How You Can Buy Used Federal Property

How You Can Buy Used
Federal Personal Property

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www.fss.gsa.gov

U.S General Services Administration
Federal Supply Service
Property Management

February 2001 -Revised Version

Purchasing Government Personal Property

Are you interested in purchasing used Government personal property--items such as vehicles, tools, machinery, or office equipment?  If so, contact us!  We are the General Services Administration's Federal Supply Service, and we sell used personal property for civilian Federal agencies.

GSA is the Federal Government's procurement agent.  We purchase the supplies, equipment, and vehicles that Federal workers need to do their jobs.  When items are no longer needed by the Federal Government, we stretch your tax dollar by offering them for sale to the public.  Our sales include a wide variety of items that would interest both individuals and businesses.

How to Find Us

For information on GSA sales of used Federal personal property, or to be placed on a mailing list, write to Personal Property Sales, U. S. General Services Administration, at the address below serving your location.  For recorded information about upcoming sales, you may call the telephone number listed with each address or visit www.gsa.gov.

Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Area
6808 Loisdale Road (3FP-W)
Springfield, VA  22150
(703) 557-7796

Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont
10 Causeway Street
3rd Floor, Room 347 (2FBP-1)
Boston, MA 02222-1076
(617) 565-7326

New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands
26 Federal Plaza
Room 20-112, Box 10 (2FBP)
New York, NY 10278
(212) 264-2626 or 1 (800) 488-7253

Delaware, Maryland and Virginia (except Washington, DC Metropolitan area), Pennsylvania, West Virginia
Strawbridge Building (3FPD), 10th Floor
20 N. 8th St
Philadelphia, PA 19107-3191
(215)446-5000

Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee
Peachtree Summit Building
401 West Peachtree Street  (4FD)
Atlanta, GA 30365-2550
(404) 331-0040 or 1 (877) 472-7068

Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, Wisconsin
(For Fleet Vehicle Auctions Only)
230 South Dearborn Street  (5FBP)
DPN 34-6, Room 3400
Chicago, IL 60604
(312) 886-8686 or 1 (800) 472-2886

Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, Wisconsin
(For Miscellaneous Surplus Sales) (Auction and Sealed Bid)
1500 East Bannister Road  (6FBD)
Room 1102
Kansas City, MO 64131
(816) 823-3714
FAX on Demand:  816-823-3701

Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas
819 Taylor Street  (7FMP)
Room 7A07
Fort Worth, TX 76102-6105
(817) 978-2352 or 1 (800) 495-1276
FAX on Demand: 817-978-9907/9908

Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming
Denver Federal Center, Building 41 (7FP-8)
P.O. Box 25506
Denver, CO 80225-0506
(303) 236-7705

American Samoa, Arizona, California, Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, Hawaii, Nevada
450 Golden Gate Avenue
4th Floor West
San Francisco, CA 94102-3434
(415) 522-2891
FAX on Demand:  (415) 522-3025

Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington
400 15th Street, SW (10FZP-O)
Auburn, WA 98001-6599
(253) 931-7566

Examples of Items We Sell

GSA sells a wide variety of items, including the following:

• Agricultural, mining and construction vehicles and machinery;
• Cameras and projectors;
• Cars, vans, trucks, boats and airplanes;
• Communications equipment;
• Computers, printers, copiers, and typewriters;
• Food preparation and servicing equipment;
• Hardware, plumbing, heating and electrical equipment;
• Jewelry and collectibles;
• Medical and laboratory equipment;
• Office and household furniture;
• Recreational and athletic equipment;
• Tools

Most of our vehicles were purchased new and driven by Government employees for official purposes.  They are sold when they reach replacement age and/or mileage limitations.  Used Government vehicles are one of the best buys in the marketplace today. The vehicles are well maintained, have relatively low age and mileage, and have desired features like automatic transmission, air conditioning, power steering, and power brakes.  They also come in attractive body styles and a variety of colors.

Sorry! There Are No Giveaways

Stories about $100 yachts--or exotic cars sold for little or nothing--are pure fiction.  GSA expects to receive a fair market price, and every item has an undisclosed minimum price.  Your tax dollars paid for these items when they were new, and GSA expects to receive the best possible return on your tax dollar when they are sold.

No Guarantees

We do not guarantee the condition of our sale items.  You will have an opportunity to inspect property prior to sale, and we will inform you of any deficiencies that we are aware of.  However, GSA is not responsible for any problems that may be identified after the sale.

