Winning bidders Kirandeep and Gurshish Nehal and their daughters, with the Villawood and Henley Homes teams, at the 2026 Good Friday Appeal house auction. Picture: Alan Barber.
A record-breaking $1.212m has been raised for The Royal Children’s Hospital at this year’s Good Friday Appeal charity auction in Melbourne’s west.
The 2026 event, which saw a house in Tarneit sell to a local family, topped the previous $1,150,500 benchmark set by a Geelong home at last year’s auction.
The Tarneit abode’s new owners even have a special connection to the Royal Children’s, as one of their daughters, now a teenager, was born there.
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Volunteer tradespeople and suppliers joined Henley Homes to build the five-bedroom residence on land donated by Villawood Properties.
Henley’s general manager of marketing Tindi Sorbera said this year represented the 47th home the builder had constructed for the Good Friday Appeal, helping to raise $22.7m for the cause across more than three decades.
“There were more than 30 registered bidders today and I’d say at least five put their hands up,” Mr Sorbera said.
Winning bidders Gurshish and Kirandeep Nehal outside their new home in Tarneit. Picture: Alan Barber.
The couple are congratulated by the crowd following their winning bid. Picture: Alan Barber.
Villawood Properties executive director Rory Costelloe said the final sales price was $61,500 higher than 2025’s auction result.
About 1000 onlookers watched the home go under the hammer with the day including the Truganina Fire Brigade, a Bollywood performance, face painters and music, he added.
“Everything raised at the auction goes to the Royal Children’s Hospital,” Mr Costelloe said.
“Everyone knows someone who has needed the hospital at some point – that is why this auction is such an important day, not just for Villawood and Henley, but for the hundreds of tradies and suppliers who pour their skills, labour and support into this incredible community effort.”
The Tarneit house auctioned on Good Friday was built by Henley Homes, volunteer tradespeople and suppliers on land donated by Villawood Properties.
The kitchen, which has a butler’s pantry, opens up to an outdoor entertainers’ area.
The doubly-storey house’s new owners, husband and wife Gurshish and Kirandeep, plan to move in with their two daughters, aged 14 and 10 years old.
Mr Nehal said their eldest daughter had been born at the Royal Children’s, while their youngest daughter already had her future bedroom picked out before the auction had even started.
“The house is really amazing, it is really well built and I’d say it’s one of the best houses in Tarneit,” he said.
Mr Nehal went a little bit above their budget to secure the residence but kept bidding “because it’s for such a good cause”.
Auctioneer Paul Tzamalis in action. Picture: Alan Barber.
The home’s new owners Kirandeep and Gurshish Nehal signing contracts alongside Henley’s general manager of marketing Tindi Sorbera, Alamora estate director Sree Datti, Good Friday Appeal director Peter Clark and Villawood executive director Rory Costelloe. Picture: Alan Barber.
The 7‑star energy-rated house, in the Alamora estate, was sold with fully furnished and with a fridge, dishwasher, washing machine, dryer and two televisions.
Set on a 448sq m block, it features a kitchen with a butler’s pantry, multiple living areas, a home theatre and study.
The house, based on a model from Henley’s Mainvue collection, is located opposite a wetlands and is close to Club Alamora, a private residents’ club with a gym, pool, cafe, and function space.
Birthday boys, siblings Keni and Kobi, were serenaded by musician Marcus Hayden, alongside Villawood’s Shannon Straughen and hundreds of auction attendees at the auction event. Keni still attends the RCH after having a craniotomy to remove a brain tumour in 2023. Picture: Alan Barber.
Auctioneer Paul Tzamalis and Alamora estate Manager Sree Datti at the Good Friday Appeal auction house in Tarneit. Picture: Alan Barber.
The Auction Company director Paul Tzamalis, a triple Real Estate Institute of Victoria Auctioneer of the Year winner, conducted the auction.
As a child, Mr Tzamalis received treatment for asthma at the RCH.
“It has always been an essential safety net for families, and that perspective never leaves you,” Mr Tzamalis said.
“Calling this auction is something I take incredibly seriously.”
The Good Friday Appeal executive director Rebecca Cowan said the annual house auction helped the RCH to continue offering life-changing care for families.
“Since 1993, the Charity House campaigns have raised more than $21m, with every cent from the no-reserve auction funding vital projects for sick children and families across Victoria,” Ms Cowen said.
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