We drive by them everyday - abandoned houses, commercial property, apartments all boarded up some fenced in. They've been there for so long it doesn't register any more, doesn't trigger us into action. There is gold in those boarded up properties. Follow these 7 steps to make small changes in how you do business.

1. A New Start - Tomorrow start with a new perspective know in you mind that you have missed a great deal of opportunities in abandoned properties that were in front you all the time. Drive slower, look at every property you go by with your new eyes. Drive a different way each day.

2. Bird-dogs - Hire a bird dog; pay by the lead or by commission. Just get someone out on the street actively looking for vacant properties. They are out there ready for you to make an offer. Banks and dead-tired owners are waiting for you.

3. Real Estate Agents - Don't waste your time they have already had these properties listed and couldn't sell them. These are the dogs that nobody wants anything to do with. No commissions for agents here.

4. When You Find One - Now the real work starts. Sometimes it is easy to find the owner through the tax records, no problem. If that doesn't work try the neighbors' maybe they know something. What's next how about hiring a skip tracer private investigator could be expensive $400 or $500 to make $25,000 you do the math. Abandon run-down properties are usually that way for a reason, nobody can contact the owner.

5. Found The Owner - Find out what they know about the property. It may be Uncle Charlie's house left to them in his will and they don't want anything to do with it, an opportunity for a good deal. Again it could be the whole family knows about it and they have been waiting years to get their piece of the pie, maybe not such a good deal.

6. Offer an Embarrassing Amount - Remember it's abandoned nobody wants it. To get your point across use photos with your offer, maybe the City Building Dept has notices posted, danger signs. Use anything ugly, photos of other ugly properties near by or newspaper articles about the neighborhood.

7. Closing the Deal - Use your real estate attorney to prepare the paperwork and close the transaction. Before money changes hands, do your due diligence, have it appraised, order Title report and insurance, a survey, research building code and health code violations. You should be ready to go.