There has long been debate about whether the houses on The Block should be more affordable as, year after year, they get more extravagant.
From this year’s highly sought-after Mount Eliza (with the largest blocks in the show’s history) to next year’s challenge involving renovations of heritage-listed buildings, it feels like the producers are trying to one-up themselves, and many fans want the show to go back to basics.
So it may come as no surprise that some viewers have been gleeful to learn that some of the houses this year have “design issues”, and the show has been hounded for the oversight.
What is the ‘design blunder’ fans are talking about?
Basically, all the materials for Houses 1, 2 and 3 are being dropped off at a vacant lot beside House 1 — Adam and Jolene’s house.
Since they’re trying to do the landscaping for their backyard and build a shed, they have to cut off access to the route to Houses 2 and 3, and it’s causing problems for Chantel and Wyatt, and Lisa and Rosco.
They now have to rely on a crane to drop in materials, and it’s causing tension between the two teams as they have to share.
It’s left many of the tradies forced to heave around the heavy materials, and the process is delaying renovations.
This has left many viewers questioning why these multimillion-dollar homes have no backyard access, and if that means the affluent buyers will ultimately have to drag their outdoor bins through their homes every week for collection.
“I’m sorry Channel 9. But your houses have been badly designed. How can you expect houses 2 and 3 to make a 3 and a half million dollar backyard with no access?” one viewer wrote online.
“How can you have a front yard but no access to the front yard apart from through the house?” another asked, with others joking the bins will need to be kept in the luxury garages the teams spent last week renovating.
Others had safety concerns, while one grumbled about all the “design blunders” being intentional to create drama.
Do some of the houses not have backyard access?
Despite the claims from viewers, Houses 2 and 3 do have street access from their backyards. The blocks are sandwiched between Mackillop Place and Jerula Avenue, so there are roads either side.
However, the materials can’t be transported from the vacant block to the yards via the street because large trees are blocking the path, and presumably, the materials aren’t being dropped off at the street (rather than the vacant lot) as it would block the road.
So, no, buyers won’t need to drag their bins through their homes. However, the layout does seem to be a disadvantage for Houses 2 and 3.
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