Lake Charles, LA Garage & Yard Sales: Frequency, Duration & Permits (2026)

The garage-sale exemption sits inside Lake Charles's secondhand dealer ordinance, Chapter 12, Division 2. Sec. 12-50 defines a secondhand dealer as anyone in the city buying, selling, trading or otherwise acquiring or disposing of used property, including a retail merchant who acquires more than three secondhand items in 30 days, and requires that dealer to hold a license from the city planning department under Sec. 12-52. Sec. 12-51(c)(1) carves private residential garage and yard sales out of that licensing scheme, but only under two conditions: the sale must happen at a residential address that is not zoned for business or commercial activity, and the address cannot be used for such a sale more than three calendar days in one month.

Exceed the three-day cap and the property loses the private-sale exception, meaning the seller must obtain a secondhand dealer license before continuing to sell used goods there. A secondhand dealer license under Sec. 00 surety bond in favor of the city. Sec. 00, and Sec. 12-55 makes every secondhand dealer license expire December 31 of the year issued regardless of when it was granted. The city planning department, which issues and can suspend or revoke these licenses under Sec. 12-56, is the enforcing authority for both the licensing requirement and the garage-sale exemption's day count. The ordinance separately exempts bona fide IRS Section 501(c) charities and limits recordkeeping rules on estate-sale and auction goods other than jewelry and appliances.