Todd Bryant is a graduate of Germantown Academy and the University of Pittsburgh College of Business Administration Honors College.
He has been President of Bryant Surety Bonds, Inc., an A+ rated Business with the Better Business Bureau, since 2007. Licensed as a producer with the Department of Insurance, he has been published in the National Association of Surety Bond Producers newsletter and on numerous authoritative publications such as The Washington Post, Entrepreneur.com, Azcentral.com and many more.
It’s unlikely that you’ll be able to use your home as your dealership location.
In general, your dealership location must meet the requirements of § 46.2-1510, which include:
– The location cannot be a residence.
– It must have space to display at least 10 vehicles.
– A certificate of zoning (Form MVDB-19) is required from the local zoning office and must be issued within 30 days of your initial application.
– The location must include at least 250 square feet of permanently enclosed office space dedicated exclusively to the dealership.
For the most up-to-date information, you can also contact the Virginia MVDB.
I would like to get a dealer tag so that I can go to auctions and such to purchase a vehicle, drive it “home”, fix it up (if need be) and then sell it. I have no plans of opening an actual car lot. I was told that I could possibly get better access to auctions if I had a dealers license.
Hi James,
Great question, and this is a very common starting point for people getting into the car business.
In Virginia, if you plan to regularly buy and resell vehicles, you will generally need an independent motor vehicle dealer license through the Virginia Motor Vehicle Dealer Board. While dealer licensing does provide better access to most major dealer-only auctions (since they require valid dealer credentials), it’s also typically necessary once your buying/selling activity goes beyond occasional sales, as Virginia may treat repeated vehicle transactions as dealer activity within a 12-month period.
It’s also important to know that in Virginia you cannot obtain a dealer license without a properly approved established place of business. This must be a compliant physical location that meets zoning, office, signage, and inspection requirements — it cannot be just a PO box or purely virtual setup, and it generally cannot be a residential-only arrangement unless it fully complies with zoning and DMV/MVDB standards.
There is also a rebuilder/salvage-related license category in Virginia, but that applies to vehicles with salvage or dismantling activities and does not replace a standard dealer license for buying and selling retail vehicles.
Hello, am located in VA I have a house could I use my house address to get a car dealer license… Do you have to have 10 car parking spaces?
It’s unlikely that you’ll be able to use your home as your dealership location.
In general, your dealership location must meet the requirements of § 46.2-1510, which include:
– The location cannot be a residence.
– It must have space to display at least 10 vehicles.
– A certificate of zoning (Form MVDB-19) is required from the local zoning office and must be issued within 30 days of your initial application.
– The location must include at least 250 square feet of permanently enclosed office space dedicated exclusively to the dealership.
For the most up-to-date information, you can also contact the Virginia MVDB.
I would like to get a dealer tag so that I can go to auctions and such to purchase a vehicle, drive it “home”, fix it up (if need be) and then sell it. I have no plans of opening an actual car lot. I was told that I could possibly get better access to auctions if I had a dealers license.
What is the best way to proceed?
Hi James,
Great question, and this is a very common starting point for people getting into the car business.
In Virginia, if you plan to regularly buy and resell vehicles, you will generally need an independent motor vehicle dealer license through the Virginia Motor Vehicle Dealer Board. While dealer licensing does provide better access to most major dealer-only auctions (since they require valid dealer credentials), it’s also typically necessary once your buying/selling activity goes beyond occasional sales, as Virginia may treat repeated vehicle transactions as dealer activity within a 12-month period.
It’s also important to know that in Virginia you cannot obtain a dealer license without a properly approved established place of business. This must be a compliant physical location that meets zoning, office, signage, and inspection requirements — it cannot be just a PO box or purely virtual setup, and it generally cannot be a residential-only arrangement unless it fully complies with zoning and DMV/MVDB standards.
There is also a rebuilder/salvage-related license category in Virginia, but that applies to vehicles with salvage or dismantling activities and does not replace a standard dealer license for buying and selling retail vehicles.
You can review official requirements here: https://www.dmv.virginia.gov/businesses/dealer-services/licensing