Methods to our "Adness"

In the days when I was in the market for a home, I always wondered why some Real Estate Ads never had a price or address. I must admit that this was very frustrating to me for I always wanted to just drive by first and check on the house before I committed to calling my agent at the time. I've noticed others feel the same way so I can completely understand. Due to the ability to have access to almost all the information we can think of, it should seem that this should be true as well with a house we want to buy. However, although most of us out there who are searching for a home genuinely want more info on a house so we can "just drive by", there are those sick people out there who have to ruin it for us all. There have been numerous cases of people who prey on folks who sell there home and like to drive by to see if a house is vacant or not. As a Realtor, we are the shield against such knot heads. It is our job to attempt and screen potential buyers from those who may have shady objectives to steal your copper or other possessions. Granted, I do get several calls for those just wanting addresses and I give it to them most of the time, for if someone was attempting to do more than just "drive by" I would at least have their number on my caller id. So always know that there is a method to our madness and the method is always in the best interest of everyone's safety.