How to find people

• Start with the phone book. Try locating the person through his local phone directory. (If he or she is out of town, you can probably find his/her local directory at your public library.) 
• Run a Department of Motor Vehicles search. This is one of the most effective ways to find somebody, provided he's residing in a state which permits this type of search. Call the Department of Motor Vehicles for the appropriate state and ask to have a name search run while you wait. (If you know the person's license plate number, they can also trace him, or at least his vehicle, that way.) 
• Relatives and neighbors. If you know names and phone numbers of relatives (or can get them, as through a birth certificate), call and ask for him as though he is there (this way, you're more likely to get an honest response).  Ask if there is anyone they know who may know how to reach him -- a spouse, for example. Also, you may want to call neighbors. 
• Employers. Perhaps you're working from a credit application or by some other means know his present or former employer. Call there and ask to speak to the person; act surprised if you're informed he's not working there anymore. Ask where he (or she) presently works and how you can get in touch with him. Call the Human Resources Department and ask where his last W2 was sent. 
• Associations, Licensing Boards, Hobbyist Groups. When people move they take their occupations and hobbies with them. Assuming you know or can find out his occupation and/or personal interests, try locating him through his professional association or hobbyist group. Click here for more information on Professional Associations & Licensing Boards. 
• Check to see if he has a fishing or hunting license
• If you went to high school with the person or know when and where he attended high school, try a school group search
• If your person is of military service age, try a military search 
• Enlist allies whenever possible. Be extremely courteous to whomever you speak in requesting information. Don't be afraid to ask for advice. Don't lie to people or use pretexting. If you're not a creditor, make sure the people you speak to are aware of this; you'll get more cooperation. 
• Document all your known identifiers, like full name, address, date of birth (DOB), social security number, occupation, etc. List all possible contacts, like relatives, friends, past employers, etc. Get all info you have about the person into writing so you don't overlook a possible lead. 
• Skip tracing can be complex, especially if the individual is hiding. Be prepared for a long siege and be in a creative frame of mind. In trying to find someone with an obviously ethnic name, for example  some investigators simply call people in the phone book with similar names or even names of the same ethnic group. Always speak to the person who answers the phone in a casual way and ask for the individual you're looking for as if he lives there, e.g., "Hi, I'd like to speak to Joe." If he's not there or doesn't live there, ask the person if he/she can help you locate him (see next point, below). 
• One of the tricks of skip-tracing is the simple phrase: "I wonder if you could help me." NEVER give up when someone answers your first question negatively; persist... ask for their help in finding the person, e.g., "I wonder if you could help me. I really need to locate Mike. Do you have any idea how I might find him?... Does he have any friends in the area that you know of?" etc. 
• If you're a creditor, be aware that the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act prohibits you from revealing to a family member or employer that you are attempting to locate the person because he owes money. 
• Sometimes you can locate somebody by calling local business establishments like grocery stores, hardware stores, and banks, and speaking to the manager. Another trick is to call local hang-outs, like restaurants and bars, and ask to have the person paged. The person himself may not be there but if someone who knows him is present, that person may answer the page. 
• Yet another trick is to send a package, perhaps an old book, to the person's former address through UPS or FedEx and ask the addressee's signature or verification of his new address. If whoever now lives at his old address knows his new one, they'll probably fill in the verification of new address form, which will then be forwarded to you by the delivery company. 
• If a professional skip tracer can't locate a person via the social security trace (as described above), and if he has a legitimate purpose under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, his next step is usually to order the entire credit bureau file of the person (i.e., not just the header information). He will then call each of the person's recent accounts and ask if they have information on the whereabouts of the person (many lenders maintain full-time Skip Trace Departments). If you don't have a credit bureau account (hence can't order a full credit bureau report on your person), try a fishing expedition. Call some of the major national credit issuers and ask if they have accounts for your person -- companies like American Express, Discover Card, Visa. If they do, ask for his current address. Use the same strategy with the major banks and collection agencies in the person's last known city of residence. 
• Try a news search. Perhaps your person has been mentioned in a newspaper or magazine somewhere. 
• Check voters registration records. 
• Check if he's deceased via the Master Death Index 
• Run a public records check. Your person may have been involved in civil or criminal litigation.
• A source often overlooked even by seasoned investigators is utility records. Try calling the public utility (e.g., the electric company) in the area where you believe your person may possibly be residing. Ask the utility company's customer service rep if the person you're looking for is listed as one of their customers within the service area; if he is, ask for his address.
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• ....or you might just simply do a Dragnet Search with one click of the mouse!