GSA Federal Citizen Information Center

®

Guide to Federal

Government Sales

U.S. General Services Administration

November 2003

Dear Consumer: 

As the Federal Government’s principal manager of

workspace, products, services, and solutions, the

U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) is

proud to sponsor this Guide to Federal

Government Sales. We bel ieve this publ i cation

w ill prove to be a valuable resource for our custom er age ncies and for you, the A m er i can ta xpa yer,

beca use it del iv ers the accurate information you

need to parti cipate in the Federal Governm e nt ’s 

var ious sal es prog rams. 

GSA and the agencies listed in this Guide want

you to have the most complete information available regarding our sales programs. In addition,

many agencies now use their websites to provide

the public with detailed information about items or

real estate for sale, locations, prices, and more.

We have included agency website information in

this edition. You can also visit FirstGov.gov to

get instant access to all the latest government

sales information on one comprehensive website.

The prog ram offi ci als from all the sal es prog rams

l i sted in this publ i cation deserve our tha nks for

t heir assi sta nce and support. Their cooperation has

hel ped us pro v i de you with one of the best sources

of information regarding Federal Governm e nt sal es .

Stephen A. Perry

Administrator

U.S. General Services Administration
Introduction ...................................................................................................... 1

Consumer Tips .................................................................................................. 2

Agencies with Sales Programs .................................................................... 5

Department of Agriculture .......................................................................... 5

Department of Defense

Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service (DRMS) ........................ 5

Department of Energy .................................................................................. 7

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation .................................................... 8

General Services Administration

Federal Supply Service............................................................................ 9

Office of Property Disposal Public Buildings Service .......................... 11

Government Printing Office ...................................................................... 12

Department of Homeland Security

Bureau of Customs and Border Protection .......................................... 13

Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement .............................. 13

United States Secret Service.................................................................. 13

Department of Housing and Urban Development

Office of Single Family Housing ............................................................ 13

Office of Multifamily Housing Programs .............................................. 14

Department of Interior

Bureau of Land Management ................................................................ 15

Department of Justice ................................................................................ 17

U.S. Marshals Service ............................................................................ 17

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.......................... 17

National Aeronautics and Space Administration...................................... 19

U.S. Postal Service ...................................................................................... 20

Small Business Administration .................................................................. 22

Tennessee Valley Authority ........................................................................ 23

U.S. Department of theTreasury

Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigations ............................ 24

Department ofVeterans Affairs ................................................................ 26

A Final Note ...................................................................................................... 28

Glossary ............................................................................................................ 29

table of contents
When the Bur eau of Customs and

B order Protection confiscates an

imported necklace, or the Department

of Defense no longer needs a pow er

tool, or the U. S. Marshals Service

seizes a sports car from a drug dealer,

all these items may become available

for purchase by the public. 

Although some surplus and forfeited

items of the Federal Government are

transferred to other Federal agencies or given to state and local governments, a staggering variety of

items from vehicles to office equipment to real estate finds its way to

the public through Federal

Government sales.

This revised guide is published by the

U. S. General Services A dministration

(GSA) in cooperation with 20 Federal

sales progra ms. With informative

listings from each Federal sales progra m, combined with practical consumer tips, this guide is designed to

help you do business with the

Federal agencies that sell items to

the public. This guide :

● Gives information about sales

methods and sale locations,

● Describes items for sale,

● Lists addresses, telephone numbers, and websites for further

information, and

● Has a glossary on page 29 that

explains the sales terminology

used by Federal agencies to

describe the types of property

available and the methods by

which it is sold.

Use this guide to contact the appropriate government sales program.

Uncle Sam may have something to

sell that interests you.

A great online resource for finding

out the latest on government sales

and auctions is the Shopping and

Auctions page at FirstGov.gov

(www.firstgov.gov/shopping/

shopping.shtml). This page takes

all of the Federal Government’s sales

and auctions of property, real estate,

cars, souvenirs, books, and gifts and

organizes it one easy-to-read-andnavigate page. Sales and auctions

are broken down into eight categories: 

● Auctions

● Cars andTransportation

● Loans and Investments

● Real Estate

● Souvenirs/Books/Gifts

● Supplies and Equipment

● For Government and Non-Profit

Buyers

● Find Sales by Agency

1

introduction
● Be wary of offers to sell you

“inside” information about Federal

Government sales. 

I nformation about Federal

G overnment sales progra ms is typically available for fr ee or at low cost

from the Federal Government. Some

Federal agencies maintain mailing

lists with na mes of people inter ested

in being notified about upcoming

sales. In these cases, agencies ma y

charge a subscription fee to maintain

the list and cover mailing costs. Non -

governmental organizations that sell

information about these sales often

don’t tell consumers that they can

r eceive sales information just by contacting the agency ’s local or regional

office. You may see advertisements

offering to sell you access to little -

known sources of Federal

G overnment property. It’s likely that

they are selling the na mes and

addr esses of the Federal Government

agencies listed in this publication. Be

aware that the information sold by

non - governmental entities may not be

accurate or up - to - date. 

● Know where to find current Federal

Government sales information.

To find information about specific

upcoming sales, check the classified

or business sections of national or

local newspapers. Some sales progra ms may even advertise on local

radio and television. Notices may also

be also posted at post offices, town

halls, and other local and Federal

G overnment buildings. Curr ent information on sales progra ms is sometimes published in trade journals and

periodicals, or online at the Federal

B usiness Opportunities’ ( Fed B iz O pps )

w ebsite, www. fedbizopps. gov.

S ales information may also be listed

in the Federal Regi ster, a daily publication listing Federal Government activities. The Federal Regi ster is available

at most libraries or through a yearly

paid subscription from the Government Printing Office (GPO). To order

a subscription, call toll - fr ee 1 (866)

512-1800. In addition, the Federal

R egi ster can be accessed online at

www. gpoaccess. gov / fr / index. html.

If you need more information than is

provided in this publication, you may

be able to obtain it by directly contacting the local or regional office of

the Federal agency that sponsors a

particular sales program. Use this

publication as a guide to identify the

parent agency of the sales program.

For example, if you are interested in

learning more about the U.S.

Marshals Service sales program,

look under the Department of

Justice in the “U.S. Government”

listings in the phone directories of

major cities in your state.

If you have difficulty locating the local

office of a particular sales progra m,

call the Federal Citizen Information

C enter ’s National Contact Center

(NCC) for assistance. This service,

provided by GSA, can tell you the

location of the sales office closest to

you. You can reach the NCC by calling

toll - fr ee 1 (8 0 0) FED-INFO (that ’s 

1 - 8 0 0 - 3 3 3 - 4 6 3 6 ). The NCC is open for

personal assistance from 8:00 a. m. to

8 : 0 0 p. m. Eastern Time, Monda y

through Frida y. 

2

consumer tips
● Do your homework before going

to a Federal Government sale or

auction.

Before attending, research the

sale by contacting the sponsoring

agency. Find out how and when the

sale or auction will be held, what

bidding procedure will be used, and

what special restrictions or unusual

conditions apply. It’s important to

ask what forms of payment are

accepted. Most sales require a guaranteed method of payment such as

money order, certified check, or

cash. Credit cards are sometimes

accepted. Also, look for information

prior to the sale on the buyer’s

responsibility for property removal,

inspection times prior to the sale,

and zoning rules if purchasing land

in an urban area. In most cases, the

“Invitation For Bid” will answer

these types of questions. It is an

informational piece released by the

sponsoring Federal agency that contains a description of the property

being offered for sale with the sale

terms and conditions. It’s wise for

potential buyers to attend several

sales to get a feel for the auction

process.With just a little research,

you can get the information that you

need to make a successful purchase.

M ost of the Federal agencies listed in

this publication maintain websites

that include detailed information

about their particular sales progra m.

Whenever possible, the websites for

these agencies are provided.

● Inspect the property carefully

before buying. 

C hances are you will not find new

or unused items at Federal Government sales. And because the sales

items are used, the condition of the

goods will vary. For example, some

forfeited vehicles may be in excellent

condition, others may have high

mileage or a stripped interior.

Although information about the condition will be given, it is still necessary to inspect before you purchase.

It is the buyer’s responsibility to verify that the description of the item

fits its actual condition. Find out if

the goods are sold “as is” or can be

returned. Most sales are final.

● Don’t expect to buy a $1 yacht. 

