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Selling Used Equipment

Inventory Services governs the sale of used equipment but departments may also need to work with Purchasing Services when attempting to sell used items. Read below for the steps departments must take when selling used items.

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Steps for Selling Used Equipment at the University

Property Disposal/Off-Campus Request Form (BA 1393) (.pdf)

This form is required whenever University equipment will be removed from the Property Inventory for a specific department. Complete this form prior to offering any used equipment for sale. Forward this completed disposal form to Inventory Services or call (612) 626-8222 if you have questions. Your department will be sent information regarding the sale.

Sale Without Bids

Complete the Bill of Sale and have the buyer of the equipment or goods sing the form. Retain a signed copy and give a copy to the buyer.

Soliciting Bids

Offer to Sell Letter (.pdf)

After contacting Inventory Services, complete an Offer to Sell Letter and forward to Purchasing Services. Include the names and addresses of any interested buyers. This sample Offer to Sell Lettercan be modified to fit your sale needs. Contact Purchasing Services if you need help with the terms and conditions for the sale.

Insurance

Depending on who is purchasing the item and what the item is, it may be prudent to include an insurance requirement as part of the specifications. For example, if the buyer is a business buying the used equipment from the University, insurance requirements should be put in the specifications which address property damage and workers' compensation coverages. If the buyer is a private individual, there might be no insurance requirements necessary. Please call Risk Management at (612) 625-0062 if there are any questions on insurance requirements.

Publishing the Offer

Forward the Offer to Sell Letter to Purchasing Services. A number will be assigned to the document and the Offer to Sell will be published to the recommended buyers and other interested buyers. For very expensive or unique items, the department may consider placing an ad in the local newspaper or other appropriate publications. Purchasing will collect the responses and forward them to the selling department.

Awarding the Offer

Once the selling department has evaluated the responses, they should notify the winning buyer that the offer to buy is accepted and any other terms of the sale. The Sample Award Letter (.pdf) is a template available to all departments for awarding.

Collecting the revenue

The selling department is responsible for collecting and accounting for the money from the sale. Contact Asset Management at (612) 624-5558 with any questions on the cash receipt process. Tax questions may be referred to the U of M Tax Department at (612) 624-1053.

Removing old items form inventory

After the buyer has paid for the item, the selling department forwards a copy of the Cash Receipt (CR) and a copy of the Property Disposal Form (BA 1393) (.pdf) to Inventory Services. A list of the inventory number may substitue for the disposal form. This final step ensures the item is cleared from your inventory records.

Affiliated Departments

Controller's Organization
Purchasing Services is one of the many departments that report the Controller's Organization.

Internal Service Organizations (ISOs)
ISOs and Auxiliaries are University departments that provide products or services for sale to other University departments.

University Travel Services
University Travel Services is your complete, one-stop location for all travel related questions; from policy to prices, it's all here.