A pre-foreclosure list is a list of homes where a lender has started to foreclose and the sale hasn't happened yet. The owner still owns the house and can still sell it. Every list starts with one public record, and which record depends on the state. This guide covers how pre-foreclosure works in court-foreclosure and trustee-sale states, where the records live, how to rank the owners, and what Propertiz has in each state today.
What pre-foreclosure means
Pre-foreclosure is the stretch between the first public sign of a foreclosure and the sale. The owner keeps every right of ownership. They can catch up, modify the loan, refinance or sell. If the house is worth more than they owe, selling first lets them keep the difference. That is the honest reason to reach out early: for some owners a quick, clean sale is the best of several options.
Two kinds of foreclosure
US states use two main processes. In a judicial state the lender sues, the case usually comes with a lis pendens (a notice that a lawsuit affects the property), a judge enters a judgment, and a sheriff or the clerk of court sells at auction. In a trustee-sale state the loan is a deed of trust with a power of sale, so most lenders skip the lawsuit and a trustee sells after posting a notice. Florida, Ohio and Indiana are judicial. Texas uses trustee sales for most home loans.
| Stage | Judicial (Florida, Ohio, Indiana) | Trustee sale (Texas) |
|---|---|---|
| First public record | Foreclosure complaint in court, usually with a lis pendens | Notice of trustee's sale filed with the county clerk |
| Who sells | The sheriff or the clerk of court | The trustee or substitute trustee |
| Sale date | Set after the judgment | The first Tuesday of the month |
| First record to sale | Usually months | Can be a few weeks |
Contested cases take longer, and sales are often reset or cancelled. Track each case after the first filing, or your list fills up with owners who already resolved their loan.
Where pre-foreclosure records live
Every county keeps the same kinds of records under different office names:
- Court records. In judicial states the docket shows the complaint, judgment and sale date.
- Recorded documents. The recorder or county clerk keeps lis pendens, deeds and liens.
- Sale calendars. Sheriff and clerk auction sites list upcoming sales. Texas counties post trustee's sale notices online.
- The parcel roll. The property appraiser, auditor, assessor or appraisal district lists the owner, mailing address, exemptions, values and, where the state discloses it, sale history.
A raw filing often lacks a parcel number, so it has to be matched by address, legal description or owner name. And a lis pendens can come from other lawsuits, such as an association suing over unpaid dues, which leaves the first mortgage in place. Read the filing before you mail anyone.
By state
Florida. The lender sues in circuit court and records a lis pendens with the county Clerk. After a final judgment, the Clerk auctions the property, generally 20 to 35 days later and online in most counties, then issues a certificate of title. Propertiz reads new lis pendens in Tampa, Jacksonville, Lakeland, Palm Bay and Clermont and follows each case through judgment and certificate of title where the county publishes them. The Florida pre-foreclosure guide covers each step, and the Florida page lists every county.
Ohio. The lender files a complaint with the county Court of Common Pleas. The lis pendens takes effect on filing with no separate recorded notice, so the court docket is the first signal. After the decree the property is appraised, the sale is advertised for three weeks, and the sheriff sells it online. Propertiz has new foreclosure filings in Cincinnati and Dayton and upcoming sheriff sales in Canton, Elyria and Batavia. See the Ohio page.
Texas. For a home, the servicer first sends a 20-day notice of default, which isn't recorded. The first public record is the notice of trustee's sale: filed with the county clerk, posted at the courthouse and mailed at least 21 days before the sale (Texas Property Code §51.002). Sales run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the first Tuesday of the month. Home-equity loans need a court order first. Clerks may discard notices after the sale, so pull them monthly. Propertiz reads these notices in Houston. The Texas page covers Houston and Dallas.
Indiana. The lender files a foreclosure complaint in circuit or superior court, usually with a lis pendens at the county recorder, and must tell the owner about the right to a settlement conference. After judgment, the sheriff advertises the sale for three weeks and sells. There is no redemption after the sale. Indiana foreclosure filings aren't in Propertiz yet; in Indianapolis and South Bend it has unpaid-tax properties from the county's tax-sale lists. See the Indiana page.
How Propertiz builds the list
Propertiz is live in 17 counties across 4 states: Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Texas. It reads the foreclosure records each county publishes and ties each one to exactly one parcel by parcel number, address, legal description or owner name. Anything it can't match with confidence waits for review, because a wrong match is worse than a missed one.
Each match is underwritten as a long-term rental:
- Value from recent comparable sales. Where sale prices aren't public, value comes from the county's appraised value. That is always the case in Texas, a non-disclosure state.
- Rent from HUD market rents, a deliberately conservative figure.
- Equity estimated from the last sale where the price is public. Where it isn't, equity can show as unknown.
- DSCR at your purchase price. Test the numbers with the DSCR calculator.
Leads are ranked by a score that stacks signals and fades with age. A fresh filing counts most, and a later stage replaces an earlier one. Absentee or out-of-state owners, long ownership and high estimated equity add points, and every lead shows why it ranked. You set the buy box.
Coverage differs by county, so check what's included where you buy: Tampa (Hillsborough County), Orlando (Orange County), Jacksonville (Duval County), Lakeland (Polk County), Palm Bay (Brevard County), Clermont (Lake County), Indianapolis (Marion County), South Bend (St. Joseph County), Columbus (Franklin County), Cleveland (Cuyahoga County), Cincinnati (Hamilton County), Dayton (Montgomery County), Canton (Stark County), Elyria (Lorain County), Batavia (Clermont County), Houston (Harris County) and Dallas (Dallas County).
See which owners in Tampa, Jacksonville, Lakeland, Palm Bay, Clermont, Cincinnati and Dayton had a foreclosure filed recently, matched, underwritten and ranked.
Approaching owners in pre-foreclosure
Owners facing foreclosure are under stress and get stacks of investor mail. The useful letters stand out.
- Lead with their options. Owners can ask their servicer about reinstatement or a loan modification, and HUD-approved housing counselors help for free. Say a sale is one option among several.
- Keep it honest. No look-alike government envelopes, fake checks or fake deadlines.
- Know the contact rules. Calls and texts are regulated, and the rules differ by state. Each state page lists its contact rules. Propertiz gives you the owner's mailing address, with no phone numbers or skip tracing.
- Avoid "save your home" deals. Leasebacks and buy-back promises to owners in foreclosure are regulated in some states. Don't offer one without a local real-estate attorney.
- Know who you're writing to. A landlord with a costly rental needs a different letter than a family living in the house. See the motivated seller leads guide.
Risks to check before you make an offer
- Other liens. Second mortgages, association, judgment, code and tax liens all have to be paid or negotiated at closing. Order a title search early.
- Negative equity. Equity on any list is an estimate. An underwater owner needs the lender's approval for a short sale, which is slow and uncertain.
- Timing. Trustee sales move fast, and court cases can stall for months. Your deal has to work on either clock.
- Occupancy, condition and flood zone. Tenants may have leases you'll inherit, repairs are often deferred, and a high-risk FEMA flood zone can sink a rental's DSCR.
Not legal advice. This is a general overview. Foreclosure rules differ by state and change over time, and every case has its own facts. Check with a local real-estate attorney and a title company before you contract on a property.