Communicating With Homeowners In Default
With a current list of names and addresses of property owners, you can start a direct-mail campaign. The direct mail format could be a letter, postcard, brochure, or flyer. The direct approach for investors is to contact the default owner prior to when the property will be sold at auction.
Whatever the direct mail piece, individualized for the owner specifically enhances the response rate. For pre-foreclosures, a targeted direct-mail program with multiple frequency points offers the best chance in contacting owners. The best practice involves multiple options which are discussed below.
Placing Classified Ads in Local Newspaper: The most popular methods in reaching your default owner audience.
“Sell Your Home Fast?” Signs: Another method to reach owners in default. Its best practice to keep the message simple and direct.
Although you may hear from other “investors” regarding this approach. The quality of the list is more important than the letter or postcard you send out. So make sure you are receiving these pre-foreclosure leads from a reputable source. You can check the quality of the list by entering a few of the addresses into an online map service to verify the quality.
If the numbers have changed, you can research using online 411 info systems. If you desperately, need to find the seller, then you could hire a skip tracer. Many times, you will find that those in pre-foreclosure have changed their numbers to an unlisted number because of collection calls.
Door to Door Knocking: One of the most challenging techniques, where practice and more practice is required. Use newspaper or online classifieds and signs to get the pre-foreclosure leads.