Contacting Owner Prior to Sheriff's Sale

[Chad Jarrah]

Hello. I was curious what experience people had in contacting a current owner prior to a sheriff's sale in which their property is one of those to be auctioned off. 

- Is it common practice to make contact to try and buy directly from the owner?

- Is this even legal?

- Any successes?

- Best ways to make contact - letter or knock of the door or another way?

The property in question was set to be auctioned off this week but is now postponed until December of this year. There are no major liens (a few municipal liens totaling ~$800) other than the first mortgage which is bringing the judgement. ARV of the house is about $150k; they currently owe ~47k

Thanks in advance for any tips/advice.

Chad Jarrah