A new Victorian law set to take effect on 1 October 2026 could land directly in the middle of The Block 2026’s auction campaign, and after last year’s reserve price controversy in Daylesford, the timing could not be more pointed.
What the Law Changes
Under the Consumer Legislation Amendment Bill 2026, Victorian real estate agents will be required to publish the seller’s reserve price, expressed as a single dollar figure, at least seven days before an auction or fixed-date sale. If the reserve price has not been published for the full seven-day window, the property cannot proceed to auction. The reform is designed to curb underquoting, where properties are advertised below the seller’s genuine price expectations to drum up artificial competition.
Under the current system, sellers can set or change their reserve as late as auction day itself, often well above the advertised price guide range. Once the new law commences, that flexibility disappears. The reserve becomes fixed and public a full week before the hammer falls.
Why This Matters for The Block
The Block’s 2025 Daylesford season was overshadowed by exactly the kind of reserve price dispute this law is designed to prevent. All five reserves were set at $2.99 million, more than $2 million above the town’s median house price, and the five teams found out the figure only days before auction. Two of the five homes failed to sell, and as of June 2026 they remain on the market with prices slashed to $2.59 million and $2.6 million.
If the 2026 Block auction runs on the typical October or November timeline, it will fall squarely within the window where this disclosure requirement is in force. That means Channel Nine and the contestants would need to lock in and publish their Mount Eliza reserve prices a full week ahead of auction day, with no scope to adjust the figure based on late-breaking buyer interest or market sentiment, something that has previously played a role in Block auction strategy.
Industry Pushback
The reform has not been welcomed universally. The Real Estate Institute of Victoria has argued the seven-day rule will backfire, pushing sellers toward private sale methods and away from public auctions altogether. The REIV has cited its own research suggesting the vast majority of Victorian property owners would change their selling strategy entirely if forced to disclose reserves a week out, and has instead pushed for a 10 percent reserve price range published three days before auction as a compromise.
Critics of the law argue auction campaigns work because buyer interest and vendor confidence often crystallise in the final days before the hammer falls, and that locking in a number too early risks distorting outcomes rather than improving transparency. Supporters, including Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan, have described the change as a nation-leading step toward fairer, more transparent property transactions.
What It Could Mean for Auction Day
For a show that has built two decades of drama around last-minute vendor bids, frantic phone calls to agents, and reserves that shift in real time as bidding unfolds, a legally mandated week-out disclosure requirement could change the on-screen mechanics of Block auction day in ways viewers haven’t seen before. Whether Channel Nine adjusts its production and broadcast schedule to accommodate the new disclosure window, or whether the auction falls just outside the law’s commencement date, remains to be seen. We’ll have full coverage as the auction date approaches.
Stage your home now, pay nothing until settlement. Professional staging adds 7.5 to 15% to your sale price. Stage Your Home, Pay When You Sell
