An Insider’s Handbook Of Government Auctions

Are you aware of the bargains that can be found in the most unlikely of places: the government? We’re used to reading about the Pentagon paying $59.00 for a wrench, about the national debt rising higher and higher, so it’s excusable to not think of government and “sales” in the same sentence. Yet every level of government from city and town on up through county, state and federal, has possession of excess property that must be disposed. Whether it is property seized by police officers or customs officials to repossessions by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, there are thousands of items of all types available at rock-bottom prices.

Real Estate- Seized Property Listings from Police, IRS, Customs & DEA

Seized and foreclosed homes, land, personal property

Seized Cars, Trucks, And SUV’s

All cars, makes and models, SUV’s, trucks

Seized Boats and Vessels

Buy your dream boat, jet ski, or other vessel

Personal property items

Jewelry, furniture, office equipment, collectibles, antiques sports memorabilia and more.

We want government to be fiscally responsible, right? If the government needs to dispose of goods and money raised at the same time, why not? The most common methods of disposing of property are through auction sales. These affairs offer a unique opportunity to the right person – purchases at bargain basement prices that can be turn around and sold at a profit!

Whether buying for yourself, or seeing this as a line of business that could make a substantial profit; the key to success is to identify and locate these government auctions. You do not need much experience for this. You are familiar with what many of these items cost today on the open market. If bought far enough below market value, and sold at a discount it is easy to make a profit. If you have always wanted to own a luxury yacht, here is your chance. You will never find your dream purchase at a lower price.

Another option would be to start a second-hand store, set up shop at a flea market, or become an E-bay merchant to peddle merchandise after it has been acquired at the auction. Many of these places are havens for bargain shoppers. You have simply gone them one better by obtaining the goods at an even lower price than they will pay – and be pleased with their bargain.

In the past, access to these auctions was limited to “those in the know”. The internet has opened up the auction process to everyone. Contact federal, state and local government surplus property departments to find out about the various auctions that are held by virtually all branches of government. There are companies that specialize in obtaining this information. One such company is SeizedLuxuryHomes.com. With property listings in almost every state of the US, Seized Luxury Homes is the widest and the most comprehensive real estate database online. A great deal of foreclosed property listings nationwide makes the task of buying seized properties online easy and affordable.

There are different types of auctions:

Sealed bid auctions – Submit the price you are willing to pay. You only get one shot at that type of bidding.

Open-bidding auctions – Announce the dollar value you are willing to pay following a minimum bid requirement called by the auctioneer. Other bidders will counter with bids of their own. The price will increase until there is a winner.

Be disciplined! Set a limit ahead of time so that you can let items go if the bidding goes too high. Becoming so focused on a particular piece of property will potentially end up in a bidding war. The result: you paying more than you should, cutting well into potential profit. This is a business, so common money sense is important. Think in terms of expenses vs. revenue.

If you have a certain hobby or interest, property in this area may be your natural market. If you specialize, it can help you concentrate on only those items in the large auctions areas where there are hundreds of people bidding for thousands of goods. Your focus will be in your area and you will soon be an expert on costs, prices and resale’s of this commodity.