Where GovAuctions gets its listings

state and local government surplus · Tiered buyer's premium 7.5–12.5% (median ~10%)

GovDeals is the largest marketplace for state and local government surplus in the U.S. - owned by Liquidity Services (NASDAQ: LQDT). Sellers include cities, counties, school districts, transit agencies, and statewide departments. The platform charges a tiered buyer's premium that scales with bid size, and a 30+ day probation for first-time buyers caps purchases at $1,000.

government fleet, vehicle, and utility-equipment surplus · Buyer's premium varies by sale (stated on each lot)

J.J. Kane Auctioneers runs regional timed auctions of fleet and utility equipment across the country. It is a mixed marketplace, so we list only its government-consigned lots - city, county, state, sheriff and school-district fleet, transit-authority vehicles, and municipally-owned utility equipment - filtered out of its much larger private mix of investor-owned utility, telecom, and rental-fleet consignments. Expect bucket trucks, digger derricks, service and pickup trucks, vans, and police-evidence property, with strong California and Florida coverage. Lots are picked up at the selling agency's location, not at the auction's Alabama headquarters.

state and local government surplus · Buyer's premium 0–10%, set per seller (median ~7%)

Public Surplus serves smaller cities, counties, school districts, and volunteer fire departments. Inventory overlaps with GovDeals on roughly 5–15% of items but Public Surplus often runs lower buyer's premiums - some sellers absorb the premium entirely. The interface is more basic; search is less polished than GovDeals.

government fleet, equipment, and vehicle surplus · Capped internet buyer's fee (set per lot)

Purple Wave is a no-reserve online auction marketplace strong in the Midwest and Plains, and a major outlet for government surplus from cities, counties, state DOTs, school districts, and municipal road/fire departments. We list only its government-consigned lots - fleet pickups and vehicles, construction and ag equipment, trailers, and shop tools - filtered out of its broader mix of private contractor and farm consignments. Each lot is a timed auction with pickup at the selling agency.

county sheriff-sale & tax-sale real estate · Deposit required; terms set per county sale

CivilView (salesweb.civilview.com), a Tyler Technologies "SalesWeb" service, is the public listing site county sheriff's and constable's offices use to publish real-property sales - court-ordered mortgage-foreclosure sheriff sales, county tax-collection sales, and Texas constable sales. Every listing is a government sale published by the county; there is no private or MLS inventory. Coverage is densest in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Ohio, with more counties across other states. Listings are legal notices (address, case, plaintiff/defendant, sale date, and opening/upset amount) rather than photo catalogs, and bidding happens at the county's scheduled sheriff sale under terms - deposit, redemption period, payment window - set per county.

retired federal fleet cars, trucks, vans and buses · Buyer's fee is set by the auction venue running the sale

GSA Fleet Vehicle Sales is how the U.S. General Services Administration retires the federal motor pool - the sedans, pickups, SUVs, passenger vans and shuttle buses that agencies drove until GSA rotated them out. It is a separate channel from GSA Auctions, which handles general federal surplus: everything here is a titled vehicle with a VIN, an odometer reading and a published inspection window. Sales run through commercial auction venues (IAA, IronPlanet and regional auto auctions), so the pickup address is the vehicle's own site rather than a GSA facility, and most sales are multi-location - each vehicle in one sale can sit in a different state. Bidding happens on the GSA Fleet auction system linked from each listing; bid amounts are not published before the sale.

military and federal-disposition surplus · Tiered buyer's premium ~10%

GovPlanet, operated by Ritchie Bros / IronPlanet, sells military and federal-agency surplus - Humvees, MRAPs, generators, aircraft parts, body armor, and rolling stock from DLA Disposition Services and the armed services. Lots are inspected and rated, and the catalog overlaps heavily with what used to sell through GovLiquidation. Buyer's premium runs around 10% and pickup is at consignor locations.

Wisconsin state, county, city, school-district and utility surplus · Buyer's premium set per sale (stated in each sale's terms)

Wisconsin Surplus Online Auction is the Madison-based auction service that sells surplus for the State of Wisconsin itself alongside Wisconsin counties, cities, villages, school districts and municipal utilities, plus the occasional Minnesota or Illinois public body. It runs its own platform rather than listing on GovDeals, so these lots appear nowhere else we index. Sales are multi-consignor and often multi-location - one school-district auction can pool six towns - so each lot carries its own pickup city, and lots close on a stagger of about one per minute rather than all at once. Expect municipal fleet, plant and mowers, school furniture, shop and kitchen equipment, and police-seized property. GovAuctions.app lists only the municipal side of their catalogue; their general-public, firearms and collectables sales are excluded.

federal government surplus · No buyer's premium

GSA Auctions (gsaauctions.gov) is the official U.S. General Services Administration platform for federal government surplus. Inventory comes from federal agencies disposing of vehicles, electronics, real property, and seized assets. GSA does not charge a buyer's premium - you pay your winning bid plus any state taxes.

federal REO (foreclosed) real estate · No buyer's premium (fixed-price listings)

Fannie Mae HomePath is the federal government-sponsored enterprise's marketplace for REO (real-estate owned) homes - single-family houses, condos, and land that Fannie Mae acquired through foreclosure. Listings are fixed-price (not auctions) and sold as-is across all 50 states; owner-occupant buyers get a First Look window and possible down-payment assistance before investors can bid. It's one of the largest sources of government-held residential property in the country.

federal FHA-foreclosed homes · No buyer's premium

HUD HomeStore is the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's marketplace for FHA-insured foreclosed homes, sold as-is with an owner-occupant priority window before investors can bid.

