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REALTY SPECIALIST

Department of Homeland Security
Customs and Border Protection
U.S. Border Patrol
This job announcement has closed

Summary

Organizational Location: This position is with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), within U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), U.S. Border Patrol (USBP) Headquarters, Program Management Operations Division (PMOD), Infrastructure, location is negotiable after selection. You must choose one of the following locations:

  • Laguna Niguel, CA
  • Washington, DC

This announcement will be open for 5 business days OR until the first 50 applications have been received, whichever happens first.

Overview

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Reviewing applications
Open & closing dates
11/21/2025 to 12/02/2025
This job will close when we have received 50 applications which may be sooner than the closing date. Learn more
Salary
$105,383 to - $137,000 per year

Salary listed reflects the Rest of U.S. (RUS) scale.

Pay scale & grade
GS 13
Location
Location Negotiable After Selection
4 vacancies
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
25% or less - This position requires periodic travel to meetings with landowners, other agencies, and project teams.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Term - Construction of Border Wall System Not-to-Exceed (NTE) September 30th, 2029.
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
13
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Financial disclosure
No
Bargaining unit status
Yes
Announcement number
USBP-SMP-12822352-JRB
Control number
850474700

Duties

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This announcement has been amended as of 11/24/2025 to extend the closing date to 12/05/2025.

Additional selections may be made for other organizational divisions and/or units within the duty location(s) listed above.

In this position, you will serve as a Realty Specialist Analyst in the overall management, planning, coordination, and execution of assigned projects involving realty transactions, acquisitions, negotiations, and related reality/lease management activities for private and federally owned properties in an assign geographical area.

This position starts at a salary of $105,383.00 (GS-13, Step 1) to $137,000.00 (GS- 13, Step 10). Salary listed reflects the rest of U.S. scale and, if applicable, will be adjusted to meet the locality pay or cost of living expenses of the duty location upon selection.

GS Salary: Visit this link to view the locality pay tables by geographic area. If you do not see your geographic area listed, select the "Rest of United States" pay table. Some positions fall under a special pay rate depending on the series, grade level and location of the position.Please visit this link to view special pay rate charts.

As a Realty Specialist, you will be responsible for a combination of long- and short-range planning, space acquisitions, lease administration, and utilization work involving complex projects in support of assigned agencies. Your duties will include:

  • Serving as the Real Estate acquisition expert responsible for the overall management, planning, coordination, and execution of assigned projects involving realty transactions, acquisitions, negotiations, and related realty/lease management activities for private and federally owned properties on behalf of U.S. Border Patrol (USBP).
  • Providing expert technical advice and guidance to USBP leadership for the enterprise-wide land acquisition program based upon information discussed with federal, state, and local elected representative staff and agencies and private organizations.
  • Developing and implementing quality assurance techniques for real estate acquisitions, property management, and disposal actions, transactions and instruments for compliance with applicable real estate procedures, policies and existing regulations.
  • Representing the Real Estate Division in meetings with other Government agency officials concerning real estate actions.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this position
  • Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered with Selective Service
  • Primary U.S. residency for at least three of the last five years (additional details below)
  • All pre-employment processes will be conducted in English
  • You may be required to pass a background investigation
  • CBP follows the DHS Drug-Free Workplace Plan for drug testing procedures
  • DHS uses E-Verify, an internet-based system, to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States. Learn more about E-Verify including your rights and responsibilities.
  • Bargaining Unit: This is a bargaining unit covered position, represented under the 3556 National Treasury Employees Unions - NTEU. For local chapter contact information see Chapter Websites - National Treasury Employees Union - NTEU.

Qualifications

Experience: You qualify for the GS-13 grade level if you possess 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level, performing duties such as:

  • Analyzing and preparing technical reports; including the cost/benefit of remaining at an existing location or competing procurement for possible relocation;
  • Developing options and alternatives for property acquisition (lease, purchase/construction, and condemnation) by preparing a lease versus purchase analysis;
  • Analyzing technical reports on offered lands, negotiating lease terms and conditions, performing cost and price analysis on offers;
  • Initiating, preparing, and reviewing real property transaction documentation for facility property management;
  • Providing technical assistance to other employees within CBP regarding real property acquisition and disposal actions, property utilization reviews, and Reports of Excess.

NOTE: Your resume must explicitly indicate how you meet this requirement, otherwise you will be found ineligible. Please see the "Required Documents" section below for additional resume requirements.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

You must:
  • Meet all qualification requirements, including education if applicable to this position, subject to verification at any stage of the application process; and
  • Meet all applicable Time in Grade requirements (current federal employees must have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade or equivalent grade band in the federal service) by 12/02/2025.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office.

