Selling a dead or junk car in Apex

The canvas rule and the garage rule

Under Section 20-34.2, every junked car after the first "must be kept in a garage or building structure that provides a complete enclosure." The test is whether it can be seen "from a public street or abutting property."

When police call it an aesthetic nuisance

Apex can go further than the canvas rule. The chief of police or a designee investigates, and a car becomes an aesthetic nuisance when "the aesthetic benefits of removing the vehicle outweigh the burdens imposed on the private property owner." A police officer may then declare it and order it removed. After that order, leaving the car where it is breaks the law. Licensed junkyards and automobile graveyards are exempt.

Street parking and the 24-hour tow

A car that quits downtown has a short clock. Section 20-171 says a vehicle parked "in a time limiting area, loading zone or other prohibited zone for a period of 24 hours may be removed." The owner pays the tow and any storage. During town events or emergencies, an officer can order it moved at once.

Section 20-162 adds that a car in a marked space must stay within the lines. Moving it from one space to the next on the same block counts as "one continuous parking event."

If the town has already towed it, Section 20-41 lets the owner take it back at any stage "by either paying the towing fee or posting a bond for double the amount of the towing fee."

Title and plates from Apex

North Carolina issues titles at the state level, through license plate agencies or by mail. One office on NCDMV's list is 4121 New Bern Ave. in Raleigh, about 18 miles east of the middle of Apex as the crow flies.

Apex sellers sign the title's back in a notary's presence. A lost title means filing Form MVR-4 first, notarized, and waiting out the 15-day period NCDMV holds it. The current form lists a $25.50 fee. Our no-title guide explains the steps.

Plates leave with you. Any plate that will not go on another of your cars must be returned to NCDMV, and the return should come before the insurance ends.

Apex is partly in Wake County, which requires emissions testing. Chatham County, which takes in part of the town, does not. A car that has failed both tests and sat ever since is covered in car sitting for years.

Getting an offer

Call (877) 421-6008 or ask online. Let us know the car's model and year, the miles on it, if the engine cranks, and the owner listed on the title. We can load it straight from the back yard, cover and all. Cary and Holly Springs are the next towns over; see North Carolina for the state's rules.