The Trump administration's ambitious plan to sell off hundreds of federal properties across the United States has encountered an unexpected setback, as the General Services Administration abruptly removed the list of properties from its website. This move came just a day after the agency had identified more than 440 federal properties for potential sale, including high-profile buildings such as the headquarters of the FBI, Justice Department, and Department of Health and Human Services.
The initial announcement on Tuesday had sparked widespread interest. But the list of properties underwent swift revisions even before it was taken down. Within hours of its publication, about 100 properties, many in the Washington, D.C. area, were removed from the inventory. By Wednesday, the entire list had vanished, replaced by a message stating that the inventory was "coming soon.”
Despite the list's removal, the scale of the proposed sale remains significant. The original version included offices of several cabinet-level departments and large spaces used by agencies such as the Agriculture Department and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Even after the list was reduced to 320 properties, it still included buildings used by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the Social Security Administration field offices in various locations.
Major cities across the country were set to be affected, with federal buildings of approximately one million square feet marked for sale in Los Angeles, Atlanta, St. Louis, Cleveland, Memphis, and Kansas City, Missouri. In New York City, properties included offices for the U.S. Mission to the United Nations and buildings housing federal prosecutors and the Internal Revenue Service.
A GSA spokeswoman told The New York Times that there had been an "overwhelming amount of interest" received with the list's release. She stated that the agency expects to republish the list shortly after evaluating initial input, emphasizing that it will be continuously reviewed and updated. The spokeswoman also noted that while the properties are not formally on the market, the GSA would consider and evaluate all serious offers.