Pierce County, WA Business Licensing & Operations: Secondhand Dealers (2026)

020 makes it unlawful to deal in secondhand or antique property, run a flea market, or engage in pawnbroking in unincorporated Pierce County without a county license, unlike the pawnbroker license, secondhand dealer licenses are not capped by population ratio. 010 to include anyone buying, selling, trading, or transferring secondhand property for value, whether or not they keep a fixed location, and the definition sweeps in anyone doing more than three flea market or swap meet transactions a year; heirs and estate representatives disposing of estate contents are excluded.

Secondhand property itself covers used goods showing wear, new-looking goods where the seller cannot produce a business license or reseller permit, and gift cards, stamps, coins, precious metals, and jewelry where the same documentation is missing. 075 imposes a specific anti-fencing safeguard: a secondhand dealer must require anyone selling property showing signs of recent make and vintage to produce either a sales receipt from the last 60 days or a copy of the seller's business license and reseller permit. 040 requires a Sheriff's investigation and a Building/Fire inspection before issuance, the same pre-licensing review pawnbrokers face. 080.