The Block 2018: Twin custodians of the notorious Gatwick Hotel purchase apartment

THE longtime owners of the notorious Gatwick Hotel have used a chunk of their windfall from selling the historic St Kilda property to buy a piece of it back.

Twins Yvette Kelly and Rose Banks splashed $2.77 million on the last apartment to go under the hammer in Sunday night’s finale of The Block.

It is just a fraction of the $10 million they collected from selling the hotel to the Channel 9 reno show in 2017.

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Leading into auction day there had been whispers they had their eyes on Sara and Hayden’s controversial apartment — which won the day selling for $545,000 over reserve for a whopping $3.02 million.

Ms Kelly and Ms Banks bought next door for a smidgen less — forking out $2.77 million for apartment 2.

Auctioneer Jesse Raeburn, from Wilson Port Phillip, said it was a “fairytale ending to the story of the Gatwick.”

“It is quite humbling to think the original custodians are again going to be in the building after so many years,” Mr Raeburn said.

The apartment at 2/34 Fitzroy St was transformed by reno rookie couple Courtney and Hans, a flight attendant and pilot from Western Australia.

Two bidders vied for the keys as almost 70 bids were placed, pushing the property $410,000 past reserve and taking out third place in series.

Mr Raeburn said buying an apartment in the original building was a must for the twins, ruling out a penthouse purchase.

“They wanted the old Gatwick, they wanted to have their roots,” he said.

“The aspect to Fitzroy St is a classic, you have the trams and the tree-lined street.

“And the fact that Courtney and Hans’ renovation was so elegant and there’s a lot of continuity throughout was what attracted them to this property.”

Ms Kelly and Ms Banks ran the Gatwick hotel for 46 years and took ownership from their mother in 1999.
There were 66 rooms available for rent, that had provided shelter for some of Melbourne’s poorest since the 1950s. As the base of the city’s most downtrodden, drugs, alcohol and crime were rife.

Today it is home to high-end apartments that each notched a sale of more than $2.7 million at auction.

Buyer’s agent and Block regular Greville Pabst, who purchased the apartment on behalf of the sisters, said it was a highlight of his time on the show.

“It was a really emotional thing for me,” Mr Pabst said.

“They were so invested in this place … they have done so much good for their community and it’s great they still have a connection to it.”

Mr Pabst said Ms Kelly and Ms Banks plan to renovate the property a bit more before renting it out.

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