GUIDE TO BUYING USED FEDERAL PERSONAL PROPERTY
Do you want to buy Government property? If you do, you need totalk to us. We're the U.S. General Services Administration(GSA), and we sell used personal property for nonmilitary Federalagencies.
GSA is the Government's procurement agent for the supplies,equipment, and vehicles that Federal workers need to do theirjobs. When items are no longer needed or are being replaced, westretch the Federal dollar by offering them for sale to thepublic. Our sales include a wide variety of items that wouldinterest both individuals and businesses.
This guide will tell you what we sell, how we sell it, and howyou can be a buyer. We've also included information about salesof military and forfeited property and real estate.
Airplanes to X-Rays
We sell cars, vans, trucks, boats, and airplanes; office andhousehold furniture; communications equipment; computers,printers, copiers, and typewriters; recreational and athleticequipment; cameras and projectors; and tools. We also sellindustrial items like hardware; plumbing, heating, and electricalequipment; printing presses; paper products; medical andlaboratory equipment; agricultural, mining, and constructionvehicles and machinery; food preparation and serving equipment;ores and metals; and exposed x-ray film.
Most of the vehicles in our sales were purchased new and drivenby Government employees for official purposes. They are soldwhen they reach replacement age and/or mileage. Our vehicles areone of the best buys in the marketplace today because of goodmaintenance, relatively low age and mileage, and desired featureslike automatic transmission, air conditioning, power steering,and power brakes. And they don't look like institutionalvehicles, as the Government buys attractive body styles in avariety of colors.
No Giveaways
If you're interested in buying used Federal property, there's onething you should know up front. The Government expects toreceive a fair price. Unless you're willing to pay fair marketvalue, you would be wasting your time at a sale. Every item hasan undisclosed minimum price and is seldom sold for less. Stories about the $100 dollar yacht or Mercedes car are purefiction.
As a taxpayer, you paid for these items when they were new. GSAwants to give you the best possible return on your tax dollarwhen they're sold.
No Guarantees
We'll give you a chance to inspect sale property before making anoffer, and we urge you to do so. While we try to point outdeficiencies if we know about them, an item may still havefaults, and we do not guarantee condition.
How We Sell
We sell personal property by sealed bid, auction, spot bid, andfixed price sales. No preference is given to any individuals orgroups, including veterans, senior citizens, and religiousorganizations.
Sealed Bid
We sell by sealed bid when the sales items are in scatteredlocations. For this type of sale, we mail an "Invitation forBid," or IFB, to prospective buyers on our mailing lists. TheIFB contains item descriptions, sale terms and conditions, itemlocations and inspection times, and a bid form.
If you decide to bid, you fill out the bid form and mail it tothe address indicated in the IFB. We must receive your bid bythe opening date and time. Late bids are not accepted under anycircumstances. We open all bids publicly.
Auction
We hold an auction when we have a large number of items for salein one location. Many of our car and truck sales are auctions. We use traditional auction methods.
You'll receive descriptions, bidding instructions, and anopportunity to inspect the merchandise ahead of time or on theday of the sale.
Spot Bid
A spot bid sale is similar to a "silent auction," with bidswritten down rather than voiced. Property is offered item byitem and awarded to the highest bidder. Bidders may bid onlyonce per item, unless the item is reoffered.
Fixed-Price Sale
From time to time, we'll hold a fixed-price sale. At these, wepost the selling prices on the property and sell items on afirst-come basis.
Conditions of Sale
We sell used personal property according to the U.S. Government's Standard Form 114C, "General Sale Terms and Conditions." You mayask to review a copy of the form at any of the GSA regional salesoffices listed further on in this pamphlet or at a sale location.
You should study carefully the terms and conditions in theInvitation for Bid and in any notices provided at auctions andfixed-price sales. Be sure you understand any special terms. Payment and Removal
You must pay for and remove your purchases within the timeprescribed for each sale, and you cannot remove merchandisebefore you pay. The Government does not provide any form offinancing.
Acceptable forms of payment generally include cash, money orders,travelers checks, cashier's checks, credit union checks,Government checks, and personal checks accompanied by an informalbank letter guaranteeing payment. VISA and MasterCard also areaccepted for many sales.
Removal is your responsibility; GSA will not provide shipping andhandling. If you fail to pay and remove by the deadline, theGovernment will take action to collect damages from you of $25 or20 percent of the purchase price, whichever is greater.
How We Advertise
We maintain mailing lists for frequent purchasers of Governmentproperty. To keep down mailing costs, we periodically remove thenames of people who don't buy. To be placed on a mailing list,write to the GSA regional sales office serving your location.
Occasional buyers can get information about upcoming sales bydialing our telephone hotlines for recorded messages.
We also run ads in local newspapers and on radio, and sometimeswe'll post notices in public buildings. Highly specialized salesand others that might generate interest nationwide are advertisedin national newspapers, trade journals, and periodicals.
We also advertise sales of national interest in the CommerceBusiness Daily, a publication of the U.S. Department of Commerce. Copies of Commerce Business Daily may be available at librariesand local Chambers of Commerce. For subscription information,call the U.S. Government Printing Office order line at (202) 512-1800 or write to the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. GovernmentPrinting Office, Washington, DC 20402.
