our family lives in the same neighborhood. How would contact the owner to view the inside?

If there is a Real Estate sign on it, then call the Realtor.  There is no charge for that. If not, and there is a for sale sign posted, try knocking on the door.  If there is NOT a for sale sign, then the person is doing intellectual research and does not really want to sell, so you probably don't want to bother them.  In any case, it is much easier to call a Realtor to have a professional call the owner than to try to "force" yourself on the owner.  That's our job!  ;-)