The first step in locating a home foreclosure is to find them, a little research and patience, but the rewards are can be well worth the time. The majority of properties in default are easily identified by the first legal foreclosure document that is filed this is known as a "Notice of Default" or a Lis Pendens, in most states. A "Notice of Default", of NOD, commonly used in non-judicial states and the Lis Pendens normally used in judicial states; not all states are the same and some have their own laws and regulations.

The first publicly recorded document is the "notice of default" or "Lis Pendens"; this document announces, publicly that a loan is in default. Keep in mind that you may need to search public records for a "Lis Pendens" instead of a "Notice of Default". A Lis Pendens is not a Notice of Default; it means that there is a legal action pending, and most of them will not mean anything in your search for home foreclosures. Accessing these notices is an easy task, filed at the county court house and routinely published in the newspaper. They are usually available through a trustworthy Foreclosure List service provider.

Home foreclosures are public record, which means that the information is free to obtain, if you want to spend a little time to do some research. Another way to find them is to use a foreclosure listing service. While most of these come at a nominal fee, the information is usually accurate and the up-front research is all ready completed for you.

If everything were perfect, you would be able to locate targeted properties by getting the county recorded to provide you a list of all the "Notice of Defaults" or Lis Pendens that have been recorded for a particular period. This list would include all pertinent information that is needed such as full name, address, phone numbers and maybe even some of the loan information. However, in most cases, it is not a perfect world and you cannot get it this easy. Many of the county recorders offices have websites that are searchable and you can do something similar like this yourself. Find properties by searching the websites and records for the documents that you need; you should be able to get the list of properties, owner's names, and original document numbers.

Once you have the document number, name and address you can search for a copy of the actual filed document online through recorders office, or in some cases you will need to go down to their office with you list and search the documents. These original documents usually reference loans on the property, subject address, and the default amount.

Finding homes that are in default is the first step to investing it home pre-foreclosures. Once you have the information you can begin the process of completing your research. Do not just jump right in without doing the proper research or you will surly be heading for disaster.

The next part to this series will cover the research, weighing the choices and narrowing the selection to the best choices for investing.