I own rental property and need a car that doesn't belong to me towed

northcarolina

I currently rent a couple of houses to people. All of my rental agreements were drawn up by an attorney and in the agreement it states that no "inoperable" vehicles may be placed on the property for more than 30 days. After that, the tenant will be responsible to have it removed. If they haven't done so within another 30 days, the owner (me) of the property will have it removed at the tenants expense. Is this legal and how can it be towed without a title?

Dr. Frenchenstein

you will probably need to send the tenant something certified mail at the very least that they have 30 days to move the vehicle, or it will be towed. I'm not sure what the process is to get something towed though, you can probably get it impounded but i imagine it will be a pain in the butt.

Inquisitor77

The police can usually help you with this, although it may require a lot of follow-up on your part. Usually you can just have them put a ticket on the windshield instead, which might solve the problem less drastically.

Aioua

Dr. Frenchenstein wrote: »

you will probably need to send the tenant something certified mail at the very least that they have 30 days to move the vehicle, or it will be towed. I'm not sure what the process is to get something towed though, you can probably get it impounded but i imagine it will be a pain in the butt.

Do this at the very least, to cover your ass.

What it takes to tow it probably depends on your local laws. I know my mom once had to tow a person who parked in her spot at her condo, and all she needed was something proving the spot belonged to her (puchase paperwork), but that was in WA.

It might be a bit stickier for you though, since it's a property the tenants have a right to be on. It might not be legal for you to remove their personal property under any circumstances. I would recommend talking to a lawyer.

Xaquin

this might be a dumb question, but if they're renting from you, why can't they have their car there tags or not?

also, are they fixing it or is it up on blocks (for example) with the engine missing and the chrome peeling off?

chromdom

Property owners have a financial interest in keeping their properties maintained and looking good. And many laws can be set aside by mutual agreement, like the renters agreed to not keeping inoperable vehicles on the property for extended periods when they signed the lease.

Like Xaquin asked, I wonder how you know it's inoperable and not just parked there while the driver is out of town or something.

I would say it's probably easier/friendlier/better to talk to the renter and ask what's up with the car, can they move it, etc., before getting anything more official involved. Calling your lawyer may be more expensive, but this also probably won't be the last time something like this happens, so you're going to want to know the ABCs of dealing with these issues.

IANAL but call a lawyer, and maybe a tow truck operator to see what happens with their impounded cars.

noir_blood

Xaquin wrote: »

this might be a dumb question, but if they're renting from you, why can't they have their car there tags or not?

also, are they fixing it or is it up on blocks (for example) with the engine missing and the chrome peeling off?

I always wondered that (not saying the OP is in the wrong for wanting to do enforce this).

All the apartments I have ever lived in have had a rule where basically you couldn't keep your car park if your registration/inspection sticker was out of date.

Darkewolfe

Many local governments have ordinances on inoperable vehicles. It all comes back around to people not wanting property values down, but municipalities and such have been passing those rules all over to make it region-wide.

DivideByZero

northcarolina wrote: »

I currently rent a couple of houses to people. All of my rental agreements were drawn up by an attorney and in the agreement it states that no "inoperable" vehicles may be placed on the property for more than 30 days. After that, the tenant will be responsible to have it removed. If they haven't done so within another 30 days, the owner (me) of the property will have it removed at the tenants expense. Is this legal and how can it be towed without a title?

Your first step should probably be talking to that attorney.

Jam Warrior

Only asking as you haven't mentioned it, but have you spoken to the tenant, pointed out the tenancy agreement and asked them to move it yet?

Getting their car towed may be within your rights, but it's also a fast train to an extremely adversarial relationship with your tenant. That never goes well for anyone involved.

Wezoin

Check local laws - had a similar problem at my old workplace and found out it is illegal to tow a vehicle that doesn't belong to you in my city even if it's parked on your property. The city can fine the owner but towing was deemed to be equivalent to theft in this backwards town.