Toledo, OH Business Licensing & Operations: Secondhand Dealers (2026)
Key Facts
- Annual license fee
- $125, April 1–March 31
- Triggers license
- Sales on 7+ days per year
- Article hold period
- 30 days (15 if electronic)
- Purchase hours ban
- No buying 6 p.m.–6 a.m.
- Business hours
- 6 a.m.–8 p.m. (10 p.m. Sat.)
- First-offense civil fine
- $250 Notice of Liability
Summary
Anyone buying or reselling used goods in Toledo more than seven days a year needs a $125 second-hand dealer license from the Director of Finance, plus a police-checked register of every purchase.
No person, society, firm, club, partnership, organization or corporation, or an employee, agent or representative of same, shall engage in the business of second-hand dealer without applying for and obtaining a license therefor from the Director of Finance... For purposes of this section and subject to zoning requirements, a license is required for any garage, yard, or estate sale which exceeds seven cumulative calendar days within a ninety day period. (Ord. 674-05. Passed 10-18-05.) ... The nonproratable fee for a second-hand dealer license shall be one hundred twenty-five dollars ($125.00) per year.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2026 S-105: Complete to June 30, 2026).
Full Breakdown
02 requires a license from the Director of Finance for any person, firm or corporation engaged in the business of second-hand dealer, with a separate license for each location; a garage, yard or estate sale exceeding seven cumulative days within a ninety-day period also triggers the requirement. 03(e) bars issuance to anyone convicted within five years of theft, receiving stolen property, or a felony drug abuse offense, or whose second-hand dealer license was revoked in the prior five years. 05). 07). 08). 10). 12).
Violations & Fines
A violation is a second-degree misdemeanor for a first offense and a first-degree misdemeanor for any later offense; each day of operating without a license is a separate offense (§ 727.99). The Director of Finance may instead issue a civil Notice of Liability, $250 for a first offense and $500 for a second within three years, and can suspend or revoke the license on the Chief of Police's recommendation. Denials and revocations are appealable within ten days to a Board of Appeals chaired by the Director of Law with the Directors of Public Safety and Public Service (§ 727.14).
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a one-time estate sale need a Toledo second-hand dealer license?
What records must a Toledo second-hand dealer keep on every purchase?
How long must a Toledo pawn or resale shop hold an item before reselling it?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Toledo
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