Selling a dead or junk car in Youngstown

We buy whole non-running and junk cars, so a car that can't be garaged can go as it is. You sell the whole car as it sits, with free pickup anywhere in the US.

The 72-hour definition

A car becomes an "inoperable motor vehicle" in Youngstown once it has stayed 72 hours or more in either of two conditions:

1. it shows no valid registration sticker or license plate
2. it is wrecked or partly wrecked, dismantled or partly dismantled, discarded, or incapable of operation

The code spells out both terms. "Dismantled" covers any car with some part removed or missing. "Incapable of operation" means the car cannot move under its own power, or appears unable to.

One exception helps owners of cars with lapsed tags. A car that is inoperable only because it has no valid sticker or plate is not subject to removal under this section.

The property maintenance code, Section 546.04, piles on: "no inoperative or unlicensed motor vehicles shall be parked, kept or stored on any premises, and no vehicle shall at any time be in a state of major disassembly, disrepair, or in the process of being stripped or dismantled." Big jobs like an overhaul or body work must be done "inside a structure or similarly enclosed area designed and approved for such purposes."

Notice, ten days, appeal

The notice comes from the Mahoning County Sheriff or the Youngstown Police Chief, or a designee of either. It reaches the person entitled to the property by hand or by regular mail, and the titled owner too if known. Another copy goes on the car, in a conspicuous place.

The ten days that follow are for one of two things: getting the car "completely enclosed inside of a garage or other suitable structure and be shielded from public view," or getting it off the property. After that the city has it removed, and the property owner and the vehicle owner both answer for the removal and storage costs. A landowner who truthfully reports that the car was left on the land without permission, and asks for removal, "will not be charged for removal and storage costs."

To appeal, hand a written appeal to the Clerk of City Council at 26 S. Phelps Street before the ten days end; it goes to the Housing Code Appeals Board. An appeal does not stop the tow, but a car under a timely appeal is not disposed of before the hearing.

A violation is a minor misdemeanor. Each day the car remains after the notice period is a separate offense, and the court assesses the city's towing and storage costs.

Property Code Enforcement and Demolition is on the 5th floor of City Hall, 26 South Phelps Street, (330) 742-8888.

What a Youngstown tow costs

Section 303.08 sets the lien charges for a vehicle under 10,000 pounds:

When a property owner complains about a car left without permission, public land or private, police can tow it; the same goes for a car parked on a street for 48 consecutive hours or more. If someone complains, the chief can also invoke Section 303.081 and order storage for a car "left on private residential or private agricultural property for at least four hours without the permission" of the person entitled to it. Redemption happens at the police offices, where the owner must "furnish satisfactory evidence of identity and ownership or right to possession," handle any court fines or bond, and pay the pound operator. Police non-emergency: (330) 747-7911.

Section 775.02 has its own narrow "abandoned motor vehicle": worth $100 or less, more than three years old, no current plates, extensively damaged or missing parts, and parked more than 72 hours on private property or 48 on public property. Its only ban is for service station premises. No wrecked, inoperable or abandoned vehicle may be parked or stored there past 72 hours, except inside the station building. The city takes abandoned-vehicle reports through an online form or the YPD Community Police Unit, 1639 Mahoning Avenue, (330) 793-6650, Monday through Friday.

Snow emergencies

Section 351.14 declares an emergency when snow averaging four inches or more piles up "during any period of twenty-four hours or less." Parking is then banned on every street, though not sooner than four hours after the first announcement on snow emergency routes, or twelve hours on residential streets. A car left in violation is a public nuisance and can be impounded at the owner's expense.

Title office and the sale

Mahoning County's title office is at 345 Oakhill Avenue, Suite 102, about 0.7 miles west of Youngstown's center as the crow flies. Phone the office at (330) 740-2111. The county has a second office in Sebring, about 22.5 miles southwest. Part of Youngstown lies in Trumbull County; either county's office, or any other in Ohio, can do the paperwork.

• Notary. Sellers sign the title assignment before a notary.
• Duplicate. A lost title gets replaced first, on form BMV 3774. Mahoning charges $18 unless its commissioners raised the fee to $23.
• Plates. Pull them before the car leaves; Ohio ends the registration at the sale.

Neither Mahoning County nor Trumbull County has E-Check testing.

Getting an offer

Call (877) 421-6008 or ask online. Give us the car's age and rough mileage, tell us if it can still roll on its own, explain the title situation, and say whether a notice is on it. The truck comes to it. Nearby Warren has its own page, and Ohio covers state rules.