Selling a dead or junk car in Bozeman

Who the 72-hour rule is aimed at

Bozeman spreads the duty wider than the registered owner. Once two or more such vehicles or parts pile up on a lot, the code calls it a nuisance. It then says "it shall be the duty of the registered owner of such vehicle or part thereof, and it shall also be the duty of the owner of the private property", and it names the "lessee or other person in possession" as well.

That matters in a town with a lot of renters. A tenant's dead hatchback can land a notice on the landlord, and a landlord can lean on the tenant to move it. Either one can settle it by getting the car off the lot.

Note the words "whether attended or not". Working on the car, or sitting in it, does not stop the clock. What the code names is keeping the car "completely enclosed within a building".

If Bozeman removes the car itself

Section 16.03.040 lets the city, an agent or a contractor haul the vehicle away when the owner "fails, neglects or refuses to remove" it after the required notice. The bigger loss is the car. The same section says "Ownership of any vehicle or part thereof removed by the city, its agent or contractor shall, upon such removal, be vested in the city, its agent or contractor, as applicable."

Section 16.03.050 explains how the city pays for the work. The city manager may contract with a licensed junk dealer "wherein the consideration for the services of the junk dealer shall be the vehicle or part thereof at no expense to the city." The dealer is paid with your car. If you have a notice in hand, see notice to remove a car.

On a Bozeman street

Different rules apply on public ground. Section 36.02.020 lets police tow "when any vehicle is abandoned on any street, highway or public parking lot operated by the city by not being moved or used for more than seven consecutive days, and such a vehicle is apparently deserted."

Bozeman releases the car once you show ID and ownership papers, sign the release, and pay the city's tow charge. Paying does not wipe out any fine for the violation that caused the tow. Towed or impounded covers the next steps.

The Gallatin County title office

One county office we checked handles titles at 311 West Main Street, Bozeman, MT 59715. Measured as the crow flies from the town's center, that is under a mile to the southeast. There may be more Gallatin County offices than this one. Sellers seldom have to go. In Montana the buyer takes the title to the county treasurer in their own county, with 40 days from the sale to apply.

Signing over a Montana title

MCA 61-3-220 says that when a car is sold, the owner finishes the transfer and gives the buyer the signed-over title. A few Montana details catch people out:

• No notary. The requirement was struck effective Oct. 1, 2025.
• Stick to blue or black ink. An erasure or a dab of white-out voids it.
• Print the buyer's name and address. Whoever signs on the buyer's line has to be the person you named.
• Fill in the odometer section on anything newer than nine years.

Montana's bill of sale is form MV24. Add a copy of both sides of the signed Bozeman title and you have proof of the sale. Registration fees and taxes stop accruing once ownership passes to someone else.

The plates come off before the truck leaves

Take your plates off the moment the car changes hands. That is required by MCA 61-3-334, and the MVD warns that a seller who leaves the plates on may be liable for later parking or traffic violations. The buyer gets new plates. After you sell lists the rest.

Nearby towns

Helena is 78.2 miles from Bozeman in a straight line, Billings 120.8 and Great Falls 126.2. Statewide rules are on the Montana page.

Getting an offer

Call (877) 421-6008 or send details online: the car, its odometer reading, if it starts, and any title issues. We can collect it from a Bozeman driveway facing the 72-hour clock, a rental's parking pad, or the shop where the car finally died.