St. Clair County, IL Garage & Yard Sales: Frequency, Duration & Permits (2026)
Key Facts
- Sales allowed per year
- 2 per calendar year, per property
- Permit required
- Yes, before holding any sale
- Permit fee
- $10, paid to County Treasurer
- Fee refundable?
- No, all filing fees non-refundable
- Enforcing agency
- St. Clair County Zoning Administrator
- Penalty for violation
- $50-$500 fine per day, Class B misdemeanor
Summary
Unincorporated St. Clair County limits garage and yard sales to two per calendar year per property, and every sale requires a $10 permit from the Zoning Administrator before it can be held. The cap and permit requirement sit in the Zoning Ordinance's supplementary use regulations, Sec. 40-5-7, and apply county-wide outside incorporated cities.
40-5-7 GARAGE/YARD SALES. Garage/yard sales shall be limited to no more than two (2) per calendar year. A permit shall be required prior to holding such yard sales.
Full Breakdown
Zoning Ordinance Sec. 40-5-7 states the rule for garage and yard sales in unincorporated St. Clair County in two sentences: a property is limited to no more than two sales per calendar year, and a permit is required before any sale can be held. The permit is priced in the county's Schedule of Filing Fees, adopted under Sec. 40-11-9: a Yard Sale Permit costs $10, paid to the County Treasurer at the time the application is submitted to and accepted by the Zoning Administrator, and like every fee on that schedule it is non-refundable once paid, win or lose on the application.
The section does not set a maximum number of consecutive days for a single sale, does not exempt any zoning district, and does not carve out estate sales, moving sales, or multi-family sales differently from an ordinary garage sale; every sale under the "garage/yard sale" heading counts toward the annual cap of two. Because the standard lives in the Zoning Code's supplementary use regulations rather than in a separate licensing chapter, it applies uniformly to every parcel outside an incorporated city, village, or town in the county, and outside Scott Air Force Base.
Violations & Fines
Holding a garage or yard sale without the required permit, or holding a third sale on the same property within a calendar year, is a Zoning Code violation enforced under the general penalty, Sec. 40-11-10. Conviction is a Class B misdemeanor, fined $50 to $500 plus court costs, and each day the unpermitted sale continues counts as a separate offense; the Zoning Administrator can also pursue any other lawful enforcement action to stop it.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many garage sales can I hold per year in unincorporated St. Clair County?
How much does a yard sale permit cost in St. Clair County?
Do estate sales or moving sales count toward the two-sale limit?
What happens if I hold a garage sale without a permit?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in St. Clair County
Compare St. Clair County to another location·View the Illinois garage & yard sales overview
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