If a property is in the newspaper, is it too late to reach out?

[Henley H.]

The legal section of my local paper lists properties whose owner's are delinquent in payments and the property is headed for foreclosure, to be auctioned on the courthouse steps.  It's my understanding that at some point in the pre-foreclosure process, when the lender is far enough along in the process, the owner of the property can no longer do anything to avoid the foreclosure, such as make up payments or pay the balance off.  Is this correct?  

When a property is listed like this in the paper, are you able to reach out to the owner directly and potentially arrange a sale prior to auction, or they already at the point of no return?