Background Investigation: U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is a federal law enforcement agency that requires all applicants to undergo a thorough background investigation prior to employment in order to promote the agency's core values of vigilance, service to country, and integrity. During the screening and/or background investigation process, you will be asked questions regarding any felony criminal convictions or current felony charges, the use of illegal drugs (e.g., marijuana, cocaine, heroin, LSD, methamphetamines, ecstasy), and the use of non-prescribed controlled substances including any experimentation, possession, sale, receipt, manufacture, cultivation, production, transfer, shipping, trafficking, or distribution of controlled substances. For additional information on the preemployment process, review the following link: Applicant Resources | CBP Careers

Residency: There is a residency requirement for all applicants not currently employed by CBP. Individuals are required to have physically resided in the United States or its protectorates (as declared under international law) for at least three of the last five years. If you do not meet the residency requirement and you have been physically located in a foreign location for more than two of the last five years, you may request an exception to determine if you are eligible for a residency waiver by meeting one or more of the following conditions:
  • Working for the U.S. Government as a federal civilian or as a member of the military
  • A dependent who was authorized to accompany a federal civilian or member of the military who was working for the U.S. government
  • Participation in a study abroad program sponsored by a U.S. affiliated college or university
  • Working as a contractor, intern, consultant or volunteer supporting the U.S. government

Probationary Period: All employees new to the federal government must serve a one year probationary period during the first year of his/her initial permanent federal appointment to determine fitness for continued employment. Current and former federal employees may be required to serve or complete a probationary period.

Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) Eligibles: If you have never worked for the federal government, you are not CTAP/ICTAP eligible. View information about CTAP/ICTAP eligibilityon OPM's Career Transition Resources website. To be considered well qualified under CTAP/ICTAP, you must be rated at a minimum score of 85 for this position. In addition, you must submit the supporting documents listed under the Required Documents section of this announcement.

Education

Please see the Qualifications and Required Documents sections for more information if education is applicable to this position.

Additional information

Required Certification: This position serves as a Real Estate Contracting Officer (RECO); which requires the incumbent to obtain and maintain a Real Estate Contracting Officer (RECO) Warrant; and requires the completion of the Leasing Certification Program (LCP) Level II within 24 months of appointment. The incumbent must possess all requirements for the Leasing Program Level II and respective Real Property Contracting Officer Warrant.

  • Training: Can be met by completion of courses conducted by HSAI, FAI, DAU, or a specialized training provider.


Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments here.

Additional Hiring and Special Appointing Authorities: See "THIS JOB IS OPEN TO" section above for what additional Appointing Authorities may apply. Veterans, military spouses, Peace Corps/VISTA volunteers, and people with disabilities possess a wealth of unique talents, experiences, and competencies that can be invaluable to the DHS mission. If you are a member of one of these groups, you may not have to compete with the public for federal jobs. To determine your eligibility and to understand what documentation would be required with your application, please click on the appropriate link below. You must provide documentation supporting your eligibility prior to the closing date of this announcement. If you have any questions regarding your eligibility, please contact the CBP Hiring Center via the contact information listed at the end of this job opportunity announcement.

  • Veterans
  • Military spouses Effective until December 31, 2028, any spouse of a member on active duty may be eligible
  • Land Management Hiring Flexibility Act: The following documents are required at the time of application: SF-50s to demonstrate that you meet the eligibility requirements and the most recent performance rating signed by your supervisor or a statement from your supervisor documenting acceptable performance.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Applicants will only be considered for the Eligibilities for which they claim in the job questionnaire AND must provide the supporting documentation. Applicants will not be considered for Eligibilities for which they did not claim, regardless of the documentation submitted with the application. https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12822352

You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics).

To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and application questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.

The USA Hire Assessment will be used to assess the following general competencies:

  • Attention to Detail
  • Customer Service
  • Decision Making
  • Flexibility
  • Integrity/Honesty
  • Interpersonal Skills
  • Learning
  • Reading
  • Reasoning
  • Self-Management
  • Stress Tolerance
  • Teamwork


If you are best qualified, you may be referred to the hiring manager for consideration and may be contacted for an interview. As a part of the interview process, additional selection criteria may be administered by the hiring manager. Preview the job questionnaire https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12822352

In order to be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and application questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.

Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.

The Department of Homeland Security encourages persons with disabilities to apply, to include persons with intellectual, severe physical or psychiatric disabilities, as defined by 5 CFR § 213.3102(u), and/or Disabled Veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30 percent or more as defined by 5 CFR § 315.707. Veterans, Peace Corps/VISTA volunteers, and persons with disabilities possess a wealth of unique talents, experiences, and competencies that can be invaluable to the DHS mission. If you are a member of one of these groups, you may not have to compete with the public for federal jobs. To determine your eligibility for non-competitive appointment and to understand the required documentation, click on the links above or contact the Servicing Human Resources Office listed at the bottom of this announcement.

Please upload your resume under the "Resume" document type. Any other relevant supporting documents should be uploaded under their appropriate document types as mentioned above. Only resumes up to a total of two pages will be accepted. Applicants with resumes exceeding two pages will be removed from consideration. Do notsubmit documents as a PDF Portfolios.

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