It used to be that everyone had a standard phone in their home and locating a number or address was a matter of opening the phone book and locating the name. Things have grown more difficult now that cell phones are in common use and many people do not even have home phones, and if they do their number may be unpublished.
Even with the development of caller ID on most home phones, some numbers may show up without an identifying name and there are ways for callers to prevent their details from showing up. Reverse phone lookup directories have responded to these changing demands to provide a very timely service to modern phone users.
There are two typical functions for these services.
Searching for Names
If you are getting calls from someone and only a number is revealed on your ID, or you want to figure out cellular phone callers, reverse phone lookup directories can help you find out the name listed to the number in question. Just by entering the phone number you will have access to the person who is behind those calls of concern.
People in search of lookup directories include those who need to identify a number constantly texting their spouse or teenager's cell phone, since there is no public directory for cell phone numbers. Other people may use lookup directories when they need to find a name registered to a home phone that is unlisted. Anytime you have a number but are uncertain who it is connected to, a reverse phone lookup directory can assist you.
Searching for Addresses
The other typical purpose is to identify an address for someone, whether you know the name of the person or not. Once you plug into the information associated with a specific phone number most services will give additional information as well, which may include the address of an landline or an address associated with a cell phone number.
This may not be a common need for most people, but it does have its benefits in some situations. For instance, consider a parent in a rush to find a teenager who has run off or is still out well past curfew. If they can come up with numbers from the teenager's belongings or cell phone a reverse phone lookup could quickly reveal addresses as well as names of places the child may be located.
More common situations may be looking for addresses to send out party invitations to your child's classmates. If you have a phone number you can access their address and get the invite in the mail without calling and tracking down other busy family.
These services can also deliver a connection to other sorts of data, such as income brackets or address histories, and one site even gives a map with an general pinpoint to the business or home's location.
There is a minor fee for any legitimate reverse phone lookup service, but if your business or personal life requires particular data it is more than worth the payoff in the end. The charge is necessary because this kind of information is not simple or completely free to research, pull together, and save, so issuing it on demand to others such as you must also come with a charge to make up for these serviceable costs.
There more than likely will never be a public directory for cell phone numbers, and even if they were compiled most likely many of the numbers would be unlisted just like many home phone numbers right now. The best way to obtain access to these phone numbers is to pay a small fee either to complete a one time number search or to join a lookup directory if you will be using the directory long term.