Cash Offer on Abandoned Property

[David Robertson]

I have been looking at some properties in a blue collar neighborhood to flip. The houses in the neighborhood are selling from around $20,000 (greatly distressed) to $85,000 (well maintained)....

I recently came across a house listed at $14,000 which needed about $18,000 worth of work to meet market standards...I was very interested in this property because my realtor said it could likely sell for around $45k after improvements....

Unfortunately another investor had a pending offer on the property within 7 days of being listed...

There are 4 other houses right in that area of the house that are highly distressed and abandoned...is there a way that I can contact these owners to buy the house before it goes out to market...this way I won't have to compete with other investors....I can find the owner information in the public records, but where do I go from there?

Thanks...