Freddie Mac REO foreclosed homes · No buyer's premium (fixed-price REO; offers via agent)

HomeSteps is Freddie Mac's brand for its REO (real-estate owned) inventory - homes Freddie Mac has taken back through foreclosure and resells. It is the sibling of Fannie Mae HomePath and HUD HomeStore, completing the federal-REO picture. Listings are fixed-price (not auctions); buyers submit offers through a licensed real-estate agent. Freddie Mac is a government-sponsored enterprise under FHFA conservatorship, so the inventory is federal-adjacent and distinct from the foreclosure homes sold by HUD and Fannie Mae.

small-town municipal surplus · No buyer's premium (paid by seller)

Municibid focuses on small-town and rural municipal sellers - borough councils, township public works, volunteer fire companies, and small school districts that don't have the volume to justify a GovDeals contract. Inventory skews toward fire and public-works equipment (used fire trucks, brush trucks, backhoes, plow trucks) and confiscated/decommissioned police gear. Sellers pay a listing fee and the buyer pays no premium.

county tax-defaulted, sheriff, and federal forfeiture real estate · Deposit required; fees vary by county sale

Bid4Assets, owned by Liquidity Services (the same company behind GovDeals), is the dominant marketplace for county-government real-property auctions in the U.S. - tax-defaulted ("tax sale") properties from county treasurers and tax collectors, sheriff-sale foreclosures, judicial sales, and federal (U.S. Marshals) forfeiture. Every listing is a government sale; there is no private or MLS inventory. Most sales require a refundable deposit to bid, and terms (premiums, redemption periods, payment windows) are set per county.

police-seized and unclaimed property · No buyer's premium on most lots; 10-15% on capital assets

PropertyRoom is the dominant online auction outlet for US law enforcement surplus - seized, forfeited, and unclaimed property from police departments, sheriff's offices, and state agencies. The catalog runs heavy on jewelry, electronics, bikes, firearms, and the occasional seized vehicle. Most items ship from regional warehouses; vehicles require pickup at the seizing agency. Most lots carry no buyer's premium at all - where one applies it is 10%, 12%, or 15%, and it lands on capital assets like vehicles, boats, and heavy machinery. Check the listing, which discloses it before you bid.

U.S. Marshals and U.S. Treasury seized & forfeited personal property · Buyer's premium set per lot on the auction site

Apple Auctioneering Co. is the national contractor that liquidates seized and forfeited personal property for the U.S. Marshals Service (across its 84 districts) and the U.S. Treasury's asset-forfeiture program. Bidding runs on HiBid under the Apple Towing Co account. Inventory is dominated by seized vehicles - cars, motorcycles, semi-trucks, trailers, and boats - forfeited in federal criminal and civil cases, sold as-is with prompt removal required. It is distinct from the USMS real-estate forfeitures sold on Bid4Assets and the Treasury real property sold by CWS Marketing: this is the federal seized-vehicle and personal-property channel.

Illinois state government surplus · No buyer's premium

iBid is the State of Illinois Central Management Services surplus auction site - state vehicles, equipment, electronics, and office property sold directly by the state.

Michigan state government surplus · No buyer's premium

MiBid is the State of Michigan's DTMB surplus auction platform - decommissioned state vehicles, equipment, and office property sold directly by the state.

U.S. Treasury seized & forfeited property and U.S. Customs merchandise · No buyer's premium

CWS Marketing Group (CWSAMS) runs the U.S. federal government's seized-and-forfeited property auctions for the Treasury Executive Office for Asset Forfeiture - proceeds of IRS Criminal Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, and U.S. Secret Service seizures - alongside U.S. Customs and Border Protection "general order" merchandise abandoned at ports of entry. Inventory spans seized real estate, vehicles, vessels, aircraft, jewelry, designer goods, and precious metals. It's entirely federal, distinct from anything sold on GSA Auctions, and carries no buyer's premium. Bidding runs on the official CWS site (bid.cwsmarketing.com).

federal real property (homes, commercial buildings, land) · No buyer's premium

GSA Real Estate Sales (realestatesales.gov) is the U.S. General Services Administration's platform for surplus federal REAL property - single-family homes, commercial buildings, and land/lots disposed of by federal agencies. It is a separate platform from GSA Auctions (gsaauctions.gov), which handles personal property; there is no inventory overlap. Sales run as online or sealed-bid auctions, volumes are low but values high (tens of thousands to over a million dollars), and there is no buyer's premium. Each sale sets its own deposit, due-diligence, and closing terms on the official listing.