Contacting Distressed Homeowners

Good Question! I just saw one the other day I wanted to contact the homeowner an she is out of state!

I bet some of the numbers can be found by a basic phone number search using internet white pages. The rest you may want to mail them something or leave some information on their door or doorstep.

i have heard of people sending out postcards. what should i put on them?

Hi Derek,

Welcome aboard this life changing event. You might want to try talking with the neighbors. Sometimes the home owner's leave in case of emergency number with them or the owner might be using them to keep the property up. I would leave my card with them also. Also Dean has a site called foreclosurealert.com. It gives you such an advantage to what's available in your area or others. Much success.........Lubertha

Derek,

While I am quite new to this, I have begun sending out postcards to properties that I have noticed, much like yourself. My postcards say:

FREE RECORDED CONSUMER MESSAGE REVEALS...
"How to sell your property in the next 14-30 days...EVEN IF YOU HAVE SPENT MONTHS TRYING!"
CALL 800-985-8506
24 hour FREE RECORDED HELP

This takes up the entire postcard, and it is all centered, with strategic bold print for emphasis. This way, my message does the sorting for me

Hope this helps

Darryl

That's a good postcard! It would catch my eye! Are you printing these? A short, handwritten line on it might add a little something, too.

Derek, I would send it both to the address of the property and to the owner's address, if different in the county records. I'm guessing it might even catch the eye of the mailman as he delivers it to the home (and I'll bet word gets around )

Rina

Why, thank you Rina! *grin*
I spent some time thinking about it when I saw a bunch of garage sales in the classifieds that also stated "moving sale" - great opportunities. The idea is actually already in Dean's book "Profit from Real Estate Right Now" on pg 58 where he is talking about bandit signs and gives some examples. That was the one that I thought was the most effective for postcards. I haven't secured a deal yet, but have been getting calls from it, so I know it gets their attention

I am printing them myself on my home computer...just get some standard postcard sheets at an office-type store (I got mine at OfficeMax) in a package...if you don't have the software already, they will include software in the package you buy...should be about 20 bucks for the perforated sheets of postcards (4 cards to a sheet) with the software included.

I like the idea of a handwritten sentence...makes it more personal. Thanks for the suggestion!

Darryl

I could be something short sweet and do the point,

Try this out.

Dear homeowner,

I was driving around your neighborhood after work looking for a home to possibly buy. I can across yours and fell in love with it! I have noticed it's been empty for a while and would like to make you a cash offer for your lovely home. If your interesting in selling it to me in an "as is" condition please call or email me at xxxx or [email protected].

In Kind,
(your name)

Also log onto zabasearch.com to try to find the number for property owners. This will only work for unique names though. So names like John Smith won't do you any justice. Good luck and keep on driving around in your back yard.

Would like to know what do you do if the property has taxes due and the lender is out of state. It's in a pre-4clure small house but, the lot is almost 13,000sq

I usually use it for everything. It is a great tool. As far as what to say... You can say anything and everything. You just have to make sure that they see that you are trying to help them rather then making a quick buck off of them.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Yuri

I read the thread and it appears you recieved some great advice. Another tip may be to drive by the home on occasion and if you see someone cutting the grass inquire "who hired them".

Also, if you see a neighbor outside, walk over and start a conversation about the neighborhood and then inquire about the house. Chances are any long term long term neighbors will know the owners of the property! Good luck on all your deals. Believe and Achieve! - Joe

Thank you very much for all of your responses. Do yall think I should use a postcard or type out a letter and place in a self addressed envelope? My thoughts on a postcard is that they would easily get looked over and thrown in the trash. I would think a personal message would be more personal and not get tossed in the round file as quickly.

"He must increase and I must decrease" John 3:30

I personally think postcards are a great idea. It should be something that catches the eye. Mostly a bright color. Not an over kill. Like Rina said a few comments prior. You shold hand write a line or two on it. To make it personal. You can try by sending half self address letters and the other postcards. This way you can see which gives you the better response. Continued success.........Lubertha

You may want to try both, if you find a great deal it will be worth the expense. You could try a postcard and then a hand written letter would be a good personal touch. With color copies as good as they are today, you could hand write a letter and then use a color copier to copy it if you are mailing this to several different properties. Also, you may want to hand write the envelope to give it that personal touch. Good luck. Believe and Achieve! - Joe