Goods in Federal Government

sales programs are usually sold at

fair market value.The “bargains”

that you hear about are frequently

mythical.The $1 yacht most likely

has serious problems. For example,

it may not have an interior or an

engine. Remember, if it sounds too

good to be true, it usually is. At many

sales, the items are appraised prior

to the sale and will not be sold if the

bid price is below what is reasonable. For example, GSA’s Federal

Supply Service has a policy to sell

property at f air market value, and

often will not sell items if the bid

price is below what is reasonable.

● You will not drive away from a

Federal Government sale with a

military jeep.

In 1971, based on safety statistics

and vehicle tests, the National

H ighway Traffic Safety A dministration

r ecommended that the M151 series

vehicle not be sold to the public

because it is unfit for public use.

Ther efor e, M151 series jeeps cannot

be driven. Disposal regulations on the

M151 require that the vehicle body be

crushed, shr edded, or mutilated to

3
pr event the jeep from being rebuilt.

B usinesses that sell the “secr ets” of

buying surplus military property often

take out enticing magazine and newspaper ads. “Just send $19.95 and

learn how to buy surplus military

jeeps,” they sa y. How ever, these

advertisements do not tell the consumer that the M151 series is unfit for

public use and that older jeep models,

such as the World War II M38, are virtually nonexistent toda y. Jeeps ar e

now typically auctioned at sales for

scrap metal or parts. 

● Know where and how to complain.

The Federal Trade Commission

(FTC) works for the consumer to pr event fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair

business practices in the marketplace

and to provide information to help

consumers spot, stop and avoid them.

To file a complaint or to get fr ee information on consumer issues, visit

www. ftc. gov or call toll - fr ee 1 (877)

FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); T T Y: 

1 (866) 653-4261. The FTC enters

I nternet, telemarketing, identity theft

and other fraud - r elated complaints

into Consumer Sentinel, a secur e,

online database available to hundr eds

of civil and criminal law enforcement

agencies in the U. S. and abroad.

In addition, the U. S. Postal Inspection

S ervice, the law enforcement arm of

the U. S. Postal Service, investigates

allegations of mail fraud involving the

U. S. mail. Deceptive advertisements

placed in newspapers or magazines

which use the mail for delivery, would

fall within the Inspection Service ’s

Federal jurisdiction under the Mail

Fraud Statute contained in Title 18,

USC Section 1341. A ddr ess your complaints to the Inspection Service via

your local Postmaster or obtain a Mail

Fraud Complaint form by calling 

1 (800) 372-8347.You may also send an

e - mail message to Fraud @ uspis. gov

and receive the form as an automatic

r esponse. 

O ther organizations that investigate

and prosecute fraud include state

A ttorneys General, state and local

consumer offices, and Better

B usiness Bur eaus. If you suspect that

you have been tricked or misled, and

you paid money for products or services that have little or no value, you

can contact the above - mentioned

organizations for further assistance.

They are listed in the business or

government listings of your local telephone dir ectory. 

If you wish to comment on the sales

process used by Federal progra ms or

on the merchandise purchased from a

Federal agency, write dir ectly to the

sponsoring agency at the addr ess

listed in this publication. The U. S.

Postal Service and the FTC want to

know experiences you have had with

misleading advertising. How ever, 

neither the FTC nor the U. S. Postal

S ervice has jurisdiction over the procedur es and practices used by the

agencies that sell property to the

public.

4
Department of

Agriculture

What is sold

The U. S. Department of A gricultur e

( US DA) sells trucks, ambulances,

station wagons, sedans, office equipment, office furnitur e, computers, and

laboratory items (typically microscopes and scales). A lthough the U. S.

G eneral Services A dministration (see

page 9) sells some of US DA’s motor

vehicles, US DA also sells vehicles at

various field locations around the

country. 

How items are sold

Personal property is sold through

auction or sealed bid.

How sales are advertised

Personal property sales information

is advertised through notices in

newspapers and Federal Government

buildings. A mailing list is maintained

for the Washington, DC metropolitan

ar ea for personal property sales only.

To be placed on this mailing list, see

the “For More Information” section.

US DA field offices throughout the

U. S. do not maintain mailing lists. 

Special restrictions/conditions

For personal property sales, US DA

prohibits employees who are dir ectly

involved in the sale or have used the

property as an employee from participating in the sale. Other US DA

employees are allow ed to bid. US DA

r equir es guaranteed methods of pa yment such as money orders, certified

checks, or cash. 

For more information

To learn about US DA personal property sales, look in the phone dir ectories of the major cities of your state

under the “U. S. Government” listings

for the US DA office near est you.

M ost likely, your state capital will

have a US DA office. 

Consult the USDA website at

www. usda. gov / da / property. html.

To be placed on a mailing list to

learn about USDA personal property

sales in the Washington, DC metropolitan area only, write: 

U. S. Department of Agriculture

Office of Operations Centralized

Excess Property Operation

6351 Ammendale Rd.

Beltsville, MD 20705

Department of Defense

Defense Reutilization and

Marketing Service (DRMS)

The Defense Reutilization and

M arketing Service (DRMS) is responsible for the disposal of ex cess / surplus property received from the U. S.

military services. The property is

turned in to Defense Reutilization

and Marketing Offices (DRMOs)

5

agencies with sales programs
located on or near military installations in the United States and in several for eign countries. Property

processed through the disposal program varies in type and value — from

clothing to vehicles, from hardware to

information technology, etc. DRMS

does not sell real estate. Property is

first offer ed for reutilization within

the Department of Defense (DoD),

transfer to other federal agencies, or

donation to state and local governments and other qualified organizations. Information on how to obtain

this property and what is available

from DRMS is displa yed on the

I nternet at www. dla. mil / drms.

E x cess property that is not reutilized,

transferr ed, or donated may be sold

to the public as surplus. DRMS manages the DoD surplus property sales

progra m. Surplus property varies in

commodities and value, depending on

what is turned in from the military

services. Once the items have been

deemed available for sale, DRMS

makes them obtainable via Usable,

S crap or Hazardous property sales.

DRMS has enter ed into a commercial

venture partnership with Government

L iquidation (GL) to sell usable surplus property. 

Selling DoD Surplus Property

General sales information, sales

schedules, and catalogs for scrap

and hazardous property can be

viewed by visiting the DRMS website at www.drms.com.To request a

printed copy of the Invitation For Bid

(IFB) catalog, customers may contact the Customer Contact Center

toll-free at 1 (888) 352-9333 in the US

or (269) 961-7197 from Canada.

Methods of Sales

Usable Surplus Property – GL 

purchases and re-sells all surplus

usable property (not requiring demilitarization) in the continental United

States, Guam, Hawaii, and Puerto

Rico. Sales include high-value property, such as aircraft parts, machine

tools, hardware, electronics, material

handling equipment, and vehicles.

Anyone interested in purchasing this

property can find sales information,

sales schedules, and past bid results

at http://govliquidation.com or by

contacting them at:

Government Liquidation (GL)

15051 North Kierland Blvd., 

Third Floor

Scottsdale, AZ 85254

Phone: (480) 367-1300 

Fax: (480) 367-1450 

GL sells property by sealed bid sales

and live Internet auctions. Bidders

may submit electronically their

sealed bid offer via GL’s website or

by mail / fax. 

S crap Property – DRMS conducts the

sale of scrap property that is ferrous

metal, non - ferrous metal or non -

metallic. Scrap property is offer ed at

several locations throughout the

U nited States and can be offer ed as a

term sale lasting for a specified

a mount of time or a one - time sale for

a specified weight. More information

r egarding scrap sales can be found at

www. drms. com / sales / sc rap / sc rap.

html.

Hazardous Property – DRMS also

conducts sales of environmentally

sensitive material such as chemical

or petroleum products, paints, or

lead acid batteries. Certain items

may require onsite inspection of the

6
destination facility prior to the

award. Additional information

regarding hazardous property sales

can be found at www.drms.com/

sales/haz/haz.html.

NOTE: The sealed bid method is

used for selling both scrap and hazardous property. Bidders submit their

bids by mail, fax, or via the Internet.

B ids are then opened at a specific

date and time and awarded to the

highest responsive / r esponsible bidder.

International Sales:

I nternational sales, also gear ed to

business needs, are for property that

is physically located outside the

U nited States, A merican Samoa,

G ua m, Puerto Rico, or the US Virgin

I slands. DRMS International sells

property in many countries including

G ermany, England, Spain, Italy,

Portugal, Iceland, Japan, Kor ea, and

Thailand. DRMS overseas locations

use all approved methods of sale to

offer Usable, Scrap, and Hazardous

P roperty. The majority of the property

offer ed for sale is Non - M L I / C C L I

usable property (MLI is Munitions

L ist Items — controlled by the U. S.

