Hometown was built fast after the Second World War. Developer Joseph E. Merrion put up inexpensive duplex houses for returning GIs, the city incorporated in 1953, and the population peaked above 7,000 in 1958. It still looks the part: about three of every four homes are single-unit attached houses, only around 6 percent are detached, and the whole city covers less than half a square mile. So when we buy junk cars in Hometown, we’re usually loading outside an attached house, not in a big apartment lot. Junk My Car Inc handles each one the same way: no charge for the tow, and payment as soon as the car is loaded.
Fourteen days, or a tarp
Hometown amended its vehicle article in May 2025, and it leaves little room. Section 14.201 makes it unlawful to park, maintain or store an inoperable vehicle on any real property in the city. Section 14.210 says what inoperable means: a car on private property, in public view for 14 days or more, that can’t be driven safely or legally because the engine, wheels or other parts are gone.
The presumptions are the part to watch. A car that hasn’t moved for 14 straight days is presumed inoperable if it sits under a cover or tarp, or if it has no current City of Hometown sticker. Throwing a tarp over a dead car doesn’t hide it from the code. It’s one of the triggers.
Two to six, and every street in the snow
Section 14.132 limits parking on any city street to 30 minutes between 2 and 6 a.m. unless you hold a police permit. Snow is simpler still: Section 14.136 makes every street a snow route, so once 2 inches fall nothing may park until the snow is fully removed, and violators can be towed without notice.
The sticker matters on the street too. Section 11.465 bars using or parking a car on city streets unless a current sticker is displayed on the lower right of the windshield.
When the tow notice is already there
If a “Notice of Intent to Tow” sticker turns up on the window, a certified letter goes with it (Section 14.214). Under Section 14.213 you then have 7 days from the letter to ask for a hearing, and the city can extend the deadline up to 30 days if the car is being held for sale. That’s the moment to get an offer on the car. Our offers don’t lapse, and if a second dead car is parked beside it, both can go in one visit.
Directions, papers and neighbours
Hometown’s north edge is 87th Street, the Chicago city line, between Cicero Avenue (Route 50) and Pulaski Road. Southwest Highway and Keeler Lane also cross the city, and the Hometown Shopping Center has its own traffic rules. Metra’s SouthWest Service passes through without stopping; Pace 383 and CTA 87 are the buses.
No title? Tell us which papers you have: a registration, a bill of sale or an insurance card. Which of those count for a scrap sale is set by Illinois rules, and we confirm it on the call ahead of the pickup. The guide on selling a junk car for cash walks through the rest.
Close by, we buy junk cars in Oak Lawn to the southwest, Evergreen Park to the southeast, Burbank to the west and Bedford Park to the northwest. The areas page maps every town we serve.