An ex-cop, a personal banker, an art director and a plumber are to hammer it out for DIY supremacy.
The Block NZ: Villa Wars will launch on TV3 in the next month. In it, four teams of two compete to renovate four villas in the Auckland suburb of Sandringham.
Each team will receive any post-reserve auction profits. The duo with the highest profit will be crowned champions and pocket a further $100,000.
Last year, winners Alex and Corban Walls cashed in to the tune of $307,000 — $227,000 profit plus an $80,000 prize.
They gifted $30,000 to last-placed couple Quinn and Ben Alexandre who walked away with only $10,000 post-auction after months of work.
This time, former police officer Hayden Campbell will team up with his sales-rep fiancee Jamie Johns. They live in a rented unit on Auckland's North Shore and are "desperate" to get out of the savings trap and get a bigger place so they can start a family. Hayden, 29, is studying law and boasts he "can convince people to do almost anything". Jamie, 23, is a keen netballer and plays for North Harbour.
Taranaki team Cat Glass and Jeremy Hill met at a nightclub and have been together for four years.
Preschool teacher Cat, 27, said her "abnormally long arms" may be useful when painting. Jeremy, 29, is the art director in his own creative agency and renovated the house they now live in.
Brooke Thompson and Mitch Davies live with Mitch's parents in Christchurch. The pair have just returned from the UK and moved back home to save for a house.
Brooke, 25, is a personal banker and self-confessed shopaholic. She admitted Mitch, a 26-year-old plumber, is the practical and creative one in their relationship but she is "the organiser and money manager".
Completing the teams are Hamilton sisters Sarah and Minanne Kong who say they're not afraid to voice strong opinions.
Sarah, 24, has a masters degree in industrial design and speaks three languages. Younger sister Minanne, 19, is studying for a BA in commerce and has a passion for making short films.
The fourth series of The Block NZ is again hosted by Mark Richardson. Shelley Ferguson will oversee weekly challenges and room reveals are judged by Bernadette Morrison and Jason Bonham. Former cricket star Richardson wants the teams to go all-in. "A good Block is a hard-fought Block," he said.