San Francisco Liquor Licenses for Sale

Types of San Francisco Liquor Licenses

A sought-after location to possess a liquor license, San Francisco is a widely known travel destination with plenty of restaurants and bars. Located in Northern California, San Francisco County is known as a large financial and commercial business hub and cultural destination. The county seat is in the city of San Francisco. Tourists and locals are drawn to classic sites such as the historic Golden Gate Bridge, which can be seen from miles away. Downtown San Francisco is home to Chinatown and Fisherman’s Wharf.  

For the purpose of legally selling alcohol at your establishment, we offer online San Francisco County liquor license auctions for the following permit types:
 

• Type 20: Permits the sale of beer and wine for off-premises consumption in San Francisco County.
• Type 21: Permits all liquor sales -- beer, wine, and spirits -- for off-premises consumption in San Francisco.
• Type 41: Permits restaurants to sell beer and wine for on-site consumption in the County of San Francisco.
• Type 47: Permits restaurants to sell all liquor -- beer, wine, and spirits -- for on-site consumption, as well as beer and wine "to go" for off-site consumption in San Francisco, CA.
• Type 48: Permits bars and nightclubs to sell all liquor -- beer, wine, and spirits -- for on-site consumption, as well as beer and wine "to go" for off-site consumption in San Francisco, California.
• Type 57: Permits organizations, such as a veteran’s hall, VFW's or golf courses, to sell all liquor -- beer, wine, and spirits -- to members and guests for on-site consumption, as well as beer and wine "to go" for off-site consumption in San Francisco County, CA.

Each California liquor license grants the holder the right to sell in a specific California county, such as San Francisco. Liquor licenses are not transferable between counties. They are, however, transferable between owners, which means you can legally buy or sell any San Francisco alcohol license.

How to Buy a San Francisco Liquor License

In California, there are two different ways to purchase your San Francisco liquor license. You can obtain the alcohol permit either directly from the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, or you can go the route of acquiring a San Francisco alcohol license on the secondary market through a designated liquor license broker such as Liquor License Auctioneers. 

Since San Francisco County has a limited number of alcohol licenses that can be sold or purchased, you usually have to wait for one to become available from someone selling a liquor license. Using a liquor license broker usually results in the most expedited process, allowing you to secure the San Francisco liquor license in a timely manner. 

This is the point where Liquor License Auctioneers enters the picture. Buying and selling San Francisco liquor licenses is our sweet spot as we’ve been experts in this industry for years. Our close network of business moguls and lawyers puts us in a valuable position with access to San Francisco liquor licenses that are exclusively available on our interactive alcohol license bidding platform, and no other brokerage can compete with these private alcohol permits. If you don’t see the type of San Francisco alcohol license that your establishment requires, please reach out to us, and we can locate and provide the requested San Francisco liquor license at an ethical and fair price unmatched in the industry. 

Our expert liquor license brokers can help expedite the subsequent eight steps to acquire your San Francisco liquor license. 

1. Secure the location: You must purchase, lease, or rent the establishment where you’ll be serving or selling liquor.
2. Select your liquor license: Depending on your business model, you should select the proper type of San Francisco liquor license that you will need. At this time, choose if you'll acquire the alcohol permit from a licensed broker or from the CA ABC.
3. Open your escrow account: The escrow account that you open should be through a third-party business, not your brokerage. When you open an escrow account, all money associated with the purchase or sale of an alcohol permit will get placed in the account. This is used in the process of transferring ownership from one person to another when obtaining a San Francisco alcohol license.
4. Survey the location: This survey can be contracted to a surveyor or a qualified broker such as Liquor License Auctioneers to inspect the establishment.
5. Complete your ABC Application: Submit your filled out Alcoholic Beverage Control application for a thorough review. We can also complete your ABC application if you prefer.
6. Post a notice: After the CA ABC application has been looked over, they will send a notice of intention to sell liquor on the premises, and you need to post the notice in a prominent place in your establishment for 30 days.
7. Submit to investigation: Once the 30-day time frame has passed, the CA ABC will once again inspect your establishment and consider whether to provide you with the San Francisco liquor license.
8. Receive the liquor license: Now that you’ve completed all seven prior steps, the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control will mail you the San Francisco alcohol license. Upon receiving it in the mail, you must promptly display the liquor license on the premises.

If you follow all eight steps above, this will fulfill all the rigorous requirements from the California government when acquiring a San Francisco liquor license. At the same time that you are following the state guidelines, you should see if your local municipality requires zoning permits (CUP’s) or has other legal stipulations. To keep the process of buying a San Francisco liquor license on track, reach out to the municipal government so they can inform you of the specific regulations. 

Competition for businesses buying and selling liquor licenses in San Francisco is at an all-time high. San Francisco has numerous restaurants and bars that serve the tourism industry, not to mention all the stores that sell alcohol off-premises. As more businesses are created and want to acquire a San Francisco alcohol license, this will continue to increase the prices as alcohol permits become available, also making the profit margins larger. That’s not the case with Liquor License Auctioneers. Our business model has worked extremely well for many years because we’ve remained open, honest, and ethical while providing exceptional customer service. When you are ready to purchase a San Francisco liquor license, please check our auction platform with listed San Francisco liquor licenses above. You can make a bid and purchase your liquor license, or if you need a specific type of alcohol permit that is not currently available, don’t hesitate to contact us. We’ll be happy to find the specific San Francisco liquor license you are looking for at a competitive and fair price.