Fremont junk and non-running cars: how to sell one

Thirty days, then a tow

Fremont's code says stored wrecks "invite plundering and vandalism" and "create fire hazards." Under Section 5-902, no dismantled, wrecked, junked or inoperable motor vehicle, camper or trailer may stay on a property "for a period of time in excess of thirty (30) days." Cars kept in an enclosed building are exempt.

The notice works on its own 30-day clock. The city notifies the owner and any occupant, and "if the nuisance is not abated within thirty (30) days from the service of the notice," they are guilty of creating a nuisance. On top of charges, or instead of them, the city "may cause any junked motor vehicle to be towed from the property, at the expense of the owner of said motor vehicle."

Getting a towed car back means paying "the cost of removal and storage." The code also starts a five-day window for the owner, lienholder or mortgagee to claim it, counted from when the notice was served in person or documented by certified or registered mail, not counting that day, weekends or holidays.

On the street

Moving the car to the curb only buys hours. Under Section 5-405, no motor vehicle may sit "continuously on a street in the same block in the residential district for a consecutive period in excess of eighteen (18) hours." That limit does not run on Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays.

After a crash, Section 5-903 has police oversee the removal of a damaged car from the street, and it goes to a designated storage lot unless the owner or driver directs otherwise.

Snow routes punish a dead battery

Fremont's snow code is unusually specific. Once the Mayor or a designee declares an emergency under Section 5-1002, parking on every snow emergency route is banned. Section 5-1004 then says no driver on a route "shall allow such vehicle to become stalled because the motor fuel supply is exhausted or the battery has become inoperative." A stalled car must be towed or pushed off right away, and police may move it to the City Automobile Pound or a private lot under Section 5-1007. It is released only after the owner pays the towing and storage costs.

Dodge County title office and plates

The office we checked is at 435 N. Park, Room 302, phone (402) 727-2750, under a mile southwest of central Fremont in a straight line. In Nebraska, County Treasurer offices handle titles and plates.

Clear any lien before you sell, and have all owners on the title sign as seller. In Fremont you write down the odometer reading and hand over Form 6 or a bill of sale. The buyer fills in a name, address and signature on the spot. If that part stays blank, it is an "open title" and can be confiscated. Bring the plates, registration and decals to the Dodge County treasurer within 60 days, and the unused registration comes back to you. Lost the title? An Application for Duplicate Certificate of Title costs $14.00; see selling with no title.

Getting an offer

Reach us online or at (877) 421-6008 and describe the car, its miles, if it still drives and how the title looks. Our driver can pick it up downtown near Main Street, at a body shop, or in the side yard where it's been parked. Fremont is 25.6 miles from Omaha and 45.1 miles from Columbus; statewide rules are on the Nebraska page.