"Best way" to contact vacant owner

[James Green]

I've found a "great" vacant house in a popular area of Washington DC. After doing a LOT of sleuthing, I'm "pretty sure, 90% positive" that I've found the daughter of the deceased owner. I actually have her phone number, address.

Here's my question, should I go ahead and call her?! Or send her a letter/postcard?

If I call her, what should I say, how should I start it off?

Anybody here with any experience doing this?

[Michaela G.]

In my experience the best is:

1 - knocking on the door, with a big smile on your face

2 - calling

3 - writing. 

It's much harder for someone to slam a door into your face, than to throw away a letter or hang up the phone. But it might be easier as a woman, because it's less threatening to find a female stranger at your door. 

Calling is better than letter writing, because it's more personal and people don't hang up as easy as they throw away a postcard. Most people don't want to be rude and will at least listen to you. That does not go for robocalls.

I personally get a lot of letters/postcards, because I'm an out-of-state landlord and they're all so generic that I assume that they're all newbies, who went to some guru class and who don't have cash and are just trying to get something under contract to assign. I throw all of them away. 

To get my attention, it would have to be something more personal, which hasn't happened, yet ;-)