Flint, MI Business Licensing & Operations: Secondhand Dealers (2026)
Key Facts
- Licensing body
- City Council grants, City Clerk issues
- Retention before resale
- At least 15 days
- Trading hours ban
- 6:00 p.m.–7:00 a.m.
- Weekly reporting
- To Chief of Police, Mondays
- Inspection
- Fire, Police, Building & Safety
Summary
Anyone buying, selling, or exchanging secondhand goods in the City of Flint is a licensed secondhand or junk dealer, subject to City Council approval and detailed recordkeeping rules.
Any person, corporation, partnership, copartnership or firm whose business in whole or in part is that of purchasing, selling, exchanging, storing or receiving secondhand articles of any kind is declared to be a secondhand dealer or junk dealer; provided, that this definition shall not apply to retail merchants who repossess their own merchandise sold on a title retaining contract or chattel mortgage basis or who accept merchandise as a part payment on new sales.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2016 Code: Local legislation current through Ordinance 3821, passed 3-1-2012).
Full Breakdown
Section 12-55 defines a secondhand or junk dealer as any business purchasing, selling, exchanging, storing, or receiving secondhand articles, excluding retailers repossessing their own merchandise. Under § 12-56, the City Clerk routes each application through the Fire, Police, and Building and Safety divisions for inspection of vehicles and premises, and only the City Council can grant the license. Licensees must post a sign naming their business (§ 12-64), log every transaction with the seller's ID and description of goods, retain purchased articles at least 15 days before resale (§ 12-65), and cannot buy or sell junk between 6:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. (§ 12-63).
Violations & Fines
Buying or selling without a license, or violating the retention, hours, or recordkeeping rules, can trigger license revocation under § 12-58 plus Flint's general penalty of up to $500 and 90 days per offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a retail store need this license to take back its own merchandise?
How long must a Flint junk dealer keep an item before reselling it?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Flint
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