Sandy Springs, GA Business Licensing & Operations: Secondhand Dealers (2026)

City Code § 26-186 defines a secondhand dealer as any business, not itself a pawnbroker, that buys, sells or trades used jewelry, flat silver, gold and silver items, watches and clocks, precious stones, firearms, musical instruments or bicycles, and extends that label to anyone buying such goods from a source other than a bona fide dealer. Section 26-188(b) is explicit about scope: article V is intended to regulate secondhand dealers too, but only §§ 26-191 through 26-196 apply to them, leaving out the pawnshop-specific occupation permit (§ 26-190) and employee work-permit requirement (§ 26-189) that bind pawnbrokers.

That means a secondhand dealer must still keep a serially numbered acquisition log with a tag on each item, file a daily electronic report to the chief of police on everything purchased in the prior 24 hours, hold every purchased item at least 15 days before reselling it, and, under § 26-192, fingerprint and photograph the seller and copy their identification for every transaction. It is unlawful for a secondhand dealer to acquire an item with a mutilated or altered serial number, and buying from anyone under 18 is barred unless the dealer retains a copy of accepted identification. Records and purchased property remain subject to inspection by the city police department at any time.