6:15 AM PT -- HGTV has now been announced as the winning bidder for the iconic Hollywood home. The company claims it intends to return it to its "1970s glory."
Lance Bass has someone who is squarely siding with him in the mess over the sale of the 'Brady Bunch' house ... that someone is his real estate broker, who says his client was shamelessly defrauded.
Lance's real estate broker tells TMZ, there was no misunderstanding ... the realtor for the seller of the 'Brady Bunch' house made it crystal clear ... Lance was the highest bidder and the house was his.
The broker says before Lance submitted his bid, which was just under $3 million, the seller's realtor was unambiguous ... the cutoff for submitting offers was last Thursday at 3 PM and they would take NO OTHER OFFERS after that. The highest bidder would get the house. Period.
Lance was indeed the highest bidder, and his broker tells us the seller's realtor even doubled down and said the house was Lance's. What's more, Lance's broker says the seller's realtor even sent paperwork to him to finalize the deal.
Lance's broker says the seller's realtor told him this was a solid "gentleman's agreement," with paperwork to follow, which it did.
As we reported, Lance claims the seller's realtor had a plan all along ... that a studio would come in after the bidding war and outbid everyone -- which is exactly what happened. Lance and his broker claim the seller's realtor lied to them and the other bidders and it was a shameless ploy to make a buck.