Laguna Niguel, CA Business Licensing & Operations: Pawnbrokers (2026)

Municipal Code § 5-1-29 requires a license for anyone acting as a 'pawnbroker, pawnshop, junk dealer, junk collector, secondhand dealer or coin-currency dealer,' issued by the chief of police under § 5-2-1. Section 5-3-105(a) requires every such dealer to report all personal property purchased, taken in trade, taken in pawn, or accepted for auctioning to the chief of police no later than 12:00 noon of the day following acquisition. Subsection (b) requires the dealer to obtain the seller's full name, signature, address, telephone number, and driver's license number, and to make reasonable inquiry that the seller has a legal right to sell or pledge the property, with the burden of proof on the dealer.

Section 5-3-105(c) lists narrow exceptions, including property acquired from another pawnbroker who already reported it, bulk sales tied to business dissolution, bankruptcy or receivership sales, and property acquired as a charitable gift. Section 5-3-106 requires the dealer to keep a complete written or printed English-language record of every pledge, purchase, or sale, open to inspection by any law enforcement officer at all times. Section 5-3-107 requires the dealer to hold reported property for 30 days from the date it is reported, extendable to 90 days at a law enforcement officer's written direction if the officer believes it is stolen, and to display each day's newly acquired articles for inspection. Section 5-3-108 bars buying, trading, or lending money on property from anyone under 18 without written parental or guardian permission attached to the report.