D epartment of State; CCLI is

C ommerce Controlled List Items -

controlled by U. S. Department of

C ommerce) and is offer ed on Local

Z one Sales. These sales are held

through either sealed - bid or auction.

A few sites offer retail, fixed - price

sales aimed at customers inter ested

in buying inexpensive items for personal use. Typical retail sales property

includes appliances, computers,

clothing, furnitur e, office equipment

and tools. Information regarding international sales can be found at

www. drms. dla. mil / drmsiw / sales /

sales. html.

Department of Energy

What is sold

Office equipment, vehicles, furniture,

trailers, generators, instruments and

laboratory equipment, mechanical

power transmission equipment, and

heavy equipment are some of the

items sold by the Department of

Energy (DOE). The personal property

items for sale will vary with the sale

location. Most of DOE’s real property

is sold by the U.S. General Services

Administration (see page 9).

How items are sold

Sealed bids, auctions, negotiated

sales, fixed price, and spot bids

I nternet sales are available at several

DOE sites.

How sales are advertised

Sales are advertised in Federal

Government buildings, national and

local newspapers, and through radio

and television announcements.

For DOE Personal Property A sset

S ales information at various DOE

sites, consult the DOE Property

M anagement Information website at

http : / / professionals. pr. doe. gov / ma 5 /

M A - 5 Web. nsf / P roperty / B uying +

S urplus + Personal + P roperty. 

The DOE Headquarters in

Washington, DC does not maintain a

mailing list to notify prospective

buyers of upcoming sales. However,

7
some local DOE offices may maintain localized lists.

Special restrictions/conditions

Guaranteed forms of payment, such

as cashier’s checks, certified checks,

money orders, or cash are required.

For information on additional restrictions and conditions, consult the

advertised public sale announcement for a phone number to call for

further sales information. For personal property sales, DOE prohibits

participation by Federal and contractor employees who were directly or

indirectly involved in the determination to dispose of the property for

sale or participated in the preparation or presentation of the sale.

Other DOE employees are allowed to

participate.

For more information

Consult the DOE Property

Management Information website at

http://professionals.pr.doe.gov/

ma5/MA-5Web.nsf/Property/

Personnel+Directory?Open

Document and click on the DOE

Personal Property Management

Personnel Directory for information

on your local DOE field office.

A dditionally, you may contact your

local DOE Office of Property

M anagement, found in the “U. S.

G overnment” listings of the phone

dir ectories of the major cities of your

state. 

Federal Deposit

Insurance Corporation

What is sold

The Federal Deposit Insurance

C orporation (FDIC) sells a wide variety of assets from failed banks

including loans; real estate such as

undeveloped land, hotels, shopping

malls, single - fa mily homes, condominiums, and apartment complexes ;

personal property, including computers, phone systems, furnitur e, fixtur es, and plants; and specialty items

such as crystal, china, and antiques.

How items are sold

Brokers, sealed bid, and sometimes

auctions

How sales are advertised

Sales are advertised in the Wall

Street Journal, trade publications for

specialized items, and the local

newspapers and broadcast media

where the sales will be held.The

FDIC office listed on the next page

can also provide information on

upcoming sales. FDIC does not

maintain a national mailing list.

Special restrictions/conditions

Special conditions and restrictions

are made on a case-by-case basis

and may involve verifying low to

moderate income for buyers of certain residential properties, requiring

protection of the endangered

species on undeveloped property, or

8
insuring proper care for a property

that is a national historic landmark.

FDIC typically does not finance

properties. Guaranteed payment,

such as money orders, certified

checks, cashier’s checks, or cash, is

required. FDIC employees may not

participate in the sales.

For more information

The best way to obtain information

on FDIC auctions and assets for

sale is through the FDIC website at

www.fdic.gov.

For more information on FDIC sales,

including listings of upcoming sales,

contact: 

FDIC Asset Marketing

Dallas Field Office

1910 Pacific Pl., Ste. 1700

Dallas,TX 75201

(214) 754-0098

1 (800) 568-9161 toll-free

General Services

Administration

Federal Supply Service

What is sold

GSA’s Federal Supply Service (FSS)

sells a wide variety of personal property no longer needed by the Federal

Government. Items sold include cars,

trucks, boats, cameras and projectors, communications equipment,

copiers, food preparation and serving equipment, hardware, jewelry and

collectibles, medical and laboratory

equipment, office machines, office

and household furniture, recreational

and athletic equipment, tools, and

many other items.

How items are sold

GSA conducts sealed bid, fixed

price, auction, spot bid, negotiated,

or online Internet sales. It is GSA

policy to sell personal property at

fair market value, and not to sell

items if the bid price is below what is

reasonable. No preference is given

to individuals or groups, including

veterans and religious organizations.

Payment is restricted to the following instruments: U.S. currency; bank

cashier’s check; cashier’s check

issued by a Federal or State chartered credit union; U.S. Postal

Service or commercial money order;

traveler’s checks; properly endorsed

Federal, State, or local government

checks; Visa, MasterCard, Discover

(Novus), and American Express.

Certified checks and bank drafts are

not acceptable.

A personal or company check will be

accepted only when accompanied by

a bank letter guaranteeing payment.

This letter must be on bank letterhead and must state (1) that payment is guaranteed, (2) that the

guarantee is valid for 30 days after

the bid opening date, and (3) that the

guarantee covers the purchase of

U.S. Government personal property

only.The letter must include the

date, the bidder’s name, the amount

the guarantee is for, date of sale, and

signature of the bank official authorized to guarantee payment.The

Government does not provide any

form of financing.

9
GSA Auctions® online auction sales

offer electronic bidding, bids by

proxy, online credit card payment,

and instant feedback on a wide array

of Federal assets and personal property. Visit www.gsaauctions.gov to

see what is offered to the public.

I nformation needed to purchase pr e -

owned GSA fleet vehicles at government auctions is available at

www. autoauctions. gsa. gov.

Visitors to the site can view the vehicle auction sales schedule, search for

an upcoming auction by location, look

for specific vehicle models, and mor e.

N OT E : GSA employees or spouses

or minor childr en of GSA employees,

or their agents, may not bid on

Federal personal property. Employees

of another agency may bid if not prohibited from doing so by the employing agency ’s rules or regulations.

How sales are advertised

Sales information is advertised

through mailing lists for frequent

purchasers; radio, television, or

newspaper announcements; trade

journals and periodicals; and notices

in town halls, post offices, and

Federal Government buildings.

Information is also available via

GSA’s website at www.gsa.gov.

S ales of national inter est are published online at the Federal Business

O pportunities’ ( Fed B iz O pps) website,

www.fedbizopps.gov.

Special restrictions/conditions

B idders are cautioned to inspect all

items before bidding. GSA informs

bidders of any known deficiencies

prior to the sale, but GSA does not

guarantee the condition of sale items

and is not responsible for any problems identified after the sale. For

details about other restrictions and

conditions, please contact the personal property sales office in your ar ea.

For more information

To request information on FSS sales,

write to Personal Property Sal es, 

U.S. General Serv i ces A dm ini stration

at the local addr esses listed here for

the states where you wish to buy

property or call the listed telephone

numbers.

