Reading, PA Home Business: Customer Traffic Restrictions (2026)
Key Facts
- Minor occupation limit
- No routine daily customer visits
- Major occupation trigger
- Regular daily customer traffic
- Extra parking
- ZHB may require it if needed
- Permit
- Zoning permit required either way
Summary
A minor home occupation in Reading can't routinely draw daily customer visits: cross that traffic threshold and the no-fee minor permit becomes a major one needing Zoning Hearing Board review.
Both major and minor home occupations shall meet the requirements listed in Subsection A above. A zoning permit is required for both major and minor home occupations; however, the zoning permit for the minor home occupation shall be issued without a fee. The following additional requirements shall apply to a "minor home occupation": ... (1) The use shall not routinely involve routine daily visits to the home occupation by customers.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2026 S-8: Current through August 10, 2026).
Full Breakdown
Section 600-1006.B(1) limits a 'minor home occupation', the no-fee, by-right category, to activity that doesn't routinely involve routine daily visits by customers. Cross into regular daily customer traffic and the use becomes a 'major home occupation,' which needs Zoning Hearing Board special-exception approval; the Board can then require additional off-street parking if it finds customer parking necessary, and can deny or limit the application based on the likely amount of traffic and deliveries the business generates.
Violations & Fines
Running a home business with routine daily customer visits under a minor-home-occupation zoning permit, instead of obtaining major-home-occupation special-exception approval, is a zoning violation the Zoning Hearing Board and Zoning Administrator can enforce.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can customers visit my home business every day in Reading?
Who decides if my home business generates too much customer traffic?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Reading
Compare Reading to another location·View the Pennsylvania home business overview
See something wrong?
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.