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I was reading this thread about if an address is really needed on a resume.

Does not having an address on a resume exclude it from consideration?
I recently had a difference of opinion about whether job seekers should include their address on their resume. I hold that it is not necessary since most contact is done by phone or email, and not by snail mail. I also think that it has a risk of ending up in the wrong hands. My co-worker disagrees and says that HR professionals want to know whether the applicant is within commuting distance or not. He says that if there isn't an address included, the resume will be immediately discarded.

which was answered with

My view is aligned with your position. At least as far as the software industry goes, tons of people are leaving physical address off these days. In fact, many people don't have resumes and instead use online profiles. In software, there is much more demand than available engineers, so if we throw out a resume just because it doesn't have an address, we're shooting ourselves in the foot. It results in fishing in a smaller pond and with more competition.

Throwing the resumes out might be reasonable when doing high-volume recruiting in an industry where available candidates far outstrips demand.

I happen to also share the opinion that since most contact these days is done by email or phone, the address is not necessary on a resume.

Is this actually the case? Or would excluding my mailing address from my resume be detrimental towards my chances at catching a potential employer's attention?

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    Don't forget to exclude the place of birth if you run out of space :) I'd say the address is just a formality, included for historical reasons. It can serve as an entry for inquiries into your background or something like that. It really depends on the organization you're applying with and their procedures. Maybe you can get some info on that somehow? It's hard to give an answer that can apply for all cases in general.
    – Onno
    May 23, 2013 at 16:57
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    I would think anyone who would throw out the resume due to this would likely be an older, more conservative manager in a bureaucratic type of organization. If you don't want to work for one of those, you are probably fine.
    – HLGEM
    May 23, 2013 at 20:15
  • True story: coworker (non-manager) was forwarded the resume of a person to help interview, and proceeded to look up the address on Zillow to see approximate home value and thus make some guesses as to what kind of salary this person would command.
    – Steve P
    May 24, 2013 at 2:40
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    FWIW, home value may not mean much unless you know the person is single or the spouse/partner doesn't work. May 24, 2013 at 19:14
  • @explunit Good story, I like it. You can use Google street view to see what their residence looks like. If they're asking for an unusually low or high salary compared to the apparent value of their home, it might suggest some avenues (!) to explore in an interview. Jun 18, 2014 at 12:44

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I'd say yes. Most contact is going to be by phone or e-mail; a mailing address isn't necessary these days -- and if they want to mail you something, they'll probably have called or e-mailed you first, and can ask for your home address then.

My resume shows my home city and zip code. It gives readers a good idea of where I live without showing my actual address. (This is specific to the US; for other countries, showing a postal code but not a street address should serve the same purpose.)

It looks something like this:

                    MY NAME
                    =======

              My City, ST, 12345
             [email protected]
                     .
                     .
                     .
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    You make a good point about the city being used to identify the rough area that you live in to help identify things like commute time. I was thinking of leaving that off too, but now I don't think I will.
    – Rachel
    May 23, 2013 at 17:44
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    I like that idea, too. With a full address gives a potential employer can gather a lot of intelligence on things that really aren't their business, such as the value of your house, what kind of neighborhood you live in, etc.
    – Blrfl
    May 23, 2013 at 18:20
  • @Blrfl: Depending on the location a US zip code can give someone a fairly good idea about the neighborhood (think 90210 for example). If that's a problem, you might want to mention just the city, or a general area within the city -- assuming you live in a city. May 23, 2013 at 19:03
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    In the Netherlands you'd pretty much give your address by providing your zip code. (Which (section) of the street the address is located plus which side of the street)
    – Onno
    May 23, 2013 at 19:28
  • @Onno, in the US we have that with zip+4, but most people don't even know their +4. :) May 24, 2013 at 19:16
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I think that the answer to this question is dependent on the industry and your location. For positions where the demand for employees is high and applicants are highly-skilled and highly-educated, location is less of a concern for the employer. For positions that don't have such high requirements for education and skill, location is more likely to be a consideration in hiring because employers have no need to consider potential employees outside of the current area.

"Commuting distance" is a tricky thing for recruiters to evaluate. Different people have different definitions of this. One of my colleagues has a 2-hour commute each way, and he makes that commute every day, which I find unfathomable.

Personally, as a software engineer, I haven't listed my home address on my resume in several years. My resume and LinkedIn profile list my employer's location, which I view as sufficient information. Most recruiters who have pinged me and are outside of my local area have noted this in their email to me, and have asked in their introductory email whether I'm open to positions that would require relocation.

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I think it is important is if you are relocating or you telecommute, so your current employment history is not in the area where you're applying. You don't want there to be any confusion. An employer may think you'll request moving expense reimbursement or you're goling to want to work remotely.

Living in a large city can bring up commuting concerns. Several companies have mentioned this during interviews. Some have had issues with employees who are willing to take a job with a long commute until something comes up closer to home.

These aren't a big deal, but why force an employer to ask uneccesary clarification questions during the interview.

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It is indeed alright to leave out snail main address(es) from resumes. In most scenarios the recruiters will ask for a current address from the qualifying candidate, which is then used to either mail in an offer letter or just update HR records. A lot of candidates give just a PO Box no. which is perfectly fine.
One has to remember that resumes these days are no longer local. A lot of international candidates will mention at least one 'permanent address' on their resumes. If an employer is participating in E-Verify, or requires clearance for candidates on work permits, they may be required to gather a candidates mailing address and cross check with the latest AR-11 form the candidate filed. This is of course a situational/circumstantial thing.

Although one is not required by (US) law to live at an address (so no employer can deny employ-ability for the lack of an address) it could raise an eyebrow. Nevertheless, a commonly followed trend is to at least provide a PO Box no.

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