How GSA Sells Personal Property

GSA conducts sealed bid, auction, spot bid, and fixed price sales.  No preference is given to individuals or groups, including veterans, senior citizens, or religious organizations.

Sealed Bid.  We sell by sealed bid when the sale items are in scattered locations.  For a sealed bid sale, we make an "Invitation for Bid," or IFB, available to prospective buyers through the mail, by fax on demand or via Internet.  The IFB contains item descriptions, sale terms and conditions, item locations and inspection times, and a bid form.  If you decide to bid, you will complete the bid form and mail it to the address shown in the IFB.  We must receive your bid by the opening date and time indicated on the IFB.  Late bids are not accepted under any circumstances.  We open all bids publicly.

Auction.  We hold an auction when we have a large number of items for sale in one location.  Many of our car and truck sales are auctions.  We use traditional auction methods.  Prospective bidders will receive descriptions, bidding instructions, and an opportunity to inspect the merchandise ahead of time or on the day of sale.  Many of our sales are conducted by commercial auction companies who are under contract with GSA.

GSA Auctions™. Online auction sales offer web-enabled auctions, a wide variety of personal property, electronic bidding, bids by proxy, and instant feedback.

Visit our Government Site for Auctions at www.gsaauctions.gov for item descriptions and images of items for sale.

Note: GSA employees or spouse or minor child of GSA employees, or their agents, may not bid on federal personal property. An employee of another agency may bid if he/she is not prohibited from doing so by his/her employing agency’s rules or regulations.

Spot Bid.  A spot bid sale is similar to a "silent auction," with bids written down rather than voiced.  Property is offered item by item and awarded to the highest bidders.  Bidders may bid only once per item, unless the item is re-offered.

Fixed-Price Sale.  At fixed-price sales (also referred to as “Retail”), we post the selling prices on the property and sell items on a first-come basis.

Conditions of Sale

GSA sells used personal property according to the U. S. Government's Standard Form 114C, "General Sale Terms and Conditions."  You may ask to review a copy at any of the GSA regional sales offices listed in this pamphlet, at a location on www.gsa.gov or at a sale location.  Please study carefully the terms and conditions in the Invitation for Bid and in any notices provided at auctions and other sales and be sure that you understand any special terms.

Payment and Removal

Payment is restricted to the following instruments: U.S. currency; bank cashier’s check; credit union 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 United States Federal, State, or local government checks; MasterCard, VISA, 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 a 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 be dated, include the bidder’s name, the amount the guarantee is for, date of sale, and signed by a bank official authorized to guarantee payment. The government does not provide any form of financing.

Purchasers are required to remove their purchases within the time prescribed for each sale, but merchandise cannot be removed before payment is made. Removal is the purchaser’s responsibility. If a purchaser fails to pay and remove the merchandise by the prescribed deadline, the government will take action to collect damages ($200 or 20 percent of the purchase price, whichever is greater).

How We Advertise

• GSA maintains mailing lists for frequent purchasers of government property.  To be placed on a mailing list, please write to the GSA regional sales office serving your location.  In order to minimize mailing costs, we periodically remove the names of those who do not participate in our sales.
  
  
• Occasional buyers may obtain information about upcoming sales by dialing our telephone information lines for recorded messages or calling fax on demand numbers, or visiting www.gsa.gov or www.gsaauctions.gov.
  
  
• We also advertise in local newspapers and on radio, and we sometimes post notices in public buildings.
  
  
• Highly specialized sales, or those that might generate interest nationwide, are announced in national newspapers, trade journals and periodicals.
  
  
• We also advertise sales of national interest in the Commerce Business Daily, a publication of the U. S. Department of Commerce.  Copies of this publication may be available at libraries and local Chambers of Commerce.  For subscription information, you may call the U. S. Government Printing Office order line at (202) 512-1800, or write to the Superintendent of Documents, U. S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC  29402.

Real Estate

GSA's Public Buildings Service sells most surplus Government real estate.  For information, you may call 1-800-472-1313 or request a free copy of the U. S. Real Property Sales List by writing the Federal Consumer Information Center, Pueblo, CO  81009 or calling 1 (888) 8PUEBLO.  Information on real property sales can be obtained through Internet at http://www.gsa.gov/  Also, information on commercial real estate that HUD sells can be obtained through Internet at http://www.hud.gov/groups/brokers.cfm

Information about other Federal sales programs is also found in publications listed in the Consumer Information Catalog.  For a free copy of the Catalog, please call 1 888-8 PUEBLO (1-888-878-3256) or visit website www.pueblo.gsa.gov.