Cincinnati, OH Business Licensing & Operations: Pawnbrokers (2026)
Key Facts
- Friday/pre-holiday hours
- 9 a.m.–7 p.m.
- Other weekday hours
- 9 a.m.–6 p.m.
- December 1–25 hours
- 9 a.m.–9 p.m.
- Weekend hours
- Not authorized
- Penalty
- Minor misdemeanor
Summary
Cincinnati limits when a pawn shop or loan office can be open and lending against pawned goods, under City Code § 843-9. Shops must also operate from a room fully separated by permanent partitions from any adjoining retail store, and the ordinance lists no weekend hours at all.
Sec. 843-9. - Pawn Shops. No person shall conduct the business of a pawn shop or loan office, or advance any moneys upon goods pawned or received in any building or store room not completely separated by permanent partitions or walls through which a person could not pass from an adjoining retail store. No person shall keep open any pawn shop or loan office or transact business therein, or advance any moneys upon goods pawned or received therein, at any time other than the following: (a)On Fridays and on all weekdays preceding New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day and Thanksgiving Day, between the hours of 9 a.m. and 7 p.m.(b)Other weekdays, between the hours of 9 a.m. and 6 p.m.(c)Any weekday during the period in each year beginning with December 1 and ending with December 25, between the hours of 9 a.m. and 9 p.m.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 48 Update 4).
Full Breakdown
Section 843-9 bars anyone from conducting the business of a pawn shop or loan office, or advancing money on pawned goods, in a building or storeroom that isn't completely separated by permanent partitions or walls from an adjoining retail store, a walk-through connection to another shop isn't allowed. window on any weekday between December 1 and December 25. The section lists no Saturday or Sunday hours at all, meaning pawn transactions are not authorized on those days under the ordinance as written. Cincinnati's pawnbroker hours sit inside Chapter 843, the same chapter that licenses junk and second-hand dealers, and § 843-9 traces to Ord.
No. 623-1973, effective January 1, 1974, carried forward from the former Code of Ordinances § 901-P2. Unlike the rest of Chapter 843, § 843-9 doesn't set its own license or fee schedule for pawnbrokers, it regulates only the physical separation of the business space and the hours during which lending against pawned goods may occur.
Violations & Fines
Section 843-9 carries its own penalty, separate from Chapter 843's general per-day dealer penalty: whoever violates the section is guilty of illegally operating a pawn shop, a minor misdemeanor. Operating outside the permitted hours or from a space not fully partitioned from an adjoining retail store can each support a separate charge under the section.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a Cincinnati pawn shop open on Saturday?
How late can a Cincinnati pawn shop stay open in December?
Can a pawn shop share a storefront with another retail business?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Cincinnati
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