Find Pre-Foreclosure Properties From Public Records

Overview

When a lender begins foreclosure, the first public signal is a filing — a lis pendens, a notice of default, or a notice of trustee sale, recorded at the county. From that moment until the auction, there's a window where the homeowner has options: sell, short-sell, or work something out. Investors and agents who reach owners early, with a genuinely useful offer, can help the owner avoid auction while sourcing a deal — but only if the approach is respectful and compliant.

This Hound watches county foreclosure filings in your markets, finds the owner behind each one, and helps you open a careful, helpful conversation during the pre-foreclosure window.

How to set it up

Four things to brief your Hound. This is the exact configuration behind this play.

A · Describe the opportunity

This is the brief every source is filtered against. You describe what you're looking for in plain language, add keywords to sharpen it, then set the structured criteria.

Tell Forest what you're looking for:

"I'm looking for residential properties entering pre-foreclosure in my market — lis pendens, notices of default, and notices of trustee sale recorded at the county. I want to reach owners early in the window, with a genuine offer to help them avoid auction (a fair cash offer, a listing, or a short sale). Focus on my price range and areas. I will approach respectfully and stop the moment anyone asks. Skip properties already at auction, vacant/abandoned with no reachable owner, and anyone on a do-not-contact list."

Keywords to watch for: lis pendens · notice of default · notice of trustee sale · foreclosure complaint · pre-foreclosure · NOD · [your county] · [your price band]

Fields to extract: property_address · filing_type · filing_date · owner_name · lender · amount_owed · case_number · estimated_equity

Match criteria:

• ✓ Filing type is early-stage (lis pendens / NOD / NTS — not yet at auction)

• ✓ Property in your area and price range

• ✓ Owner is reachable and not on a DNC list

• ✗ Exclude properties already sold at auction

• ✗ Exclude anyone who has asked not to be contacted

B · Choose the sources to monitor

Foreclosure notices are recorded at the county — public, and where the official data lives. The office depends on whether your state is judicial or non-judicial. You point Forest at your county's records.

County records (bring your own link) 🔵 free — public government pages

How to find yours:

• Judicial-foreclosure states (FL, NY, IL, NJ, etc.): filings go through the courts. Search "[your county] clerk of court foreclosure search" or look for lis pendens in the county case docket. Paste the case-search page.

• Non-judicial states (CA, TX, AZ, GA, etc.): filings go to the county recorder. Search "[your county] recorder document search" and filter for notice of default / notice of trustee sale.

Examples:

• Maricopa County, AZ — recorder.maricopa.gov (NOD/NTS)

• Miami-Dade County, FL — onlineservices.miamidadeclerk.gov (lis pendens dockets)

• Los Angeles County, CA — lavote.gov / county recorder

Public foreclosure aggregators 🟡 — free nationwide mirrors of county filings (updated daily) can supplement your county pull when a direct feed isn't available.

News & Press 🟡 default source, always on — reads the open web against your brief; less central here, since the official data is at the county.

C · Define the ICP to reach

Who to reach for each filing. Direct-to-owner, handled with care.

1. Property Owner — the homeowner in the pre-foreclosure window — PRIMARY

2. Co-owner on the deed — secondary contact

3. (No corporate fallback — direct-to-owner only)

D · Email & LinkedIn sequence

Direct-to-owner and highly sensitive. Tone is respectful, helpful, never predatory or alarmist. Fields drop in as variables.

Email · Day 0 Hi {{owner_name}} — I work with homeowners in {{county}} who are dealing with a difficult situation and want to understand their options. If you'd find it useful, I'm happy to walk through the paths that might help — a sale, a short sale, or simply information — with no pressure and no obligation. If now isn't the time, I completely understand.

↓ Wait 4 days · no reply

Follow-up · Day 4 Just following up gently — my offer to talk through options for {{property_address}} stands, whenever or if ever it's helpful. And if you'd rather I not reach out again, simply reply "stop" and I'll respect that immediately.

(No further messages after two touches — this play caps outreach deliberately.)

⏸ Any reply pauses the sequence immediately. Forest checks the Do Not Contact list before every message, honors "stop" instantly, and enforces your state's solicitation and cooling-off rules. This play is capped at two respectful touches by design.