Middletown, OH Business Licensing & Operations: Secondhand Dealers (2026)
Key Facts
- License fee
- $200, renews each January
- Licensing authority
- Middletown Division of Police
- Prohibited purchase hours
- 9:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m.
- Video retention
- Minimum 10 working days
- Background check clean record
- 10 years, no qualifying felony
- First offense penalty
- First degree misdemeanor (§ 835.02)
Summary
In the City of Middletown, Ohio, anyone buying, trading or selling second-hand articles must hold a swap shop/secondhand dealer's license from the Middletown Division of Police. The license costs $200, renews each January, and comes with strict recordkeeping, video surveillance and purchase restrictions.
No person shall purchase, exchange, trade, sell or receive second-hand articles or engage in the business of purchasing, exchanging, trading, selling or receiving second-hand articles without first obtaining a swap shop/second-hand dealer's license from the Division of Police. The fees for such license shall be two hundred dollars ($200.00). The license shall be renewed in January of each year. There shall be no fee for the annual renewal of the license.
Full Breakdown
02. The license fee is $200, with no fee for annual renewal (though license fees are prorated for licenses purchased after January 31), and licenses run on a calendar-year cycle renewing in January. 03 must be at least 18, apply in writing to the Chief of Police with the applicant's and every owner's, officer's and employee's name, address and social security number, and supply two Ohio resident references vouching for character. The City runs background checks in Butler County and any county where an applicant or employee resides, charging $15 per additional background check beyond five.
No license issues to anyone convicted of a felony or a crime involving fraud, theft or receiving stolen property in the preceding ten years. 08, including a description of each article, the seller's identification and a functional video surveillance system retaining footage for at least ten working days. m. 12.
Violations & Fines
Operating without a valid license under § 835.02 is a first degree misdemeanor. Violating the recordkeeping (§ 835.08), fictitious-identification (§ 835.09) or prohibited-purchase (§ 835.10) rules is a third degree misdemeanor for a first offense, escalating to a first degree misdemeanor for repeat violations within five years, and the court must suspend the dealer's license for 60 to 180 days on a repeat conviction. Violations of the transfer, ownership-change or employee-ID sections (§§ 835.04, 835.05, 835.051, 835.011) are fourth degree misdemeanors, and each day of a continuing violation counts as a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a license to run a secondhand shop in Middletown, Ohio?
Are garage sales covered by Middletown's secondhand dealer license?
What records must a Middletown secondhand dealer keep?
What happens if a secondhand dealer buys from a suspected thief?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Middletown
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