Selling a junk or dead car in Victoria, Texas

Other ways a vehicle becomes junked

Sec. 10-51 also counts:

• anything that qualifies under Section 683.071 of the Texas Transportation Code
• a motor vehicle that invites vandalism, is a pedestrian or fire hazard, draws in minors as an attractive nuisance, or is otherwise a health or safety hazard, wherever it is and whether or not it runs
• a golf cart, neighborhood electric vehicle or off-highway vehicle that has stayed dismantled or partly dismantled "for more than fifteen days"
• a trailer, camper, RV or travel trailer with no plate that is visible from the public right-of-way, unless it sits on a concrete slab or rock on private property

It is unlawful for a property owner or occupier "to allow a junked vehicle to be kept upon real property where the junked vehicle is visible from a public place or public right-of-way." The rule only reaches vehicles in public view. The sections read do not name a garage, fence or cover exemption.

Letting a junk vehicle exist on your property, or owning one in that state, is a misdemeanor under Sec. 1-8. And the administrative process below can add civil penalties.

Ten calendar days, then an order

The notice of violation must say the vehicle has to be abated or removed by the 10th calendar day after it is mailed, emailed or hand delivered. It also warns that civil penalties may follow against the vehicle owner, the property owner or occupier, and the vehicle itself. On private property the notice may go to the registered owner, the owner listed on the Victoria County Appraisal District roll, or the occupants. An owner with no known address may find it left on the car and posted on the city website.

After the notice period, the abatement officer can issue an "Administrative Order of Junked Vehicle Determination." Where the officer believes the people responsible had time to fix the problem and did not, the order can impose "a civil penalty, not to exceed $1,000.00 per day, for each day a violation continues to occur after the end of the remedy period."

Two exits exist. If the officer finds the vehicle is junk but not a nuisance, the order can allow up to 15 calendar days from its date to show proof of compliance. And an appellant has 31 calendar days after the order is issued and filed to appeal to the Victoria Municipal Court.

If the city or its vendor hauls the car away, the owner and the vehicle are "responsible for all storage fees." The car can go to a scrapyard, demolisher or demolition site. The state is told within five business days so it can cancel the title, and a junk vehicle that was also a public nuisance may not be rebuilt or made operable. The Director of Development Services, or a designee, has authority to go onto private land, inspect a vehicle and remove one declared a nuisance.

Streets, tows and the 20-day clock

Sec. 22-57 bars parking on a roadway for "storage in excess of twenty-four (24) hours," and also for display for sale or for repairs other than emergencies. Commercial vehicles bigger than one-ton trucks get just thirty minutes on residential streets, loading excepted, under Sec. 22-56.

A peace officer may tow a car from a public street to an approved storage yard when there are reasonable grounds to believe it was abandoned. Abandoned vehicles left on public property, roadways and parking lots included, are public nuisances under Sec. 10-50. The chief of police runs that process under state chapter 683, and a hearing can be asked for within 10 days after notice is served.

After a street tow, Sec. 22-74 says the city notifies the registered owner and lienholders, and the car "will be subject to sale at public auction if it is not reclaimed within twenty (20) days." To get it back, pay the towing, preservation and storage charges. A written request to the chief of police starts a post-tow hearing, and posting an appearance bond for the charges gets immediate possession while you wait. See towed or impounded.

Who handles what

The city splits it by location. For a car stored on a public street, call police at the non-emergency number, 361-573-3221; the city notes those calls are prioritized and a response may be delayed. A junked vehicle on private property goes to Code Enforcement at 361-485-3330, at 700 Main Center, Suite 117, or through online Customer Service Requests.

Title steps at the Victoria County tax office

The Victoria County tax assessor-collector works out of 205 N Bridge St., Ste 101, about 2 miles southwest of the middle of Victoria as the crow flies. Call (361) 576-3671.

Texas does not require a notary on the title assignment or bill of sale. Tell TxDMV about the Victoria sale within 30 days. Use the Vehicle Transfer Notification, either at TxDMV.gov/VTN or on paper as VTR-346. Hang onto your own notes: who bought it and how to reach them, the sale date, and the VIN.

A dealer sale has a catch. Dealers can skip titling the car to themselves, so yours can stay on the record until the next buyer comes along, and the transfer notice is what protects you meanwhile. The plates and sticker can come off when the car leaves. After you sell and the Texas page go through each step.

Nearby towns

Victoria sits well apart from the next towns with pages: Portland is 68.2 miles away, Corpus Christi 75.1, Seguin 79.3 and Rosenberg 86.1, straight-line.

Getting an offer

Fill in the form online or ring (877) 421-6008. We need a few facts: what it is, about how many miles, whether it runs, and who has the title. The truck can come to a front yard, a side street, or a shop lot, wherever the car is now.