Lawrence, MA Garage & Yard Sales: Frequency, Duration & Permits (2026)
Key Facts
- Max sales/year per address
- 4 one-day sales
- Max consecutive days
- 2 days
- Permit issuer
- Licensing board
- Fee
- Free first 2 days, $5/day after
- Weather exception
- None allowed
- Multifamily buildings
- Count as one address
- Penalty
- $50 per violation/day (§5.56.040)
Summary
Lawrence residents may hold at most four one-day yard or garage sales per address each calendar year, capped at two consecutive days per sale, under a permit from the licensing board. Weather is not an excuse for extra days, and multi-unit buildings count as a single address.
A.Permit required. Yard sales and garage sales shall be permitted in residential districts only upon receipt of a permit from the licensing board and payment of the prescribed permit fee. The licensing board shall notify the police department in writing upon the issuance of each garage or yard sale permit. Each permit shall authorize a sale of one day only.B.Restrictions. The licensing board shall not grant permits for more than four garage and/or yard sales of one day each at any one address or location within each calendar year. Sales may not take place for more than two consecutive days at any location. No exceptions to this restriction shall be allowed due to inclement weather. Multifamily dwellings and apartment buildings shall be considered as a single address or location for purposes of this chapter.C.Fees. There shall be no fee for the first two days of a garage sale or yard sale at any one location in any calendar year. The fee for a permit for subsequent days in the same calendar year as permitted by this chapter shall be $5.00 per day.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 8).
Full Breakdown
56 requires a permit from the licensing board before any yard or garage sale in a residential district, and each permit covers a single day. Subsection B caps the number of permits the licensing board may issue at any one address to four one-day sales per calendar year, and bars back-to-back sales longer than two consecutive days at the same location; the code is explicit that inclement weather is not grounds for an exception. Multifamily dwellings and apartment buildings are treated as one address for these limits, so a landlord cannot secure separate permit allotments unit by unit.
The licensing board must notify the police department in writing every time it issues a garage or yard sale permit, giving the department a record for spot enforcement. 00 per day for any further permitted day that calendar year. 00 per event for club, church or fraternal premises), showing the licensing board's permit-fee structure extends across all three sale types in the chapter.
Violations & Fines
Section 5.56.040 sets a flat $50.00 penalty for each violation of Chapter 5.56, whether that means holding a sale without a permit, exceeding the four-sale annual cap, running a sale past the two-consecutive-day limit, or skipping the $5.00 fee on a later day. Each day the violation continues counts as a separate offense, so an unpermitted multi-day sale can accumulate several $50.00 penalties.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many garage sales can I hold per year in Lawrence?
Is there a fee for a garage sale permit in Lawrence?
Can I get an extra day if it rains during my garage sale?
Do apartment buildings get one permit allotment per unit?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Lawrence
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