Washington, DC Metropolitan area:

6808 Loisdale Rd. (3FP-W)

Bldg. A, Suite 2

Springfield, VA 22150

(703) 557-7785

Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts,

New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and

Vermont:

10 Causeway St.

3rd Floor, Room 347 (2FBP-1)

Boston, MA 02222-1076

(617) 565-7319

New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico,

and Virgin Islands:

Room 20-112, Box 10 (2FBP)

26 Federal Plaza

New York, NY 10278

(212) 264-2626

Delaware, Maryland, Virginia (except

Washington, DC Metropolitan area),

Pennsylvania, and West Virginia:

The Strawbridges Building (3FPD)

20 North 8th St.

Philadelphia, PA 19107-3191

(215) 446-5065

Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky,

Mississippi, North Carolina, South

Carolina, and Tennessee:

10
Peachtree Summit Building

401 West Peachtree St.

Suite 2600 (4FD)

Atlanta, GA 30308

1 (877) 472-7068 toll-free

Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas,

Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri,

Nebraska, Ohio, and Wisconsin

( for Util iz ation and Donation Support ) :

230 South Dearborn St. (5FBP)

MS 34-6, Room 3430

Chicago, IL 60604-1969

1 (800) 472-2886 toll-free

Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas,

Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri,

Nebraska, Ohio, and Wisconsin

(for Miscellaneous Surplus Sales):

1500 East Bannister Rd. (6FBDP)

Room 1102

Kansas City, MO 64131

(816) 823-3714

Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico,

Oklahoma, and Texas:

819 Taylor St. (7FMP)

Room 7AO7

Fort Worth,TX 76102-6105

(817) 978-2352 or

1 (800) 495-1276 toll-free

Colorado, Montana, North Dakota,

South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming:

P.O. Box 25506

Denver Federal Center

Building 41 (7FP-8)

Denver, CO 80225-0506

(303) 236-7705

A r izona, Cal ifornia, Hawaii, Nevada ,

A m er i can Samoa, Com monw ealth of t he

N ort hern Mar i a na Isla nds, and Guam :

450 Golden Gate Ave.

4th Floor, West Side (9FBP)

San Francisco, CA 94102-3434

(415) 522-2891

Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and

Washington:

400 - 15th St., SW (10FZP-0)

Auburn, WA 98001-6599

(253) 931-7566

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Office of Property Disposal

Public Buildings Service

What is sold

As the program responsible for selling a significant amount of the

Federal Government ’s real estate to

the public, the Office of Property

D isposal sells real property in all 50

states, the District of Columbia,

P uerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and

U. S. Territories in the Pacific. The

properties vary widely in type and

value and may include office buildings, war ehouses, industrial facilities,

developed and undeveloped land, as

w ell as residential and commercial

properties that have been seized, forfeited, or for eclosed for nonpa yment

of Federal taxes or loans, or for law

enforcement purposes. 

How real property is sold

S ealed bid, public auction, online

auction, or auction by mail 

How sales are advertised

Sales information is advertised in

national and local newspapers, as

well as online at http://property

disposal.gsa.gov/Property.

Special restrictions/conditions

Information and details (zoning or

environmental conditions) for each

specific property are listed in the

Invitation for Bids, available upon

request. Cashier’s checks or money

orders are generally required. Under

11
special circumstances financing is

available. GSA employees are not

eligible to participate in sales.

For more information

Write to the Office of Pr operty

Disposal, U.S. General Services

Administration at the local addresses listed here for the states where

you wish to buy property or call the

listed telephone numbers.

Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana,

Massachusetts, Maine, Michigan,

Minnesota, New Hampshire, New

Jersey, New York, Ohio, Puerto Rico,

Rhode Island, Vermont, Wisconsin,

and the Virgin Islands are covered by: 

10 Causeway St., Room 925 

Boston, MA 02222 

(617) 565-5700 or

1 (800) 755-1946 toll-free

Alabama, Delaware, Florida, Georgia,

Kentucky, Maryland*, Mississippi,

North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South

Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia*, and

West Virginia are covered by:

(*except for the Washington, DC

Metropolitan area)

Peachtree Summit Bldg.

401 West Peachtree St., Room 2528 

Atlanta, GA 30365-2550 

(404) 331-5133 or

1 (800) 473-7836 toll-free

Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas,

Louisiana, Montana, Missouri, North

Dakota, Nebraska, New Mexico,

Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah,

and Wyoming are covered by: 

819 Taylor St., Room 11A09

Fort Worth,TX 76102 

(817) 978-2331 or

1 (800) 833-4317 toll-free

Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii,

Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, and

Washington are covered by: 

450 Golden Gate Ave. 4th Floor

E ast San Francisco, CA 94102-3400 

1 (888 ) GSA-LAND toll-free

(that’s 1-888-472-5263)

The Washington, DC Metropolitan

area, including Washington, DC, and

portions of Maryland and Virginia, is

covered by:

301 7th St., SW, Room 7709

Washington, DC 20407

(202) 205-2127

The Office of Property Disposal also

compiles a bimonthly U.S. Real

P roperty Sal es List, which lists curr ent

sales of property available by state,

city, or county. You ’ll find it by accessing GSA’s website at http : / /property

disposal. gsa. gov / P roperty. 

To obtain a free copy of the Sales List

write or call: 

Federal Citizen Information Center 

Dept. 559K

Pueblo, CO 81009 

1 (888) 8 PUEBLO toll-free

(that’s 1-888-878-3256)

Government Printing

Office

What is sold

The Government Printing Office

(GPO) prints, binds, and distributes

the publications of the Federal

12
Government. As a result, the public

will find used printing and binding

equipment for sale.You may also find

office furniture and business

machines such as copiers, calculators, and typewriters. All sales are

conducted at the GPO Headquarters

located in Washington, DC. 

How items are sold

Sealed bid

How sales are advertised

Sales are advertised through bidder’s lists and the Federal Business

Opportunties (Fed Biz Ops).To be

placed on a bidder’s list, see “For

more information” below.

Special restrictions/conditions

Payment by certified or cashier’s

check only.

For more information

To learn more about personal property

sales, send a fax to (202) 512-1354 or

write to: 

Government Printing Office

Specialized Procurement and

Sales Section

Mail Stop: MMPS 

710 North Capitol St., NW 

Washington, DC 20401

Department of

Homeland Security

Bureau of Customs and Border

Protection

Bureau of Immigration and

Customs Enforcement

United States Secret Service

See the “Department ofTreasury”

section on page 24 for more information on these agencies.

Department of Housing

and Urban Development

Office of Single Family Housing

What is sold

When a mortgage lender forecloses

on a mortgage insured by the Federal

Housing Administration (FHA), a

division of the U.S. Department of

Housing and Urban Development

(HUD), the lender may convey the

property to HUD in exchange for the

mortgage insurance benefits. HUD

sells the homes to the public, nonprofit groups, and governmental entities at f air market value or at a discounted price under special programs.The acquired properties are

single-family homes (1-4 units),

including townhomes, condominiums, or other types of single-family

dwellings.

How HUD Homes are sold

HUD uses the competitive electronic

bid process as its primary method of

disposing of acquired properties.

Bids must be submitted online at the

HUD Home Sale website at

www.hud.gov/homes.Typically, at

the end of the offer period (usually

10 days), all the bids received on the

home are opened. HUD accepts the

bid giving the highest acceptable net

return.The winning bid is then posted on the HUD Home Sale website.

Buyers must use a licensed real

13
estate broker to prepare and submit

bids. From time to time, HUD may

use the auction method to dispose of

properties in hard to sell areas and

where there is a large inventory of

properties that have been on-hand

longer than six months. HUD also

offers properties on a direct sale

basis to nonprofit organizations and

governmental entities under special

sales programs.

How sales are advertised

HUD provides information on available properties via widely circulated

daily newspapers and the Internet at

www.hud.gov/homes.

Special restrictions/conditions

HUD does not offer dir ect financing

on its properties. How ever, FHAinsur ed financing is available through

approved FHA lenders on many of

H U D ’s properties. Generally, HUD

employees, their relatives, and HUD

contractors are prohibited from buying HUD properties.

For more information

Call 1 (800) 767-4483 to request information on the HUD Homes sales

program.You may also call a participating real estate broker in your

area. Participating real estate brokers are a valuable source of information and advice about HUD

Homes and HUD will pay the broker’s fee. Consult the HUD website

at www.hud.gov/homes.To read

the HUD brochure, The HUD Home

Buying Guide, which includes helpful

advice on choosing and buying a HUD

home, visit www. pueblo. gsa. gov /

cic_text/housing/hudhome/

sfhhomeb.html.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Office of Multifamily Housing

Programs

What is sold

When an owner of a multifamily

property (5 or more units) with a

HUD-insured mortgage defaults on

the mortgage, the mortgagee generally assigns the mortgage to HUD in

exchange for the payment of insurance benefits. When HUD becomes

the mortgagee, it can sell the note or

foreclose if the mortgage is in

default.

E xa mples of these properties include

multifa mily apartment projects, nursing homes, assisted living facilities,

mobile home parks, and hospitals. 

How items are sold

N ote sales and for eclosure sales ar e

generally auction - type sales to the

public and are the pr edominant

method of sale. If HUD is the high

bidder at the for eclosure sale, HUD

becomes owner of the property. City,

state, and local public housing agencies have a right of first refusal to

purchase HUD-owned properties if

they can meet the sales conditions

set by HUD. If the property is not sold

pursuant to the right of first refusal, it

is generally sold to the public through

a competitive process, either by

sealed bid, auction, or request for

proposals. 

