Garden Grove, CA Business Licensing & Operations: Secondhand Dealers (2026)
Key Facts
- Permitting authority
- Garden Grove Police Chief
- Application decision
- Within 60 days of filing
- Reporting deadline
- Within 72 hours to police
- Sale delay
- 30 days before resale
- Excluded businesses
- New and used car dealers
- Revocation bar
- One year before reapplying
Summary
Buying and reselling used goods for business in Garden Grove needs a Police Chief-issued permit and license under Municipal Code Chapter 5.38, separate from a pawnbroker license. Dealers must report items on official police information orders, hold flagged items 30 days before resale, and never buy from anyone under 18. New and used car dealers are excluded from the chapter entirely.
No person shall engage in, carry on, or conduct the business of a secondhand dealer in the City without first having obtained a permit and license from the City, and complying with any and all requirements and regulations contained and set forth in this chapter. The permit shall be displayed on the premises during business hours.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4903654; v10 updated 2026-05-12).
Full Breakdown
030 requires a permit and license before conducting business as a secondhand dealer, displayed on the premises during business hours. 020). 040). 060). 170). 110). 130). 120).
Violations & Fines
The City Council may revoke or suspend a secondhand dealer's permit and license on satisfactory evidence of a conviction or guilty plea for violating Chapter 5.38 or a related city or state law, or on the Police Chief's recommendation (§ 5.38.050); a revoked license bars reapplication by that person for one year. Selling property contrary to a peace officer's hold order, or disposing of reportable items before the 30-day retention period, is separately unlawful.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a permit to run a secondhand store in Garden Grove?
Are car dealers covered by Garden Grove's secondhand dealer chapter?
How soon can a Garden Grove secondhand dealer resell purchased goods?
What must a secondhand dealer report to Garden Grove police?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Garden Grove
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How other cities in Orange County handle secondhand dealers.