Selling a dead or junk car in Broken Arrow

What counts as enclosed

The code is specific about hiding a car. It must go into "a building where it will not be visible from the street or from other private property." Parts count as well: Section 15-1 says junked or inoperable vehicles "include the major parts thereof, including bodies, engines, transmissions, frames and rear ends." A pulled engine left outside falls under the same rule as the car it came from.

Ignore the red tag and the city can tow, and "the owner shall be responsible for all towing and storage costs." Our notice to remove a car guide walks through the choices.

Appeals and hazards

Under Section 15-1, an appeal is a written notice filed with the city clerk "within ten days after the notice or order is rendered," with your name, mailing address and grounds. A hearing officer's decision can be taken to the city council the same way. Where the city finds an immediate hazard to the public, it may abate "immediately without prior notice."

The front-yard tag rule

Section 15-1 also calls it a nuisance to keep any vehicle or trailer, "whether in operating condition or not," without a current plate in a residentially zoned district "in front of the building line." The zoning code, Section 4-2-4, adds that apart from recreational vehicles, no vehicles may be "parked, stored or kept in any side or rear yards."

Surface matters too. On a home lot under one acre, Section 23-135 limits a car to 12 hours unless it sits entirely on asphalt, brick, cement, chat, gravel or a similar approved surface. On the street, the limit is 24 hours.

When police tow

Section 23-146 lets officers haul off a disabled car blocking traffic, and any car left over an hour beyond its parking limit. For a Broken Arrow tow, the last registered owner and the lienholder get a letter by regular mail within three business days, not counting weekends and holidays. The car comes back once storage and impound costs are paid. See towed or impounded.

Title and plates in Broken Arrow

Broken Arrow sits in Tulsa and Wagoner counties. We checked two offices. Tulsa County's is on the 8th floor at 218 W. 6th St. in Tulsa (918-596-5071), about 14 miles northwest of central Broken Arrow in a straight line. Wagoner County's is at 307 E Cherokee Street in Wagoner (918-485-2149), about 23 miles to the east. Licensed tag agencies and Service Oklahoma handle titles too.

Find the title before you sell. For a lost Broken Arrow title, the owner of record replaces it by signing Form 701-7 with a notary watching. It costs $11; mailing the application can add $1.66, and the replacement only comes by mail. The sale itself needs your assignment sworn before a notary. Keep your plate: in Oklahoma it does not transfer to the buyer. Start with selling with no title if the paper is gone.

Getting an offer

Call (877) 421-6008 or write online. Send us a note about your Broken Arrow car through the form. A curb near Main Street, a driveway or the space behind a garage all work as pickup spots. Bixby is 8.3 miles away and Tulsa 9.3; the Oklahoma page has statewide rules.