H U D - held multifa mily mortgage loans

are usually offer ed for sale in pools

according to various criteria such as

performance status, collateral type,

loan type, and geography. Bidders

must meet specific qualifications. 

A Bidder Information Package is

available to all qualified bidders,

14
which details the loans offer ed for

sale and the bidding process. The

loans are sold servicing - r eleased,

without FHA insurance and, ex cept as

expr essly provided in the loan sale

agr eement, without any repr esentation or warranty, whether expr ess,

implied or cr eated by operation of law.

How sales are advertised

For eclosure sale information is available on the Internet, in the Wal l

S treet Journal every Wednesda y, and

in local and regional newspapers

where properties for sale are located.

HUD also maintains a mailing list of

persons and firms who have indicated

a desire to be informed of all sales —

an Invitation to Bid is e-mailed to

everyone on the mailing list for each

property advertised for competitive

sale. 

Note sales are advertised in financial newspapers such as the Wall

Street Journal and on the Internet at

www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/comp/

asset/mfam/mhls.cfm.

This site is updated as Note sales

are scheduled.

Special restrictions/conditions

Apartment projects located in areas

where there is a need for affordable

housing are usually sold with a condition that they be maintained as

affordable housing for at least 20

years. HUD does not offer financing

to purchase properties. HUD may

impose deed restrictions to assure

that an apartment project is repaired

to HUD standards and maintained as

affordable housing, generally for at

least 20 years after the repairs are

completed. Some projects are sold

with a requirement that they be partially or totally demolished.

Subsidized mortgage loans are sold

with protections for the tenants.

Unsubsidized mortgage loans are

generally sold without any restrictions.

For more information

To obtain a list of projects currently

available for sale, consult HUD’s

website at www.hud.gov/offices/

hsg/msh/pd/mfplist.cfm and the

Wall Street Journal every Wednesday.

To get on the mailing list, go to

www. hud. gov / subsc ribe / index. cfm.

For information on mortgage sales,

visit HUD’s website at

www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/comp/

asset/mfam/mhls.cfm.

Department of Interior

Bureau of Land Management

What is sold

The Bureau of Land Management

(BLM) is responsible for managing

more than 261.4 million acres of public lands. Public land is undeveloped

land with no improvements. Most of

the public lands are located in the

Western States and Alaska.The

BLM does not offer much land for

sale because of a Congressional

mandate in 1976 to retain these

lands.The BLM occasionally sells

parcels of land under certain conditions.The lands are generally rural

woodland, grassland, or desert.

15
How the land is sold

The BLM has thr ee options for selling

land: 

1 ) modified competitive bidding wher e

some pr efer ences to adjoining

landowners are recognized; 

2 ) dir ect sale to one party where 

circumstances warrant; and 

3 ) competitive bidding at a public 

auction. 

The sale method is determined on a

case-by-case basis, depending on

the circumstances of each particular

parcel or sale. By law, the lands are

offered for sale at f air market value.

How sales are advertised

Land sales are listed in local newspapers and in the Federal Register.

Special restrictions/conditions

Sales conditions are provided in the

Notice of Sale.The BLM can sell

public land only to U.S. citizens or

corporations subject to Federal or

state laws. Employees of the

Department of the Interior are not

allowed to bid. No financing is available. Cashier’s check or cash is

required.

For more information

For general BLM information, contact: 

BLM National Headquarters

1849 C St., NW,

Washington, DC 20240 

(202) 452-5125. 

You may wish to consult the BLM

w ebsite at www. blm. gov. You also

may wish to contact the BLM office in

the state(s) where you are inter ested

in buying land. The specific states

cover ed by each office are listed her e.

BLM - Alaska State Office

222 W. 7th Street, #13

Anchorage, AK 99513-7599

(907) 271-4418

BLM - Arizona State Office

222 N. Central Ave.

Phoenix, AZ 85004-2203

(602) 417-9504

BLM - California State Office

2800 Cottage Way, Suite W-1834

Sacramento, CA 95825-0451

(916) 978-4611

BLM - Colorado State Office

2850 Youngfield St.

Lakewood, CO 80215-7076

(303) 239-3670

BLM - Eastern States Office (includes

Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Illinois,

Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Michigan,

Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri,

Ohio, and Wisconsin)

7450 Boston Blvd.

Springfield, VA 22153

(703) 440-1713

BLM - Idaho State Office

1387 S. Vinnell Way

Boise, ID 83709-1657

(208) 373-3890

BLM - Montana State Office (including Montana, North Dakota, and

South Dakota)

5001 Southgate Dr.

Billings, MT 59107

(406) 896-5011

BLM - Nevada State Office

1340 Financial Blvd.

Reno, NV. 89520-7147

(775) 861-6586

16
BLM - New Mexico State Office

(including Oklahoma, Kansas, and

Texas)

1474 Rodeo Rd.

Santa Fe, NM 87505

(505) 438-7514

BLM - Oregon State Office (including

Washington state)

333 SW First Ave.

Portland, OR 97208

(503) 808-6287

BLM - Utah State Office

324 S. State St., Ste. 301

Salt Lake City, UT 84145-0155

(801) 539-4021

BLM - Wyoming (including Nebraska)

5353 Yellowstone Rd.

Cheyenne,WY 82003

(307) 775-6015

For the BLM booklet, Can I Get Free

Land from BLM?, send a $2.00 check

or money order payable to

“Superintendent of Documents” to

the following address:

Federal Citizen Information

Center

Dept. 111K

Pueblo, CO 81009 

1 (888) 8 PUEBLO toll-free

(that’s 1-888-878-3256)

Department of Justice

U.S. Marshals Service

What is sold

The U. S. Marshals Service (US M S )

sells property to the public that has

been forfeited under laws enforced

and administer ed by the Department

of Justice (DOJ) and its investigative

agencies (the Drug Enforcement

A dministration and the Federal

B ur eau of Investigation) and certain

other Federal law enforcement agencies. More than 14,000 items of property are sold annually with gross

sales of $200 million. 

The property consists of both residential and commercial real estate,

business establishments, financial

instruments, and a wide variety of

personal property such as vehicles,

boats, aircraft, jewelry, art, antiques,

collectibles, and other personal

property.

How items are sold

Forfeited property is sold through a

variety of methods including auction,

sealed bid, and Internet sales. Most

forfeited property is sold by professional auctioneers and brokers who

are under contract to US M S. The contractors, usually auctioneers, sell

vehicles, boats, jew elry, art, antiques,

aircraft, and other personal property.

N ormally, real property is sold by real

estate brokers through multiple listing services. Some forfeited property

17
is sold by the U. S. General Services

A dministration under an agr eement

with USMS (see page 9). USMS also

occasionally conducts sales. 

How sales are advertised

G enerally, forfeited property is advertised for sale in the classified section

of major newspapers in the ar ea

where the property is located.

A dvertisements for the sale of special inter est items can also be found

in national association and trade publications, in specialized periodicals,

and on the websites of USMS and

some of its contractors. USMS does

not maintain a list of forfeited property for sale or a mailing list to notify

prospective buyers of upcoming sales. 

Special restrictions/conditions

The law under which USMS disposes of forfeited property provides

no authority for donations.

DOJ employees, USMS contractors,

their families, and criminal defendants cannot bid on or purchase forfeited property.

Guaranteed payment such as cash

or certified check is required. Some

of the sales contractors may accept

credit cards.

Forfeited property is usually sold at

its fair market value. USMS reserves

the right to reject any and all bids in

a given forfeiture sale.

For more information

USMS maintains a N ational Sel l ers

L i st (NSL) that is available to the

public. The NSL is a list of US M S

contractors and other Federal agencies that sell property to the public

for US M S. The NSL may be accessed

by consulting either the USMS website at www. usdoj. gov / marshals or

the Federal Citizen Information

C enter (FCIC) website at

www. pueblo. gsa. gov /cic _ text /

fed _ prog / selerlst / selerlst. htm.

