1. Lists agents work from
- Absentee owners. Owners whose mailing address differs from the property. See skip tracing for absentee owners.
- Vacant houses. See how to find the owner of a vacant house.
- Company-owned homes. See how to find who owns an LLC.
- Single addresses. A sign call or a neighbor tip. See find a property owner by address.
2. From owner of record to a reviewed contact
- Confirm the owner of record with the county assessor or recorder, and keep a record ID for the property.
- Split people from companies. Company owners need a state filing step first, and a filing contact is not proof of ownership.
- Search and review. A search at an address can return several people. Pick the person whose name matches the owner on your list. See what a skip trace match proves.
- Check contact rules for each number.
- Export in your CRM’s format with the record ID kept.
A phone number comes after the owner of record is confirmed. That sequence is how to find a property owner’s phone number.
3. Contact rules agents should read
If a call to an owner is a telephone solicitation, 47 CFR 64.1200(c)(1) bars it before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. local time at the called party’s location, and 64.1200(c)(2) bars it to a number on the national Do Not Call Registry. The skip tracing laws guide quotes the FTC’s description of which sales calls the registry covers, and it does not classify a listing call. Read that page and DNC scrubbing before you dial. A brokerage policy is a separate check.
From the live Locate Next site: “Check each number’s Do Not Call status before outreach. A status does not decide what contact is allowed.”
4. How Locate Next fits an agent’s list
Locate Next is skip tracing software for real estate teams: “Upload your list, see the maximum cost first, and export only the people you choose.” Company owners go through LLC owner lookup, and results leave through CRM export with your IDs kept.
Common questions
Can real estate agents use skip tracing?
Yes, to find contact details for owners they want to reach. If the call is a telephone solicitation, 47 CFR 64.1200 sets calling hours and bars solicitations to numbers on the national Do Not Call Registry. The laws guide does not classify every listing call.
Where should an agent start a skip trace?
With the owner of record from county assessor or recorder records, not a name from a listing site or a neighbor.
Can I call an expired listing owner?
Check the number’s Do Not Call status, calling hours, your internal do-not-call list, state rules and your brokerage’s policy first. A status does not decide what contact is allowed.
What if the owner is an LLC?
Look up the company’s state filing. A manager, member or officer on the filing is a contact the company listed, not proof of who owns it.
Sources
- 47 CFR 64.1200, FCC telemarketing and do-not-call rules. Checked October 22, 2026.
- FTC, Q&A for telemarketers and sellers about the Do Not Call provisions of the TSR. Checked October 22, 2026.
This page is general information, not legal advice.