Sell your car in Manhattan: running, wrecked or leaving on PCS orders
To sell your car in Manhattan, KS, start with a firm cash offer and a pickup day that fits your orders, your lease or your last exam. If a lender still holds the title, the loan is paid from the sale proceeds. Below you'll find what is local: Fort Riley's storage and resale lots, the city's rule on cars that don't run, and getting tag money back from Riley County.
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Getting tag money back from Riley County
- Keep the metal plate and this year's registration. If the plate is not moving to another car, you may get back part of the property tax and registration you paid. Riley County needs the plate, the registration and its In-State refund application.
- Drop them off or mail them. Take all three to the Riley County Treasurer's motor vehicle office, use the drop box in front of the Riley County Office Building, or mail them. The county mails the check the next business day.
- Apply soon. Refunds cover only full months left on the registration year and must be over $5. The county figures the refund from the day it has all your paperwork, and it says to apply as soon as possible.
Where we pick up around Manhattan
We pick up along K-18 and US-24, from Manhattan's 66502 and 66503 through Ogden and Fort Riley (66442) to Junction City, and out US-24 to Wamego. The smaller towns inside that loop are covered too.
Back from deployment to a car in Fort Riley's storage lot? If its Kansas registration ran out while you were gone, the storage lot rules allow a seven-day extension card signed by your company commander, so you can drive it out. Keep the card in the car until the registration is renewed, and only the owner may drive it during those seven days. If the car is registered in another state, check whether that state has its own extension policy.
Ship it, store it or sell it: the Fort Riley options
Before you sell, check what the military will move or hold for you. With PCS orders overseas, you may be entitled to ship or store one car at government expense, per Military OneSource. Turn-in at a vehicle processing center is by appointment only, with a quarter tank of fuel or less and documented proof of no open recalls. On a move within the continental U.S., getting the car there is largely your cost. The military reimburses mileage and some travel costs instead, a payment called MALT. Deploying instead? Fort Riley has its own storage lot, and the questions below cover who qualifies and how.
To sell on post, Fort Riley MWR runs a POV Resale Lot on Trooper Drive, Building 2210. You register first at the Equipment Checkout Center, 1806 Buffalo Soldier Dr., with the title or proof of ownership, state registration, insurance and your DoD ID card. The fee is $40 for 30 days or $10 a week, and it is not refundable. A car can stay 60 days, then has to leave the lot for 30. You can also get our offer the same day and set pickup for a date that fits your orders. Our guide to selling your car before a PCS move puts the three choices in order.
Cash for your car in Manhattan
Junk cars in Manhattan fall under a city rule. The city code bars keeping an inoperable vehicle on any lot in town unless it is inside a garage or other building. One car that is being repaired can sit for up to 30 days. A car with no current plate, one up on blocks or one missing parts it needs to drive is presumed inoperable. After a complaint, the city serves written notice, and you have seven days from receipt to comply before prosecution starts. If your car fits that description, our junk car page explains how to sell one that doesn't run.
Has the car been sitting while you wait on a head gasket or transmission repair? Selling a car with a blown head gasket and selling a car with a slipping transmission help you decide whether the repair is worth the wait. A car the insurer totaled after a wreck is covered in selling a totaled car, including when it pays to keep it.
Local offices and what each one handles
- •Riley County Treasurer, motor vehicle: 110 Courthouse Plaza, first floor, Manhattan. Open Monday to Thursday 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Friday 7:30 a.m. to noon, with appointments bookable online (Riley County motor vehicle)
- •Geary County Treasurer, Junction City: 200 East 8th. If your car is registered in Geary County, this is your tag office. On Fridays it is open by appointment only, with no walk-ins (Geary County motor vehicle)
- •K-State Parking Services: 706 N. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, in the KSU Parking Garage, open 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday, 785-532-7275. This is the office for campus permits (K-State parking regulations (PDF))
Asked by Manhattan sellers
Can I store my car on Fort Riley while I deploy instead of selling it?
If your deployment orders run longer than 30 days, yes. Fort Riley's POV storage lot takes one car per soldier. Book the turn-in at least 24 hours ahead, and bring your deployment orders, current registration, proof of insurance, driver's license, military ID and a key. Clean the car out first, since personal items can't stay inside. No cars are processed after dark. A spouse or friend can check it in or out for you with a Special Power of Attorney that gives them authority over that vehicle.
What does a civilian buyer need to get onto Fort Riley to see my car at the resale lot?
A visitor pass. Visitors on their own must be 18 or older, give a reason for the visit and show an approved ID, and the main one is a REAL ID-compliant license. U.S. citizens with a REAL ID license and a mobile phone can apply online, ideally 24 hours ahead. Otherwise the pass comes from the Visitor Control Center, Building 885 on Henry Drive, just before Henry Gate at I-70 exit 301. It is open 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekends.
I'm leaving K-State. What happens with my parking permit and a car that died on campus?
K-State uses license plate recognition, so your plate serves as your permit. For money back, send Parking Services a written request. Refunds are prorated from the date you ask, none are paid on annual permits after March 1, and none under $20. If the car won't start in a campus lot, tell KSU Police or Parking Services right away. A disabled car that isn't moved or repaired within 24 hours may be impounded and fined, unless you got permission first.
Which Manhattan office handles plates and titles?
The Riley County Treasurer's motor vehicle office, the county tag office at 110 Courthouse Plaza. Plates, titles and tag refunds go there. Since September 2025, driver's licenses, tests and ID cards are handled at the Kansas DMV office at 8200 S Port Drive, off Highway 24.
I'm taking my car to my next duty station. Can I get part of my Riley County car tax back?
Yes, part of the property tax, once the car is registered in the new state. Mail Riley County the metal plate, a copy of your current Kansas registration, copies of the new state's registration and your out-of-state driver's license, and the county's Out-of-State refund application. Lost the Kansas registration? The county takes $1 and a signed signature form for a duplicate.
For how to sign over a Kansas title, use our Kansas selling guide.