Tustin, CA Business Licensing & Operations: Secondhand Dealers (2026)

Under Tustin City Code § 3521, no person may engage in the business of secondhand dealer in the City of Tustin without a valid secondhand dealer permit issued by the Community Development Director. A pawnbroker who already holds a City pawnbroker permit under Part 1 of the same chapter is exempt from this separate licensing step but must still follow every other requirement of the secondhand dealer part. Section 3522 disqualifies anyone convicted of attempting to receive stolen property, or any other offense involving stolen property, from ever holding the permit.

Under Section 3524, the Director investigates the applicant, associated persons, the proposed location and the type of secondhand sales before approving or conditionally approving the permit, weighing good moral character, lawfulness of the proposed sales, suitability of the location and any detriment to public safety or neighboring properties. Section 3523 requires the applicant to file the names, addresses and fingerprints of every employee at the licensed location with the Director. Section 3525 carries the operating rules forward: the permit must be displayed on the premises in plain view, business may run only at the address named on the permit, a revised employee list and fingerprints go to the Tustin Police Department within ten days of any new hire, and the permit cannot be transferred or assigned.

Permittees cannot advertise without displaying the permit number, cannot receive goods from a minor and cannot promise a seller a chance to repurchase what was sold. A violation is enforced under the Code's general penalty, Section 1121.