Hemet Municipal Code Art. IX Garage or Yard Sales

Footnotes:

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Editor's note— Ord. No. 1523, § 1, adopted July 11, 1995, amended former Art. IX, §§ 18-300—18-310, relative to the sale of personal property in residential zones, to read as herein set out. The provisions of former Art. IX derived from Ord. No. 1489, adopted Feb. 22, 1994.

(a) The provisions of this article shall apply to any person who intends to or who does display, offer for sale or sell to the general public personal property in any residential zone including, sales of personal property commonly known as "garage sales" and the like.

(b) The provisions of this article shall not be deemed applicable to the occasional sale of an item or items of used personal property in any residential zone where no signs advertising such sale are placed at the location of the sale, and where all prospective buyers of the item or items of used personal property are invited by or have made an appointment with the seller prior to inspecting, purchasing or taking delivery of such personal property.

(c) It is the intent of this article to protect residential properties, persons, and the general public from the nuisance activities related to the use of private property in the conduct of a garage or yard sale.

(Ord. No. 1523, § 1, 7-11-95; Ord. No. 1819, § 1(Exh. A), 10-13-09)

As used in this article:

(a) Estate sales means sales of personal property and goods from the estate of a deceased person.

(b) Garage sales and yard sales means sales conducted by individuals in their homes for the purpose of disposing of personal property. Garage sales and yard sales may at times be conducted by a combination of residents at a single location; provided all material or goods sold are the personal property of one of the persons conducting the sale.

(c) Personal property means property which is owned by an individual or members of his or her family or residence and acquired in the normal course of living in or maintaining a residence. It does not include merchandise which was purchased or obtained for resale or on consignment.

(d) Rummage sales means sales conducted in the commercial districts or in structures of nonresidential character, such as churches or schools by groups of individuals or nonprofit organizations to raise funds for charitable purposes through the sale of donated articles of clothing, art objects, household appliances and utensils, and the like, either new or used. Rummage sales are not subject to the provisions of this section.

(e) Hobby/home craft boutique means sales of handcrafted items, handcrafted by the resident, for the purpose of selling these items on their property.

(Ord. No. 1523, § 1, 7-11-95; Ord. No. 1819, § 1(Exh. A), 10-13-09)

It is unlawful for any person or resident to conduct more than four garage sales in one calendar year, at the same address. Garage sale events shall not exceed three consecutive days. A minimum of 30 calendar days shall lapse between sales by any applicant or at any location. Garage sales shall only be conducted between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and dusk of any day.

(Ord. No. 1523, § 1, 7-11-95; Ord. No. 1819, § 1(Exh. A), 10-13-09)

(a) Garage sales, yard sales and hobby/home craft sales shall be held only on property devoted to residential use. Personal property offered for sale at such sales may be in a rear yard, or elsewhere on the premises.

(b) Estate sales may be held only in structures which were used as the bona fide residences of the decedents whose property is to be disposed of in the estate sale. Applications for a permit shall be accompanied by an inventory of all property to be offered for sale, certified to be the property of the estate.

(c) No sign or other form of advertisement of a proposed sale of personal property in a residential zone shall be placed upon any public property or right-of-way within the city, including, but not limited to, poles, trees, parkways, fences, or utility boxes; nor upon any property other than the authorized location of the sale or neighboring properties with permission of the property owner. No sign or other form of advertisement shall be displayed for more than two days prior to the commencement of the sale, and the permittee shall remove all such signs or advertisement by 8:00 p.m. on the date the sale is concluded. Two signs, each not exceeding six square feet in area, may be placed in the front or side yard of the authorized location of the sale. Two additional signs, not exceeding two square feet in area, may be placed on neighboring properties with permission of the property owner. All signs advertising the sale shall have the address, street number and type of the permitted sale printed plainly on each.

(Ord. No. 1523, § 1, 7-11-95; Ord. No. 1819, § 1(Exh. A), 10-13-09)

It is unlawful to conduct a garage or estate sale unless a permit to hold such a sale is first obtained from the planning department. An application for a garage sale must be filed with the planning department, in accordance with the requirements of this article and on a form provided by the department. The city council may establish by resolution the payment of a reasonable fee for the permit.

Any application for issuance of a permit may be refused or revoked if the sale would exceed the frequency and duration allowed pursuant to section 18-302 or if the application contains any false, misleading or fraudulent statements, or is otherwise inconsistent with the intent and provisions of this article.

(Ord. No. 1523, § 1, 7-11-95; Ord. No. 1819, § 1(Exh. A), 10-13-09)

Storage and display of the personal property in residential zones, not otherwise authorized by this Code, including, but not limited to, personal items, furniture, household appliances, clothing, art objects and handcrafted items, is only permitted during the sale days and hours of operation and must be immediately removed thereafter. Display of items for sale must be contained within the boundaries of the residential property, and shall not encroach onto the public sidewalk, alley, street or other rights-of-way.

(Ord. No. 1523, § 1, 7-11-95; Ord. No. 1819, § 1(Exh. A), 10-13-09)

The City of Hemet Code Enforcement Officer is authorized to enforce the provisions of this article. All personal property offered for sale shall be arranged so that code enforcement, police or other city officials may have access for inspection at all times during the sale.

(Ord. No. 1523, § 1, 7-11-95; Ord. No. 1819, § 1(Exh. A), 10-13-09)

(a) Any person violating any of the provisions of this article shall be guilty of an infraction.

(b) Any person convicted of an infraction under the provisions of this article shall be punishable upon a first conviction by a fine of not more than $100.00, and for a second conviction within a period of one year by a fine of not more than $200.00, and for a third or any subsequent conviction within a period of one year by a fine of not more than $500.00.

(Ord. No. 1523, § 1, 7-11-95; Ord. No. 1819, § 1(Exh. A), 10-13-09)