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Discussion Starter · #1 ·
Has anyone here sought an FFL license for the sole purpose of receiving guns cheaper from the manufacturer, or to have guns shipped to your home?

If so, was the process worth it, and how extensive of a process is it?
 

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I suggest you go over to the ATF website and read. Then read again. Illegal if sole purpose is not a business I believe. Not to mention the cost and time you would have to put into it with state business regs., taxes, and other things.

I use to know about 5 guys with FFLs in my church who would do transfers for people in our area. Last I heard, only one has kept his due to the pain it became.
 

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Discussion Starter · #3 ·
I suggest you go over to the ATF website and read. Then read again. Illegal if sole purpose is not a business I believe. Not to mention the cost and time you would have to put into it with state business regs., taxes, and other things.

I use to know about 5 guys with FFLs in my church who would do transfers for people in our area. Last I heard, only one has kept his due to the pain it became.
I was unaware you were had to keep it in the "dealer" aspect.

The prices are amazing, i've seen gun stores charging $550-$600 for a new Glock, when you can pick them up for $460 brand new with shipping from Glock if you're an FFL.
 

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I was unaware you were had to keep it in the "dealer" aspect.

The prices are amazing, i've seen gun stores charging $550-$600 for a new Glock, when you can pick them up for $460 brand new with shipping from Glock if you're an FFL.
You realize from the pricing you quoted, that is only a 20 to 30% markup over cost? That really is not much considering the overhead to own a gun store.
 

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I was unaware you were had to keep it in the "dealer" aspect.

The prices are amazing, i've seen gun stores charging $550-$600 for a new Glock, when you can pick them up for $460 brand new with shipping from Glock if you're an FFL.
I'm not trying to be a party pooper by any means. If you think you could do it, go for it. I just don't see much profit unless you can do a high volume of sales. One of the guys I knew who did transfers stopped because he operated it as a home based business and got tired of unknown people coming to his house. Heck, the gunshop I go to now is a gunshop/auto parts store. I have a feeling without the auto parts side he'd be out of business.
 

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I know there are several people on GT who had/have home based FFLs so maybe they can chime in and give you more details.
 

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If you're looking for an FFL for personal use only, get an 03 C&R. But the Type 01 is only for dealing and gunsmithing for profit.

Now, that's not to say that if you had a home-based transfer business, you couldn't use it to buy your own guns - heck, if you're a sole proprietor, you don't even need to run the NICS - but if you're not using it for business purposes, it'll be revoked. Plenty of people list themselves on gunbroker or similar sites for cheap transfers, and there's certainly a market for those services (especially if nobody else is already doing it in your area).

And even with the expenses of keeping up a local business tax license, state or local government security/insurance mandates, sales tax accounts, quarterly estimated income taxes (federal and state), self employment tax, and of course the FFL fees, you can still make some money in it - just not enough for most people to want to put up with ATF compliance inspections.
 
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