You'll find a list of GSA regional sales offices, with addressesand telephone numbers for recorded messages, on the back of thispamphlet.
GSA is the Government's procurement agent for the supplies,equipment, and vehicles that Federal workers need to do theirjobs. When items are no longer needed or are being replaced, westretch the Federal dollar by offering them for sale to thepublic. Our sales include a wide variety of items that wouldinterest both individuals and businesses.
This guide will tell you what we sell, how we sell it, and howyou can be a buyer. We've also included information about salesof military and forfeited property and real estate.
Airplanes to X-Rays
We sell cars, vans, trucks, boats, and airplanes; office andhousehold furniture; communications equipment; computers,printers, copiers, and typewriters; recreational and athleticequipment; cameras and projectors; and tools. We also sellindustrial items like hardware; plumbing, heating, and electricalequipment; printing presses; paper products; medical andlaboratory equipment; agricultural, mining, and constructionvehicles and machinery; food preparation and serving equipment;ores and metals; and exposed x-ray film.
Most of the vehicles in our sales were purchased new and drivenby Government employees for official purposes. They are soldwhen they reach replacement age and/or mileage. Our vehicles areone of the best buys in the marketplace today because of goodmaintenance, relatively low age and mileage, and desired featureslike automatic transmission, air conditioning, power steering,and power brakes. And they don't look like institutionalvehicles, as the Government buys attractive body styles in avariety of colors.
No Giveaways
If you're interested in buying used Federal property, there's onething you should know up front. The Government expects toreceive a fair price. Unless you're willing to pay fair marketvalue, you would be wasting your time at a sale. Every item hasan undisclosed minimum price and is seldom sold for less. Stories about the $100 dollar yacht or Mercedes car are purefiction.
As a taxpayer, you paid for these items when they were new. GSAwants to give you the best possible return on your tax dollarwhen they're sold.
No Guarantees
We'll give you a chance to inspect sale property before making anoffer, and we urge you to do so. While we try to point outdeficiencies if we know about them, an item may still havefaults, and we do not guarantee condition.
How We Sell
We sell personal property by sealed bid, auction, spot bid, andfixed price sales. No preference is given to any individuals orgroups, including veterans, senior citizens, and religiousorganizations.
Sealed Bid
We sell by sealed bid when the sales items are in scatteredlocations. For this type of sale, we mail an "Invitation forBid," or IFB, to prospective buyers on our mailing lists. TheIFB contains item descriptions, sale terms and conditions, itemlocations and inspection times, and a bid form.
If you decide to bid, you fill out the bid form and mail it tothe address indicated in the IFB. We must receive your bid bythe opening date and time. Late bids are not accepted under anycircumstances. We open all bids publicly.
Auction
We hold an auction when we have a large number of items for salein one location. Many of our car and truck sales are auctions. We use traditional auction methods.
You'll receive descriptions, bidding instructions, and anopportunity to inspect the merchandise ahead of time or on theday of the sale.
Spot Bid
A spot bid sale is similar to a "silent auction," with bidswritten down rather than voiced. Property is offered item byitem and awarded to the highest bidder. Bidders may bid onlyonce per item, unless the item is reoffered.
Fixed-Price Sale
From time to time, we'll hold a fixed-price sale. At these, wepost the selling prices on the property and sell items on afirst-come basis.
Conditions of Sale
We sell used personal property according to the U.S. Government's Standard Form 114C, "General Sale Terms and Conditions." You mayask to review a copy of the form at any of the GSA regional salesoffices listed further on in this pamphlet or at a sale location.
You should study carefully the terms and conditions in theInvitation for Bid and in any notices provided at auctions andfixed-price sales. Be sure you understand any special terms. Payment and Removal
You must pay for and remove your purchases within the timeprescribed for each sale, and you cannot remove merchandisebefore you pay. The Government does not provide any form offinancing.
Acceptable forms of payment generally include cash, money orders,travelers checks, cashier's checks, credit union checks,Government checks, and personal checks accompanied by an informalbank letter guaranteeing payment. VISA and MasterCard also areaccepted for many sales.
Removal is your responsibility; GSA will not provide shipping andhandling. If you fail to pay and remove by the deadline, theGovernment will take action to collect damages from you of $25 or20 percent of the purchase price, whichever is greater.
How We Advertise
We maintain mailing lists for frequent purchasers of Governmentproperty. To keep down mailing costs, we periodically remove thenames of people who don't buy. To be placed on a mailing list,write to the GSA regional sales office serving your location.
Occasional buyers can get information about upcoming sales bydialing our telephone hotlines for recorded messages.
We also run ads in local newspapers and on radio, and sometimeswe'll post notices in public buildings. Highly specialized salesand others that might generate interest nationwide are advertisedin national newspapers, trade journals, and periodicals.
We also advertise sales of national interest in the CommerceBusiness Daily, a publication of the U.S. Department of Commerce. Copies of Commerce Business Daily may be available at librariesand local Chambers of Commerce. For subscription information,call the U.S. Government Printing Office order line at (202) 512-1800 or write to the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. GovernmentPrinting Office, Washington, DC 20402.
You'll find a list of GSA regional sales offices, with addressesand telephone numbers for recorded messages, on the back of thispamphlet.
