Memphis, TN Garage & Yard Sales: Frequency, Duration & Permits (2026)

Section 2.8.2.B, Garage or Yard Sales, sits in the UDC's list of Temporary Uses Exempt from Permit, uses that are exempt from Chapter 9.15's Temporary Use Permit process as long as they stay inside the stated limits. The operative text reads: 'Private sales are limited to two sales per dwelling unit each calendar year and the length of each permitted sale shall not exceed three consecutive days, except that the Building Official shall permit a third sale in any calendar year upon submission of sufficient proof a change in ownership of the residential premises on which the sale is to be conducted.'

That means a household gets two three-day sales windows per year with no permit application, no fee and no Building Official sign-off, the same treatment the code gives seasonal outdoor sales of agricultural products and short-term storage PODs under the same Section 2.8.2. A resident who wants a third sale in the same calendar year has to document a change of ownership of the property; without that proof, or once a sale runs past its third day, the use falls outside the exemption and needs a Temporary Use Permit under Chapter 9.15 like any other temporary use exceeding the exempt thresholds. The rule reads the same for a house in the City of Memphis and one in unincorporated Shelby County, since both fall under the same joint UDC.