Selling a dead or junk car in Grand Rapids

How long a car can sit

Section 9.108 sets the limit at homes and businesses: "No more than one (1) operable vehicle, that is unlicensed or unregistered shall be located outdoors for more than seven (7) days on a property with a residential or commercial structure."

The definition of an inoperable vehicle also reaches "part of any motor vehicle" that is "wrecked, disabled, partially dismantled, junked, or abandoned." A shell or a pulled body counts, not just a whole car.

Vacant land is stricter, with no day count at all: "Inoperable, unlicensed or unregistered vehicle storage is prohibited on any vacant property, whether a structure exists on the property or not."

The zoning code's 24 hours

Zoning has its own yardstick. Section 5.16.02 defines outdoor storage as keeping vehicles or junk "in the same place outside an enclosed building or structure for more than twenty-four (24) hours." The same section describes a vehicle wrecking or salvage business as one that includes "the storage of one (1) or more impounded, damaged, or inoperable vehicles" for more than 24 hours. Those are land-use definitions, not a tow order, but they show how short a stay the code treats as storage.

Unpaid tickets: tow or boot

Old tickets can pull a parked car off the street. Section 10.64.1 lets a police officer, police cadet, C.L.I.P. or other authorized city employee impound an unattended car "immediately" when its registered owner has "six (6) or more unpaid and outstanding" civil infractions or parking notices under Chapter 181.

Section 10.64.2 allows a boot instead. A notice goes on the car warning "SERIOUS DAMAGE TO THE VEHICLE WILL RESULT IF YOU ATTEMPT TO MOVE THE VEHICLE," and "ARRANGEMENTS MUST BE MADE WITHIN SEVENTY-TWO (72) HOURS" or the car is impounded as a nuisance. Paying the tickets and the device fee frees it.

If you deny the offense behind an impound, Section 10.67 lets you claim the car at the Grand Rapids Police Department by posting bond to cover the towing and impound charges.

Broken-down work trucks

Section 10.47 limits a commercial vehicle of more than one ton to two hours parked on a public roadway. A work truck that quits at the curb runs out of time quickly.

Title, plates and the online option

Kent County does not handle titles. The state issues them through its Secretary of State branches, and until the buyer files the transfer, the record keeps your name on it. That is the reason SOS nudges sellers to make the branch trip together.

Michigan also runs an online transfer. It only fits a sale between two individuals, one selling and one buying, each carrying a Michigan driver's license or state ID. For a Grand Rapids sale, the SOS can need up to 3 days to sign off.

Skipping the branch trip? After that, Grand Rapids sellers should file the sale record away for at least 18 months. For Grand Rapids sellers, a copy of the title you reassigned counts as proof under MCL 257.240. A Grand Rapids seller can instead hold on to a receipt, dated, priced and signed by the buyer, that lists the buyer's name, address and driver license number.

Your plate never belongs to the car. Unbolt it at the sale; it can go onto another vehicle you already have or buy later. Michigan allows the buyer three days to drive home.

Nearby

Wyoming is 5.5 miles away in a straight line, Walker 5.7 and Kentwood 6.2. Holland is 26.1 miles off. Statewide rules are on the Michigan page.

Getting an offer

Fill in the form or call (877) 421-6008. The short form covers everything we need about your Grand Rapids car. Grand Rapids pickups happen in driveways, on side streets or at repair shop lots.