The focus of character reference letters are such personality characteristics as: honesty, integrity, trustworthiness, dependability, work ethic, values, community service, and other widely accepted indicators of individual character attributes. These letters are almost always used by people who provide personal and domestic services, where trust is an important factor.

These letters are typically addressed in a general way using "To Whom It May Concern" or "Dear Sir/Madam".

GENERAL PURPOSE Reference Letters
These reference letters deal with general situations that are not covered by the other reference letters described above. Typically, they address special situations such as tenant to landlord letters, business customer references, pet owner testimonials, etc. These letters are always addressed in a general way using "To Whom It May Concern" or "Dear Sir/Madam".

Watch Out...
Over the years, the line between “letters of reference” and “letters of recommendation” has become quite blurred, and many people and institutions now use the two terms interchangeably. As far as those organizations are concerned, both letters are exactly the same thing.

Accordingly, many colleges and universities, as well as some companies and institutions, use the terms "reference letters" and/or "letters of reference" when referring to exactly the same thing as what many other colleges, universities, companies and institutions call "recommendation letter" and/or "letter of recommendation".

So, when dealing with these types of organizations or institutions, MAKE SURE that you use whichever term they use in the same way that they use it. DON'T try to convert them to your terminology. That will just confuse things and you will pay the price.

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