Placentia, CA Business Licensing & Operations: Pawnbrokers (2026)
Key Facts
- Permit cap
- Three pawnbrokers operating at one time (§ 6.64.010)
- License fee
- $555 per year, permit required (§ 5.08.310)
- Daily report
- To the chief of police before ten thirty a.m.
- Holding period
- Twenty-one days before any item is sold
- Barred hours
- Seven p.m. to seven a.m., and midnight Saturday to seven a.m. Monday
- Minimum age
- No dealing with anyone under eighteen
Summary
In the City of Placentia, California, a pawnbroker needs a permit, and the chief of police cannot issue one if it would put more than three pawnbrokers in operation at the same time. The license fee is $555 per year, and every pawnbroker files a daily report with the Placentia Police Department.
"Pawnbroker"includes the business of loaning money upon personal property and reselling or agreeing to resell such articles to the vendor or other assignees at prices previously agreed upon. It does not include the loaning of money on personal property or personal security by any bank authorized to do so under the laws of the state. Nothing contained herein shall authorize the chief of police to issue any pawnbrokers permit so that the number of pawnbrokers operating within the city at any one time shall exceed three. (Refer to Section 5.08.310 for license fee. Refer to Section 5.08.490 for permit fee and procedure.)
Full Breakdown
Chapter 6.64 of the Placentia Municipal Code treats pawnbrokers and secondhand dealers together. Section 6.64.010 defines a pawnbroker as a business that loans money on personal property and resells, or agrees to resell, the articles to the vendor or other assignees at prices previously agreed upon. Banks authorized under state law to lend on personal property are carved out of the definition. The same definition carries the cap: the chief of police cannot issue a pawnbroker permit if the number of pawnbrokers operating within the city at one time would exceed three.
The fee schedule in Section 5.08.310 sets the pawnbroker license fee at $555 per year and states that a permit is required. Section 6.12.510 points back to Section 6.64.010 for the regulatory provisions and to Section 6.08.060 for the permit, and under Section 6.08.060 the city license and tax collector does not accept a permit application unless it comes with a receipt for the fee in the Section 5.08.490 schedule.
The operating rules sit in the rest of the chapter. Under Section 6.64.020, every pawnbroker delivers a report to the chief of police before ten thirty a.m. each day listing everything received on deposit, pledged, purchased or taken in trade the day before, including pawn ticket numbers, amounts loaned, the hour, the customer's signature and address, and a description of the customer. Section 6.64.050 requires a complete record open to the chief of police or any police officer during business hours, plus a sign readable from the sidewalk stating that the business is a pawnbroker. Section 6.64.080 bars sale of any item within twenty-one days of receipt, and the item cannot be altered or defaced in that period. Section 6.64.100 prohibits dealing with anyone under eighteen, and a minor's claim to be over eighteen is no excuse. Section 6.64.130 bars accepting pledges or lending money between seven p.m. and seven a.m., and from twelve midnight Saturday until seven a.m. Monday. Section 6.64.150 requires a certificate of sale signed by both parties, with a duplicate kept on file.
Violations & Fines
Chapter 6.64 prints no penalty of its own, so the general penalty in Section 1.08.010 covers prohibited acts where no specific penalty is provided: a fine not exceeding $1,000, imprisonment not exceeding one year, or both, with every day a separate offense. The city can also issue an administrative citation under Section 1.10.030, with fines not exceeding $100, $200 and $500 for a first, second and each additional violation within one year, where the council has set no amount by resolution. Section 6.64.140 separately bars a false name or address on a bill of sale or pawn ticket and any false entry in a required report.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Sources & Official References
Other rules in Placentia
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