Selling a junk car in Marshall, Texas

The 72-hour and 30-day test

Marshall copies its definitions straight from state law. Section 20-33 adopts the junked-vehicle definitions in Texas Transportation Code chapter 683, subchapter E, "and all amendments thereto." Under Section 20-32, a self-propelled car with no unexpired plate or valid inspection certificate is junked if it is wrecked, dismantled or discarded. In Marshall, a dead car on a public street qualifies after 72 straight hours. Private land takes over 30 straight days.

Marshall's Section 20-34 declares it a public nuisance if it is visible from public land or a right-of-way. Section 20-35 makes it unlawful to leave the car, or any piece of it, on public or private property.

Section 20-36 leaves two ways to keep a dead car. Park it lawfully inside a building, fully hidden. Or, for a dealer, junkyard or collector, keep the cars tidy behind a fence, trees or shrubbery.

From the letter to the judge's order

1. Notice. The administrator sends a ten-day notice, certified or registered. Copies are sent to the registered owner, every lienholder of record, and the owner or occupant of the property. The owner must take the car away "not later than the tenth day after the date on which the notice was mailed," and any request for a hearing is due in that same period.
2. Hearing. The hearing is held before the municipal judge, whether you asked for it or not.
3. Order. If the judge finds a nuisance, Section 20-38 orders removal "within ten (10) days after said order is given." Not complying is its own violation, and moving the car elsewhere in town after the hearing starts does not end the case.
4. Removal. The city can tow it. Under Section 20-39, it "shall not be reconstructed or made operable," and the city must tell TxDOT within five days. Section 20-40 lets the city sell it to a demolisher, process it as scrap or demolish it.

Under Section 20-41, breaking the article is a misdemeanor carrying as much as $200 in fines. Each further day of a declared nuisance is a fresh violation.

Marshall Neighborhood Code Enforcement is at 110 S. Bolivar St., Suites 204 and 205, at 903-935-4512 or 903-934-7879. You can look up a case by case number, parcel number or parcel address in the city's online citizen portal.

Streets, the pound and a for-sale sign

Section 20-21 gives a parked car two days, 48 continuous hours, unattended on any Marshall street, alley, sidewalk or park. After that it is a nuisance, and police can tow it to the pound. Under Section 20-22, the city's lien covers what it spends to impound, store and advertise the car. Getting it out before it is auctioned means paying the impounding fee plus whatever the city actually spent. Once it sells, Section 20-23 lets you redeem it from the auction buyer for double the price plus reasonable keeping costs, but only within 30 days of the sale. The police department's listed number is 903-935-4575, at 2101 E End Boulevard N.

Section 27-12 also bans using a street spot as a showroom for a car you want to sell.

The Harrison County tax office

The office we checked is at 200 W Houston, Room 108, (903) 935-8411. It is roughly a mile northwest of central Marshall as the crow flies. In Texas the buyer files for the new title there, not the seller. You can visit to move your old plates onto another car, which the county does for free with a new sticker.

Texas paperwork for a Marshall seller

Marshall sellers add the date and the mileage to the title, then sign. Hand the buyer a signed Form 130-U showing the price too. Texas requires no notary. You have 30 days after the sale to file the Vehicle Transfer Notification with TxDMV, online at its site or on paper with Form VTR-346. The plates and sticker are yours to remove, and the sticker never moves to another car. If the title is lost, a certified copy through Form VTR-34 is $5.45 if you apply in person. A car with no title has one more option. If it is 13 years old or older and has not been registered in seven years or more, a used parts recycler can accept it. See selling with no title.

Getting an offer

Have a few notes ready before you call (877) 421-6008 or use the form: the car's year, make and model, the number on the odometer, if it runs, and the person the title belongs to. We pick up right where the car is, be that behind a house in town, along a county road in Harrison County, or out toward Longview. For statewide rules, see Texas.