Tom and Sarah-Jane deliver their tough auction order after the brutal reserve prices for The Block 2022 auctions are revealed

It doesn't matter how much blood, sweat and tears the teams put into their houses because ultimately it all comes down to auction order and the reserve price. 

Nerves were high and there was tension in the air as they headed off to HQ to meet Scott Cam, Shelley Craft and Doman's Alice Stolz for the dreaded reveal. 

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"It all comes down to this right," Oz told the cameras as the teams arrived. 

There was also added pressure on Tom and Sarah-Jane, who won the power to decide the auction order for all of the teams. 

"Welcome to the very, very pointy end of this tree change," Scotty announced. 

"It truly is a great achievement and now that the grass is coming up and we're out of the mud, your homes are really starting to look beautiful and just at the right time Shell!" 

Shelley admitted that yes it's a good time, although admitted the property market has been as volatile as the weather lately. 

LIVE UPDATES: The Block 2022 auction

Alice explained that the property market is in a very different place to this time last year with recent back-to-back interest rate rises and another one this week, which is putting a lot of pressure on prices. 

"What it means for this weekend, there is risk of not all properties selling," she added. 

But before the reserves were revealed, Scotty turned his attention to Ankur and Sharon, who he warned could face a bigger reserve due to not finishing their home and running out of money. 

"Which I was planning to put back on your final reserve price, it turns out though, you weren't alone," he explained. 

"It seems that all of you went over budget in the final week of your build. It's not that surprising really, considering the year that we've had, coming out of COVID, inflation through the roof." 

But he came to the conclusion that it would be fair to add nothing onto any of their reserve prices, and the look of sheer relief washed over every contestant sitting in front of him. 

READ MORE: The Block's auction history - How the order has impacted the results and winners

The host then asked one member from each team to come and get a scroll which revealed the reserve price for their home. 

"We're hoping for a reserve price that's got a three at the start," Tom said optimistically. 

They're not the only ones aiming for a three at the start, so is every other team. 

"OK, open 'em up," Scotty says. 

The teams all reveal the same number, $4,080,000. 

There are plenty of expletives and everyone seems shocked, but Scotty tries to reassure them that these numbers are fine, and there are registered bidders for every home already. 

Tom admits he and Sarah-Jane haven't picked the auction order yet and need to make a quick call to their agent David Wood before they make the decision. 

"So, everybodies is the same," Tom explained. 

David was a bit stunned and Tom said he and Sarah-Jane just wanted to go with his advice for the order. 

"I think you guys should go second, but because House 4 is the most similar to yours and it'll attract the same kind of buyers, if you're taking friendship out of it and you want to win this competition, you should put Dylan and Jenny last," David said. 

The couple accepted that it is a competition at the end of the day, but the reality of putting Jenny last really hit Sarah-Jane hard and she started to cry. 

They came back to HQ and delivered the order, which clearly didn't go down well with everyone. 

"This is solely what our agents have recommended to benefit us, with a tough buyers pool," Tom explained. 

"So the agents have ultimately picked our order for us, auction 1 will be House 5, we'll go second, third was House 2, then it was Sharon and Anks and then Dylan and Jen, fifth, but for good reason apparently." 

Jenny said she was "pissed off" and didn't expect to be put last. 

After Scotty wished them all good luck and sent them back to The Block, the teams really weighed in on how they felt about things. 

"Um, it is what it is," Oz said. 

"I think they have taken the emotionality out of it," Ankur said and Sharon added, "And done the right thing." 

For Rachel and Ryan, third is exactly where they wanted to be and she said it had nothing to do with their friendship with House 1.

Meanwhile, Sarah-Jane was distraught afterwards and Jenny went over to reassure her that it was OK.

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