Looking for real estate? The United State Coast Guard is auctioning off a 2.5 acre residential tract in Barnegat Light that it no longer needs to house personnel and their families.

US Coast Guard property up for auction in Barnegat Light/photo from www.gsa.gov
US Coast Guard property up for auction in Barnegat Light/photo from www.gsa.gov
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Bidding for the property is currently underway at realestatesales.gov, according to Patrick Sclafani, Regional Public Affairs Officer for U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), the real estate arm of the federal government facilitating the sale.

"It's sitting in the shadow of the historic Barnegat Lighthouse and is located less than a mile from the Atlantic Ocean. The Barnegat Light property has 4-plex housing units, a parking lot, and a sports court, so it's a pretty nice property," said Sclafani.

US Coast Guard property up for auction in Barnegat Light/photo from www.gsa.gov
US Coast Guard property up for auction in Barnegat Light/photo from www.gsa.gov
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The tract is zoned for single family residential development, and there are no re-use terms and conditions of this particular sale, but interested parties are encouraged to contact the Barnegat Light Zoning and Planning offices with questions regarding property use and development after it leaves federal ownership, according to Sclafani.

The minimum bid required is $400,000. "Anybody really interested in doing this, they have to put a bid deposit down for $40,000 by either credit card or certified check, so you have to be serious," Sclafani said.

One bidder posted an offer of double the minimum bid as of Monday afternoon. Offers can be made and viewed at realestatesales.gov.

Sclafani said an open house for bidders is being held Wednesday, August 18, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m..

"The key is for the serious folks to come out to the open house and take a look for themselves and determine the conditions of the property," said Sclafani. He did not know when the housing units were last occupied by Coast Guard personnel.

Sclafani explained an auction close date on the property will be announced after the open house on the auction website, , followed by a soft close.

"Once we announce the soft close, then the auction goes into a 24 hour bidding period. So, say somebody puts a bid down for $1 million, and 23 hours goes by and somebody  puts another bid down for $1.2 million or $1.4 million, then the clock resets to 24 hours. If that 24 hour period goes without a new bid, then that highest bid at that point, becomes the highest successful bid," he said.

Net proceeds from the sale will be returned to the Coast Guard to support the agency's housing needs at other mission locations, according to Sclafani.

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