Finding Off Market Deals in a Geographically Focused Search

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January 05, 2026

by a searcher from The University of Alabama - Culverhouse College of Commerce and Business Administration in Denver, CO, USA

I am just starting my search process and looking in Denver, CO, Tampa, FL, and Jacksonville, FL. I was curious how people have conducted searches for off market deals and what data sources they may have used to find businesses that may fit their acquisition criteria. Additionally, what sort of outreach did you find more successful (email, written letters, phone calls, etc.)?
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Reply by a searcher
from University of Melbourne in Chicago, IL, USA
Hi Alex, I am not actively searching yet, however I found this website / approach very useful just to get an idea what is in my vicinity: https://bentigg.beehiiv.com/p/ppp-loan-data-found-95-flooring-businesses-acquire-10-minutes You need to have some degree of data analytics skills. The data sets are several hundred MB in size (consolidated it is over >1 GB data set with >11m rows). I used DuckDB to consolidate the data set (ChatGPT helped a bit) and a local PowerBI Desktop to analyze it. To be efficient with this approach you need to have some parameters to narrow it down, e.g. NASIC code, insured amount (as a proxy for firm size), ZIP code. Let me know, if you want to know more. Best, Max
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Reply by a searcher
from University of Maine (System) in Medford, OR, USA
Just starting my search but I am utilizing the data axle database and mapscraper.net to build my lead list as well as evaluate a small geographically constrained market. Working on a New Years card and a small wood veneer bookmark included for my top 50 leads through Jan. If you are sticking to Proprietary search let me know, I am building a mastermind group for searchers primarily going off market.
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