BusBoss Transportation Software Blog

Benefits of School Surplus Auctions

Written by Sonia Mastros | 9/30/25 5:00 PM

Balancing school budgets is never easy, and it's only getting more difficult over the years. Since the brief budget boosts that happened during the COVID pandemic, budgets have been shrinking steadily. Worse, the Trump administration is attempting to withhold $5.6 billion in public school funding that was slated to go out this year. The 2025-26 school year may be the leanest we've seen in a long time.

So how can you make up the shortfall? Depending on your situation, one of the best options could be a school surplus auction. If your district is sitting on a lot of old education supplies, furniture, computers, vehicles, or other valuable items, now might be the perfect time to look into selling them off.

Is It Time For A Garage Sale?

The reasoning here is obvious: if you've got items of value lying around which are unused or barely-used, they're just costing you space or money. This is especially true if it's equipment that requires any kind of upkeep. Taking a good look at your supplies might reveal some hidden gems that could bring in significant money, and quickly.

It could even be worth rethinking your strategies, when it comes to high-value items like your vehicle fleet. Take a look at your usage records. How often is 100% of your vehicle capacity actually in use at once? Maybe you don't need four official school vans, when three would be sufficient.

The same goes for technology. How many computers do you need in a classroom or office? A little pruning could create good money-making opportunities.



In-Person or Online Auctions?

The other big question is how to handle the auction. Should you have a big public auction, or put them up for online auction?

There's a tradeoff here. Online auctions are more likely to bring larger payouts, since you'll have a much bigger bidding audience. However, getting payments will be slower, and you'll also have to coordinate shipping/delivery.

On the other hand, in-person auctions will typically see you paid quickly, and the buyers will be there to haul off the items themselves. This could also be a chance to tell the public about your budget problems, and possibly lobby for increased education funding.

Either way, BusBoss wants to help you reduce your funding woes. Our software and services can often reduce costs in the long-run, or even eliminate redundant systems or vehicles that could be sold.

Contact us to learn more.

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Sonia Mastros

PRESIDENT

 Sonia has been involved with BusBoss since the late 1990’s, and has personally overseen many projects for various customers ranging from large urban and suburban districts to smaller rural school districts from all over the country.