You may request a copy of the NSL

by calling the USMS fax-on-demand

service at (202) 307-9777. You also

may order a copy of the NSL from

FCIC by sending your name, address,

and a check or money order for $1.00

payable to “Superintendent of

Documents” to: 

Federal Citizen Information

Center

Dept. 319K

Pueblo, CO 81009 

1 (888) 8 PUEBLO toll-free

(that’s 1-888-878-3256) 

C ontact the district U. S. Marshal who

is listed under the U. S. Marshals

S ervice of the Department of Justice

in the “U. S. Government” listings of

the telephone dir ectories of the major

cities in your state, or write: 

U.S. Marshals Service

Office of Public Affairs

OS #3, 10th Floor

Washington, DC 20530-1000

★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★★ 

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,

Firearms, and Explosives

See the “Department ofTreasury”

section on page 24 for more information on this agency’s forfeited sales

program.

18
National Aeronautics

and Space

Administration

What is sold

Each year more than $400 million in

National Aeronautics and Space

Administration (NASA) surplus and

exchange/sale personal property is

sold to the public.Types of property

available include primarily computer

equipment, printers, electronics, test

equipment, office furniture, laboratory equipment, video equipment,

computer tape, heavy vehicles, hardware, aircraft parts, communication

equipment, recyclable materials such

as metal, copper wire, waste office

paper, wood pallets, aluminum cans,

and much more.

How items are sold

Much of NASA’s personal property

is sold directly from 13 NASA locations on a fairly regular basis.

However, small quantities of surplus

contractor inventory may be sold

from any location nationwide. Most

NASA surplus and exchange/sale

personal property is sold by the U.S.

General Services Administration

(see page 9). However, NASA does

conduct its own sales at several

locations. NASA personal property

is sold primarily by sealed bid and

auction. At several NASA locations,

working computers, printers, and

office furniture are sold by fixed

price sale. Recyclable property, such

as waste office paper and metals, is

frequently sold for a term of one year

via sealed bid.

How sales are advertised

Sales information is advertised

online at the NASA surplus sale

website, www.sale.hq.nasa.gov.

Sales are also advertised in local

newspapers. When the combined

acquisition cost of the property is

$250,000 or more, sales are advertised online at the Federal Business

Opportunities’ (FedBizOpps) website, www.fedbizopps.gov. NASA

does not maintain a mailing list of

potential buyers or their needs.

Special restrictions/conditions

Terms and conditions of each sale

are posted and available from the

G overnment sales contracting officer

for each sale. Purchasers must be 18

years of age or older. Potential purchasers who are curr ently debarr ed

or suspended by any Federal agency

cannot make purchases. Generally,

NASA employees and contractors

are eligible to purchase, provided

they do not have access to NAS A

property records and have not been

involved in the administration or termination of contractor inventory,

maintenance, use, inspection, or support of property before or during the

disposal or sale process. 

Guaranteed payment such as cash

or certified check is required. At

many of the sales, credit cards may

be accepted.The Federal Government does not provide any form of

financing.

It is the potential purchaser ’s responsibility to ascertain and comply with

all applicable Federal, state, local,

19
and multi - jurisdictional laws, ordinances, and regulations pertaining to

the registration, export, processing,

manufactur e, resale, use, or disposal

of the property they will purchase

from the Federal Government. The

purchaser must pay for and remove

purchases within the time pr escribed

for each sale and cannot remove merchandise before pa yment. If the purchaser fails to pay for and remove the

property by the deadline, the Federal

G overnment will take action to collect

da mages totaling $25 or 20% of the

purchase price, whichever is gr eater.

For more information

Visit the NASA surplus sale website

at www.sale.hq.nasa.gov to obtain

contact information for sales of

NASA surplus and exchange/sale

personal property.

To report suspected fraud, waste, or

abuse in the sale of NASA surplus

and exchange/sale personal property, please contact the NASA Office

of Inspector General toll free at

1 (800) 424-9183 or write to one of the

specific offices listed on the NASA

website at www.hq.nasa.gov/

office/oig/hq/hotline.html.

To learn more about personal property

sales at NASA centers or installations in your geographic ar ea, look

under NASA in the “U. S. Government” listings in the phone dir ectories

of the major cities of your state.

U.S. Postal Service

What is sold

The U.S. Postal Service (USPS)

auctions a wide variety of items that

have been lost in the mail, are

unclaimed, or on which an insurance

claim has been paid. Sales of this

merchandise are referred to as mail

recovery auctions, although letters

are not among the items offered for

sale.The merchandise may include

clocks, televisions, radios, tape

recorders, jewelry,VCRs, and clothing.The USPS also has sales programs that sell excess postal vehicles, computers, workroom and

office furniture, and electronic and

hardware items for mail handling

equipment.

How items are sold

Auctions, sealed bid sales, and fixed

price sales

How sales are advertised

Postal vehicle sales are announced

in local post offices, newspapers,

and television advertisements.

Personal property sales of excess

goods are advertised in local newspapers and post offices in the geographic areas where sales are held.

Lost, damaged, and unclaimed goods

are sold at two sites: St. Paul, MN

and Atlanta, GA. To be placed on a

mailing list for notices of mail recovery center auctions, write to the

appropriate USPS offices listed

under “For more information.”

20
Special restrictions/conditions

Terms and conditions of each sale ar e

posted with sales notice information.

USPS employees are permitted to

buy at personal property sales, ex cept

for those employees dir ectly involved

in the sales. How ever, USPS employees are not allow ed to buy at mail

r ecovery center auctions. Postal vehicle sales require pa yments by certified check, money order, cashier ’s

check, or cash. A ll mail recovery auction sales accept cash, cr edit cards,

and money orders.

For more information

Due to the logistical distance of the

Atlanta and St. Paul Mail Recovery

Centers, many property sales of

excess, lost, damaged, and/or

unclaimed goods are sold via auction

or sealed bids at the respective local

district site. Postal patrons should

contact the local postal facility in

their area to obtain information on

any local or district sales.

For information on surplus postal

vehicle sales, contact your local

postmaster by looking under U.S.

Postal Service in the “U.S.

Government” listings of the phone

directories of the major cities of your

state.Your local postmaster can

direct you to the vehicle maintenance facility responsible for conducting sales in your area.

For information on personal property

sales, write to one of the following

material service centers closest to

your mailing addr ess. Material

S ervice Centers (MSCs) work closely

with the district / local offices and can

be contacted to obtain information on

district offices, such as contact

na mes, addr esses, phone, fax, etc.

Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho,

Kansas, Minneapolis, Missouri,

Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North

Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah,

Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming

are covered by:

San Francisco MSC

395 Oyster Point Blvd., Suite 205

So. San Francisco, CA 94099-6260

Arkansas, Indiana, Illinois, Louisiana,

Michigan, New Mexico, Oklahoma,

and Texas are covered by:

Chicago MSC

150 South Wacker Dr., Suite 200

Chicago, IL 60606-4100

Alabama, Delaware, District of

Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky,

Maryland, Mississippi, North

Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South

Carolina, southern New Jersey,

Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia

are covered by: 

Memphis MSC

225 North Humphreys Blvd.

Memphis,TN 38166-6260

The New York City Metropol itan area ,

C onnecti cut, Maine, Massachusetts ,

nort hern New Jersey, New Ham ps hire ,

P uerto Rico, Rhode Isla nd, and the

Virgin Isla nds are co v ered by :

Windsor MSC

8 Griffin Rd. North

Windsor, CT 06095-1572

For information on da maged and

unclaimed merchandise mail recovery

center auctions held in the following

cities, write to the office where you

are inter ested in attending sales :

Atlanta Mail Recovery Center

5345 Fulton Industrial Blvd., SW

Atlanta, GA 30378-2400

21
St Paul Mail Recovery Center

443 Fillmore Ave.

St Paul, MN 55107-9607

For more information on personal

property sales or mail recovery center auctions, you also may write to:

U.S. Postal Service

Consumer Advocate

475 L’Enfant Plaza SW, Rm. 5911

Washington, DC 20260-2202

Small Business

Administration

What is sold

The U. S. Small Business A dministration (SBA) and its participating

lenders make loans and loan guaranties to small businesses and individuals who are victims of natural

disasters. If a borrow er defaults on

the SBA loan or guaranty, SBA or a

participating lender may sell the

property securing the loan. The

assets for sale may range from real

estate — commercial property, single -

fa mily homes, and vacant land — to

personal property such as machinery,

equipment, furnitur e, fixtur es, and

inventory that were used in a wide

variety of business operations. 

