Selling a junk car in Marion

Two kinds of car, two rules

Marion separates a car that is only unlicensed from one that is junk.

• Unlicensed. It may not be "parked or stored in the front, back or side yard in any zoning district." It has to sit "upon an established driveway or parking space."
• Junk. It has to be inside an enclosed building. Section 190-2 makes it "unlawful for any person to store, accumulate, or allow to remain on any private property" any junk vehicle. Section 190-3 puts the blame by default on whoever owns or occupies the lot, calling that person "prima facie liable for said violation."

Businesses that repair, sell or salvage vehicles may keep both kinds, as long as they meet their zoning district's screening rules.

The driveway repair exception

There is one narrow way to keep a junk car outside at home. The house must have no garage. The owner must notify "the Police Department in writing of the owner's intent to actively repair the vehicle." Then the repairs must be "completed within 30 days of the notification." If the 30 days pass and the car is still broken, the exception is gone.

How fast the city moves

Once the city finds a junk vehicle on private property, it "shall within five days initiate abatement procedures" under Chapter 223, its nuisance abatement chapter.

On public ground, Chapter 305 counts a car as abandoned after 24 unattended hours. Whoever takes custody must send notice by certified mail "no more than 20 days after taking custody." You can reclaim the car by paying towing, preservation, storage and the cost of the notice. A demolisher can take a Marion car with no engine, or with two or more wheels gone, as junk "without a title" when the owner's title is "faulty, lost or destroyed." The demolisher still needs the junking certificate before crushing it.

Title and plates in Linn County

Linn County's treasurer handles Marion titles, plates and junking certificates. Sign the title's back as the seller, then fill in who the buyer is, their address and the sale date. Odometer statements apply to cars up to nine model years old. Plates stay with you in Iowa, so pull them before pickup.

A replacement title runs $35.00 and takes a mandatory 5-day wait. Every owner listed must sign that request, no matter how the names are joined. After you sell lists the steps once the car is gone.

Nearby towns

Cedar Rapids lies 7.3 miles from Marion as the crow flies. North Liberty is 20.8 miles, Iowa City 27.0 and Waterloo 49.9. See Iowa for statewide rules.

Getting an offer

Use the form or phone (877) 421-6008. Selling a car in Marion? Start with the offer form. In Marion we load from a garage, an open driveway or the back corner of a business lot.