. Ethan & Sam's unit was sold at reserve price because they borrowed from Mark. Apartment 1 sold before the auction ended, Apartment 4 did not meet reserve on auction night. Due to the rule of the house having to be sold at auction night, which no longer reflects the true house market, Lisa and Ribz won an extra $100,000 for the most profit. Ethan & Sam won the People's Choice award: a new car.
Apt Auction spot Couple Reserve Auction Result Profit Total Winnings Placing spot 1 3Stacy & Adam$1,480,000$1,480,000 (after auction)$0$02nd2 1Lisa & Ribz$1,290,000$1,340,000$50,000$150,0001st3 2Ethan & Sam$1,390,000$1,390,000$0$02nd4 4 Sophia & Mikaere>$1,600,000$1,550,000 (two weeks after auction)$-50,000$04th
The communal Apartment 5 failed to sell at a separate auction on 7 November 2019.The Block NZ: Last Firehouse apartment listed for sale It was finally sold on 19 December 2019 for between $850,000 and $900,000.
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