New Rochelle, NY Business Licensing & Operations: Secondhand Dealers (2026)

City Code Section 264-1 requires anyone dealing in the purchase or sale of secondhand furniture, machinery, jewelry, clothes or other articles to obtain a license from the City Clerk, unless the transaction involves used motor vehicles or is conducted by a religious or charitable organization. Section 264-2 sets the annual license fee under Chapter 133, Fees, and requires every dealer to post a $1,000 surety bond, approved by the Corporation Counsel, guaranteeing compliance with the laws governing secondhand dealers. Licenses run for one year from whatever date they are issued under Section 264-3.

Section 264-4 requires every dealer to keep a written record of each purchase, including a description of the article, the name, residence and general description of the seller, and the date and hour of the transaction; that book must be open to inspection by the Police Commissioner or an authorized representative at all reasonable times. Section 264-5 bars a dealer from doing business anywhere other than the licensed location, from continuing to operate after a license is suspended, revoked or expired, from reselling any purchased item until 10 days after the purchase, from accepting goods as a pledge or pawn, and from simultaneously holding a pawnbroker, collateral loan broker or junk dealer license.

Under Section 264-6, if goods matching a newspaper report of lost or stolen property come into a dealer's possession, the dealer must report it in writing to the Police Commissioner and produce the goods on demand. Secondhand motor vehicle dealers are licensed separately from the City Clerk under Section 264-8, with their own $1,000 bond and a one-year license running January 1 to December 31.