Hello All - I spent the day door knocking on pre-forclosures and thought I'd share my results. 

I knocked on 12 doors, talked to 4 owners + 1 Facebook lead. Drove about 110 miles and actually had quite a bit of fun. I left hand written notes on every door/mail-box that didn't answer. Here are some detailed results.  

1. First door knock by myself ever. Nice lady answered the door. Ended up talking for 20 minutes. Her husband has had 4 back surgeries in a row and hasn't been able to work. She was laid off after 20 years in corporate job. She just found another job. She has two kids. One is 14 and the other is under 5. She THANKED ME for knocking on her door! She was very open and said she definitely wants to sell and move. She has already filed bankruptcy and she owes 95k on 1st mortage and 25k on 2nd. ARV aproximately 175k (Zillow - I'll run detailed MLS comps tonight). I left my name and #. She's going to talk to her husband and call me. I asked if it would be okay if I called her in a week if I haven't heard from her by then. She said yes and asked me to be sure to do so.

* I have no idea what to do next! Let's say she talks to her husband and they call me. After I get in the house and do a scope of work/rehab estimate and calculate my magic number, how would I go about making an offer and navigating the deal here? Do I call the banks with them and try to make arrangements? Is the bankruptcy a deal-breaker? Does a closing attorney/title company arrange the deal if we agree on terms? 

2. 2nd Door - Lady answers. Says her Son and Daughter-In Law are owners and won't be home until 5:30 - 6pm. Says they would likely want to talk to me. I circled back at the end of the day and nobody was home. Left hand-written note. 

3. 3rd Door - No answer. Neighbor across the street is out doing yard work. I introduce myself and ask if they know about the house across the street. Neighbor tells me house is empty. Mr. Homeowner passed away and Mrs. Homeowner moved to Kansas. Neighbor says she and other neighbors have been watching to see what happens with the house. I ask if she knows how to get in touch w/ Mrs. Homeowner. She says they are facebook friends. I tell her why I'm there and if she'd be willing to pass my name and # along to Mrs. Homeowner to see if she'd like to discuss preventing the foreclosure. She glady agrees and takes my name and info. I then found Mrs. Homeowner on facebook myself and sent her a PM voice message. (Too much?)

4. No answer - Left Note

5. Man openned door. Told me they just entered an "agreement" and couldn't sell even if they wanted to. He had no interest in taking my info and I didn't push it. 

6. No answer - Left Note

7. No answer - Left Note

8. Pulled up and male was sitting on porch. Homeowner came outside. Introduced myself. Built rapport and explained why I was there. He says he definitely wants to sell. Owes 60K on home. Inherited from parents when they passed away in 2015. Tells me a contractor friend of his is already trying to buy the house but nothing is final. Wants to talk to me more tomorrow. I agreed to call him at noon tomorrow. Then... he asks me if I know of any land for sale in an adjacent county. I tell him I don't but asked if he is familiar with the MLS website to search. He wasn't. I showed him the MLS site on my phone and gave him the web address. He acted like I had just shown him some big secret and made his day. He said "man... I'm gonna sell my house to you. thank you for this". I thanked him and agreed to call him tomorrow. We traded #'s. ARV on house per Zillow is aproximately 210k.

9, 10, 11, and 12. All no answer with notes left. 

In summary - This is definitely not efficient. However, I can definitely see how and why it can work to generate leads on deals. Any suggestions/feedback for me? Thanks everyone!