The A sset Sales Program is an initiative to sell SBA’s “owned portfolio ”

of loans and other assets. These

assets consist of Section 7(a) and 504

guaranteed loans purchased. Private

lenders and development companies

originate and service 7(a) and 504

small business loans with a government guarantee for all or a portion of

the loan. Upon default by the borrow er,

S BA purchases the guaranteed portion. It is these guaranteed portions

as well as the lenders’ share that ar e

being offer ed for sale. SBA also originates and services Section 7(b) disaster assistance home and business

loans to victims of natural disasters.

These will also be sold.

How items are sold

Public auction, sealed bid, sealed

bidders auction, listing with brokers

or dealers, and private negotiation.

Auctions are open to all investors

meeting certain financial qualifications.

How sales are advertised

Sales advertisements depend on the

size and type of assets being sold.

Classified and display advertisements appear in local, regional,

national and international newspapers, and trade and industry publications. Individual properties for sale

are listed by state at SBA’s website

at www.sba.gov.The SBA

Headquarters office in Washington,

DC does not maintain a mailing list

of upcoming sales or of potential

buyers who wish to be notified.

However, local auctioneers and some

SBA district offices may maintain

localized lists.

Sales information for bulk loan sales

is available on SBA’s website at

www.sba.gov as well as through

advertisements in the Wall Street

Journal and other nationally recognized newspapers throughout the

country. SBA and its financial advisors also maintain a mailing list of

persons or firms who have indicated

a desire to be informed of all sales.

22
Special restrictions/conditions

Unless otherwise specified, all sales

are “as is.”The buyer is responsible

for removal. For the most part, only

cash or guaranteed payment such as

a cashier’s check or certified check

is accepted.The sales advertisements will provide payment information.The terms and conditions for

each sale are provided before the

start of the sale.

A ll prospective bidders should be

pr esent at this time, since bidders ar e

bound by sales announcements and

published information, and there ma y

be some last minute changes or additions to the advertised terms. SBA

has certain qualification standards

for persons or entities inter ested in

bidding on SBA loans. These can be

found on the www. sba. gov / assets

w eb page under the specific sale

announcements. 

For more information

For individual assets, consult SBA’s

website at www.sba.gov and select

“Property for Sale.”Then, select the

state you are interested in. Select

“Loan Asset Sales” for the asset

sales program.You also may call

your local SBA district office.To find

the district office nearest you, call

1 (800) U-ASK-SBA (1-800-827-5722)

or look for the U.S. Small Business

Administration under the “U.S.

Government” listings in the telephone directories of the major cities

in your state. Ask for the Liquidation

Chief, and specify the types of

assets you wish to buy, the general

price range, and the geographic location in which you’re interested.To

find out how to be placed on a localized mailing list (if there is one),

contact the SBA Liquidation Chief in

the location where you wish to buy

goods.To obtain additional information on loan sales please visit

www.sba.gov/assets or write to: 

U.S. Small Business

Administration

Asset SalesTeam 

409 Third St. SW, Suite 8300 

Washington, DC 20416

Tennessee Valley

Authority

What is sold

TheTennessee Valley Authority

(TVA) is involved in a variety of

activities ranging from flood control

and electric power production to

forestry and wildlife development.

TVA sells both personal and real

property, such as electrical supplies,

heavy construction equipment, office

furniture and machines, vehicles

ranging from heavy industrial vehicles to pick-up trucks and sedans,

and undeveloped land for industrial

and recreational purposes.TVA

holds approximately three to four

auctions each year throughout the

Tennessee Valley.

How items are sold

Goods are sold by auction, negotiated sales, or requests for offers.

How sales are advertised

S ales information is available

through mailing lists, newspapers,

trade publications, and online at

23
T VA’s website at www. tva. gov /

surplus. To be placed on T VA mailing

lists, write to the addr ess below. Be

sure to include the types of items in

which you are inter ested so you will

be placed on the appropriate mailing

list. 

Special restrictions/conditions

Certified check, cashier’s check, wire

transfer, and personal checks with a

letter of guarantee are acceptable.

For more information

VisitTVA’s surplus sales website at

www.tva.gov/surplus.

Write or call: 

Tennessee Valley Authority

Investment Recovery

PO Box 2000

Dixon Springs,TN 37057

(615) 374-7400

U.S. Department of the

Treasury

Internal Revenue Service –

Criminal Investigations

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,

Firearms, and Explosives (now

under Department of Justice)

Bureau of Customs and Border

Protection (now under

Department of Homeland

Security – DHS)

Bureau of Immigration and

Customs Enforcement (now

under DHS)

United States Secret Service

(now under DHS)

What is sold

The agencies listed above sell

seized/forfeited property throughout

the continental U.S., Alaska, Hawaii,

and Puerto Rico through EG&G

Technical Services, the national

asset management contractor for the

Department of theTreasury. A wide

variety of items are sold including

cars, boats, airplanes, real estate,

carpets, electronics, industrial

goods, jewelry, computer equipment,

wearing apparel, and household

goods. Items may be new or used

and are sold in lots ranging from single items to wholesale quantities.

Real estate is also sold, including

single-family residences, warehouses, retail buildings, and operating

businesses, such as apartment

buildings, gas stations, wine stores,

and golf courses.

How items are sold

Over 300 public auctions are held at

the times and locations listed below: 

● Approximately every nine weeks

in Edison, New Jersey; Miami/Ft.

Lauderdale, Florida; El Paso,

Laredo and Edinburg,Texas; Los

Angeles, California; and Nogales,

Arizona.

● Approximately every four weeks in

Chula Vista, California.

● Approximately three times a year

in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

24
● Over 100 times annually for real

estate throughout the U.S. and

Puerto Rico.

● At other times and locations as

merchandise becomes available.

Real estate is normally sold on-site

at the property location; however,

selected real estate may be sold

online.

Written bids are accepted at all personal property and real estate auctions.

How sales are advertised

A recorded message of upcoming

auctions may be accessed 24 hours a

day by calling the Public Auction Line

at (703) 273-7373. Customer service

r epr esentatives are available from

8:00 a. m. to 5:00 p. m. Eastern Time to

answ er specific questions. 

A one - year flyer subscription, listing

the items at upcoming auctions, is

available to the public for a non -

r efundable fee. Nationwide subscriptions for personal property sales in

the continental U. S., A laska, Hawaii,

and Puerto Rico are $25. Eastern

R egion subscriptions for sales located east of the Mississippi River

( including Puerto Rico) and Western

R egion subscriptions for sales located west of the Mississippi River

( including A laska and Hawaii) are $15

each. Nationwide real property subscriptions are $25. Please add $10 for

for eign delivery outside the U. S. 

E - mail notification is available at no

charge for both personal property and

r eal property. Information in the flyers

includes merchandise featur ed, registration information, viewing and

inspection opportunities, pa yment

methods, and other information about

the sales. Flyers are mailed two to

thr ee weeks prior to the scheduled

sale date for personal property and

twice a month for real property.

U pcoming auctions are also advertised in local newspapers and on the

D epartment of the Tr easury ’s website

www. treas. gov / auctions / customs

thr ee weeks prior to the sale date. 

Terms of sale

All auctions are open to the public.

In order to participate/bid at auctions, a bidder registration card must

be filled out at the auction location.

Bidders must be over 18 years of age

and have a government-issued photo

ID such as a driver’s license or passport in order to register. Once the

card is filled out, a bidder number

will be issued. Registration is free,

and catalogs are available at preview

and sale locations. Auction officials

strongly encourage all interested

parties to preview property before

bidding. Cash, cashier’s check,

MasterCard, Visa, American Express,

and Discover are acceptable forms

of payment for personal property

auctions. Cashier’s check is acceptable for real property. Personal or

business checks, bank letters, or letters of credit are not acceptable

forms of payment.

Special restrictions/conditions

Employees of the Department of the

Treasury, Department of Homeland

Security, and EG&G Technical

Services and their immediate families are prohibited from bidding on

property/merchandise. Additionally,

in order to comply with the

Electronic Freedom of Information

Act Amendments of 1996 (5 U.S.C.

552 (2000)), the following information

regarding the transaction shall be

25
published on the U.S. Department of

Treasury auction website: 

1) the registered bidders name,

2) the lot number,

3) the lot description, and

4) purchase price of lot.

For more information

C onsult the Department of the

Tr easury website at www. treas. gov /

auctions / customs for personal and

r eal property sales information. 

