Prescott Valley, AZ Business Licensing & Operations: Secondhand Dealers (2026)

Article 8-05 of the Prescott Valley Town Code regulates auctions, junk dealers and dealers of used articles. Section 8-05-010 defines a dealer of used articles as anyone buying, selling, trading or exchanging secondhand goods, wares, merchandise or articles, even when that work is only incidental to another business. Trade-ins of used appliances, tires, batteries and certain parts do not count, and a business that deals only in used books, magazines, posters, trading cards and handbills needs no license. Section 8-05-020 requires a valid license for every location. Licenses run one year, cannot be transferred, must be displayed in a conspicuous place, and any change in the information on file goes to the Town Clerk within ten calendar days (Section 8-05-030). A move requires written notice to the Town Clerk within fifteen business days and Clerk approval (Section 8-05-060).

Section 8-05-050 sets the application path. The applicant files on a Town Clerk form, the Police Chief reviews and approves every application, and the Town Clerk grants the license when fees are paid, the applicant is at least eighteen, and the applicant has not violated the Article, or had a similar license suspended or revoked elsewhere, in the previous five years. A denial or revocation can be appealed within ten days to a board of the Town Manager, the Town Clerk and the investigating officer.

Operating rules follow. Section 8-05-080 requires a ledger entry for every item that bears a serial number or has a fair market value above $100.00, listing the item, the seller and the buyer. Purchases from fixed-location businesses with an invoice, used clothing and furniture (not electronics) are exempt from that report, and paperwork for exempt purchases stays on the premises for twenty-four months. Reportable property must be held ten calendar days (Section 8-05-090). Dealers who handle precious items report weekly to the Prescott Valley Police Department (Section 8-05-100(B)). No dealer can operate between 12:00 A.M. and 6:00 A.M. (Section 8-05-150), and dealing with anyone under eighteen requires a parent or guardian (Section 8-05-160).