One of the bigger dilemmas job seekers are having nowadays is whether they should list their home address on their resume or not. It’s a good question. In a time where you’re constantly being told that resumes should be as short as possible, hitting the recruiter right on the head with the most vital information, a physical address might not seem as important. Especially with all the remote working and freelancing people are increasingly doing.
Unfortunately, a short, straight answer – a ‘yes’ or a ‘no’, doesn’t apply here. Should you add your home address to your resume depends on the situation, and in this blog post we’ll go through some of the important and most frequent reasons why, and why you should or should not list your home address on a resume.
Three reasons you should NOT list your home address on your resume:
First reason:
Perhaps the biggest reason why you should keep your address off the resume is economic profiling. This one can seriously hurt your job hunting. When you add your home address, the recruiter can use that information to look up your neighborhood. With that information, he can determine the value of your property, and through that, an estimate of your median salary. You just might get too low of an offer because of it.
At the same time, living in an expensive neighborhood might make the recruiters think you’ll ask for too much money, and simply eliminate you right from the start.
Second reason:
Another situation in which it might be better to omit your address from your resume is if you live too far out from your potential new office. This one is a double-edged sword, though. If you live too far away, that could mean you need to commute for an extended period of time, which might make you unsatisfied and stressed in the long term. Still, people tolerate commuting differently, and in some cases – employees will look for a new place, somewhere closer, if the job offer is really good.
Third reason:
The third reason of why you should not include your home address on your reason is partially a myth, but because you’ll find it all over the internet, it is important for us to list it here. Some people will tell you not to include your address for personal safety, in case you’re putting your resume online for everyone to see, or you fear someone might steal that data. Even though that is true to some extent, everyone’s address is in a phone book, for everyone else to see, whoever bothers to look.
Reasons why you SHOULD list your home address on your resume:
If you were wondering why leave your home address on your resume, here’s one of the main reasons – omitting it might rise suspicion. It’s still the norm, to add a physical address, and if you remove it, you might raise a few eyebrows. Recruiters might think you’re hiding something, and no one likes tricksters.
The first thing they’ll think of, when trying to understand just what exactly you’re trying to hide – is the commute. If you don’t live too far out, you might want to consider adding your home address. In some cases, that can actually improve your chances of getting a job, as an employee nearby is seen as a reliability.
In case of an emergency, you can quickly move in and remedy whatever problems have occurred, fast. You are also decreasing your chances of getting stuck in traffic and losing precious work hours sitting on a highway somewhere.
It is difficult to weigh whether to leave your home address on your resume or not – it really depends on the situation. That’s why it is important for every job seeker to know the pros and cons of both approaches, so that he / she may make the right decision. Hiring a professional resume writing service in Phoenix AZ can also be a great approach, in case you are too insecure about such details.
Listing your home address is still the norm, and in some cases, you might seem suspicious omitting that information, which can ultimately hinder your chances. Adding it, on the other hand, can also mean you losing out on a new job opportunity thanks to economic profiling, or long commutes. Think long and hard about your resume and your potential new job, before writing, or deleting, your home address from the resume.
Ask a local professional resume writing service for resume advice!