To obtain information about the personal property subscription program

or general and upcoming sales information, contact: 

EG&G Technical Services

7845 Ashton Avenue

Manassas, VA 20109 

Fax: (703) 361-4450 

Telephone: (703) 273-7373 

e-mail: auctions@egginc.com

To obtain information about the real

property subscription program or

general and upcoming sales information, contact: 

EG&G Technical Services

7723 Ashton Avenue

Manassas, VA 20109 

Fax: (703) 361-3671 

Telephone: (703) 273-7373 

e-mail: realproperty@egginc.com

Department of Veterans

Affairs

What is sold

The Department of Veterans A ffairs

( VA) operates several progra ms to

benefit veterans and members of

their fa milies. One of these progra ms

is the Guaranteed Home Loan

P rogra m. If a veteran - homeowner

defaults on a VA - guaranteed loan,

the veteran ’s lender for ecloses the

loan and, in most cases, VA acquir es

the property after for eclosur e. VA

then sells these properties, which

include single - fa mlily homes, townhouses, and condominiums, to the

public through its nine regional loan

centers and 36 regional offices. 

How VA-acquired properties are

sold

Properties are offered for sale to the

public at fair market value and sold

to the offeror whose bid provides the

highest net toVA. Offers may be

submitted through any licensed real

estate broker who participates inVA

sales programs.These brokers can

answer questions aboutVA sales

procedures and show properties to

prospective purchasers.

How properties are advertised

VA regional offices advertise properties for sale to the general public

either by dir ect mailings to local

sales brokers or by listing properties

in local newspapers. Information on

26
properties or on the program in general may also be available on regional

office telephone information systems

and / or bulletin boards. Some regional

offices have established websites

that can be accessed through VA’s

Veterans Benefits A dministration

w ebsite at www. vba. va. gov. 

Special restrictions/conditions

You do not have to be a veteran to

purchase these properties. VAacquired properties may be purchased by veterans, non-veterans,

owner occupants, and investors.

Terms and conditions of sale, which

vary from property to property, are

included in property sales listings.

For more information: 

Consult the VA’s Home Loan

Guaranty Services website at

www.homeloans.va.gov.

Contact the VA regional office nearest you. Look for VA under the “U.S.

Government” listings in your local

telephone directory or call toll-free

1 (800) 827-1000.

27
28

The information in this publication

is accurate as of November 2003.

B ecause the sales progra ms

described change over time, the U. S.

G eneral Services A dministration

encourages consumers to contact the

sponsoring Federal agency ’s local or

r egional offices for curr ent sales

information and specific details concerning the rules and conditions of

sales. Federal agency information can

be found at First G ov. gov. 

Please note that this guide does

not include very small and specialized one-time sales. Also, state and

municipal governments may have

similar sales programs. Contact your

local government offices for information on those sales programs.

This publication was produced by

the U.S. General Services

Administration, Office of Citizen

Services and Communications,

Federal Citizen Information Center.

GSA wishes to thank the many program officials in Federal agencies

across the country who gave so generously of their time and expertise to

help produce this comprehensive

publication.

The U.S. General Services

Administration Guide to Federal

Government Sales is available for

sale through the Consumer

Information Catalog. It is one of the

more than 200 free and low-cost

Federal publications listed in the

free Consumer Information Catalog.

To get your free copy of the Catalog:

● Call toll-free, 1 (888) 8 PUEBLO.

That’s 1 (888) 878-3256,

● Send your name and address to:

Consumer Information Catalog,

Pueblo, CO 81009, or

● Visit www.pueblo.gsa.gov to

read, download, and order the

Catalog and all its publications.

a final note
29

Types Of Property

Personal property is the term used

for all items other than real estate. It

includes everything from office furniture to cars and jewelry. Most personal property sold by the government is used, and sold “as is.”

R eal propert y is real estate. It ma y

include office buildings, houses, condominiums, apartments, undeveloped

land, retail stor es, industrial properties, and golf courses. Like personal

property, the kind of real property

available will vary among the sales

progra ms. 

Confiscated, seized, and forfeited are

terms that describe the status of

property in the possession of

Federal law enforcement agencies.

The terms are not interchangeable.

Property that is seized or confiscated may be returned to a defendant or

innocent owner. If it is not returned,

the property becomes forfeited and

may become available for sale to the

public.Therefore, advertising for

Federal Government sales will usually describe the property obtained

through confiscation and seizure, as

forfeited.This kind of property is

sold “as is” and the inventory of

sales items constantly changes.

Foreclosed property is sold when citizens default on loans secured by a

government agency.The property,

usually real estate, is sold to the

public through government sales

programs. FDIC, HUD, SBA, andVA

all sell foreclosed properties.

Excess and/or Surplus property.

Federal property no longer needed

by an agency is declared as excess

to the needs of that agency, but may

be transferred to another Federal

agency. Federally owned property

that is no longer needed by any

Federal agency is declared as surplus to the needs of the Federal

Government. If not transferred to

state governments, it is sold to the

public.

Unclaimed goods are sold by the

Federal Government when items are

lost, abandoned, or unclaimed by the

public.The U.S. Postal Service is the

primary agency that sells unclaimed

items, typically goods that have been

lost in the mail. USPS sells the

unclaimed merchandise to the public

through mail recovery auctions.

Sales Methods

S eal ed Bid. The Federal agency pr epar es an “Invitation for Bid,” an informational sheet that contains all the

information you need to bid on the

item. The sheet describes the property being offer ed for sale and includes

the terms and conditions of sale. If

inter ested, you submit your bid to the

agency, usually by mail. On the bid

opening date, the bids are read publicly and the award is made to the

highest bidder who has corr ectly follow ed the requir ed procedur es. 

P ublic Auction. The Federal agency

follows traditional auction procedur es and gives prospective buyers a

description of the property to be auctioned along with bidding instructions

before the auction. The auctioneer

conducting the sale offers the properglossary
30

ty item - by - item and awards the item

to the highest bidder. When buying

through an auction, the buyer must be

pr esent to bid, unlike the sealed bid

method, which is conducted by mail. 

I nternet Auctions offer the general

public the opportunity to bid electronically on a wide array of Federal

assets. The auctions are completely

w eb - enabled, allowing all register ed

participants to bid on a single item or

multiple items (lots) within specified

timefra mes. For exa mple, G S A

Auctions® online auction sales offer

electronic bidding, bids by proxy,

online cr edit card pa yment, and

instant feedback on a wide array of

Federal assets and personal property.

Sealed Bidders Auction. A sales

method that combines aspects of the

sealed bid and auction methods.

Bidders submit sealed bids on the

item being offered for sale and the

highest sealed bidders are then

allowed to participate in a public

auction.The bidding starts with the

highest sealed bid.

S pot Bid. B idders are usually requir ed

to attend the sale to place their bid in

written form. The property is offer ed

item - by - item, as in an auction.

H ow ever, in an auction, the bids ar e

voiced; with the spot bid method, the

written form allows a one - time

chance for the bidder. The highest

bidder is announced publicly, receives

the award, and the sale is made.

B uyers are encouraged to be pr esent

at the award. 

Fixed Price sale. The Federal agency

marks the merchandise with a particular price.The public may purchase

the items for that set price at a public sale.The items are sold on a firstcome, first-served basis.

Negotiation. This method is often

used when selling real estate.

Federal agencies may negotiate individual property sales as a way to sell

the property. At other times, negotiation may be used in special circumstances. For example, GSA may

negotiate a sale if, after advertising,

the bid prices are not reasonable or

if the specialized property is of interest only to a small group of buyers.

Negotiation may also be used if the

character/condition of the property

or unusual circumstances make it

impractical to advertise publicly.

Sometimes agencies appraise properties to estimate their market value

and establish a list price. Offers on

the property are encouraged based

on the list price, with the final price

subject to negotiation.

Broker/Individual Sale. Real property

in government sales programs is

sometimes disposed of by using private real estate brokers to negotiate

the sale. For example, HUD uses real

estate brokers in the HUD Home

sales program.The VA sales program also utilizes private real estate

brokers when selling residential

properties.The U.S. Marshals

Service sells the majority of its forfeited real property through licensed

real estate brokers using multiple

listing services.

Portfolio sales.These sales occur

when packages of real estate and

loans are grouped together for sale

to the public.Typically, buyers purchase the property as a package. For

example, real estate may be grouped

by geographic location and assets

from a failed institution may be

packaged by loan type.
U.S. Government Printing Office: 2003–022-002-00120-8
November 2003

GSA Office of Citizen Services and Communications

Federal Citizen Information Center

U.S. General Services Administration

1800 F Street, NW

Washington, DC 20405

www.pueblo.gsa.gov