Postage Going Up Again

[WinniWoman]

http://www.moneytalksnews.com/you-h...2017-01-19-pm&utm_medium=email&subscriber=yes

 

[Passepartout]

http://www.moneytalksnews.com/you-h...2017-01-19-pm&utm_medium=email&subscriber=yes

Does anybody here buy anything but 'Forever' stamps? Oops- U.S. folks- I know the rest of you have your own postal issues.

 

[Sugarcubesea]

http://www.moneytalksnews.com/you-h...2017-01-19-pm&utm_medium=email&subscriber=yes

My Daughter is graduating this year and we are having a party and I went and purchased 100 forever stamps today

 

[Ty1on]

It's snowballing further and further. More correspondence and transactions are taken out of physical post, USPS doesn't change its operations model, they have to increase postage higher and higher.

I'd say, on average, we get 10 bills and 200 pieces of junk mail in a month. I get maybe 3 XMas cards a year and haven't received a handritten letter in as long as I can remember.

 

[Luanne]

Remember, when you say it's going up again, it's going back to what it had been for a long time. There was a reduction in price for awhile.

 

[Ty1on]

Remember, when you say it's going up again, it's going back to what it had been for a long time. There was a reduction in price for awhile.

That was due to a temporary measure by Congress expiring, wasn't it? I may vaguely remember the story, or not.


ETA: Found it! It was their regulator that had allowed a temporary increase because of the recession, then required USPS to drop back down 2 cents, losing an estimated $2B in revenue starting last April.

I also found out that the last time postage decreased before that was 1919.

 

[vacationhopeful]

Another increase ... over 4%. Guess I will buy a couple of rolls tomorrow.

 

[MULTIZ321]

Rates will increase on Sunday, January 22nd, 2017


Richard

 

[klpca]

I'm always amazed that I slap a 50 cent stamp (give or take) on a letter and someone carries it all the way across the country in two or three days.

To shave $$ off of our budget, we cut out cable (saved $120/month) and a few years ago I stopped treating myself to Starbucks (saved $90 per month). I bet I spend about $40 per year on postage (mostly Christmas cards). I'll be sad the day it goes away.

 

[WinniWoman]

I am going out tomorrow to get some. I definitely don't use as many as I did years ago.

 

[Luanne]

We buy our stamps at Costco. I probably have enough to last me through several price changes.

 

[Talent312]

We mailed about 50 actual Christmas cards last month.
I wonder if we could still get seasonal stamps for next Christmas.
I agree that, at ~$.50, delivery of our letters to where ever is a bargain.

.

 

[Egret1986]

I'm always amazed that I slap a 50 cent stamp (give or take) on a letter and someone carries it all the way across the country in two or three days.

To shave $$ off of our budget, we cut out cable (saved $120/month) and a few years ago I stopped treating myself to Starbucks (saved $90 per month). I bet I spend about $40 per year on postage (mostly Christmas cards). I'll be sad the day it goes away.

If you saw the process that a letter goes through from one end to the other, you'd be even more amazed. Yep, that's a bargain for $.50. Package services is the "new model" for now and into the future.....until teleportation catches on.

 

[silentg]

Post card stamps were less, are there still postcard stamps? Last time I sent a postcard was to my mother a year or so ago.
Silentg

 

[MULTIZ321]

Post card stamps were less, are there still postcard stamps? Last time I sent a postcard was to my mother a year or so ago.
Silentg

Yes, and Post Card Stamps stay the same price at this time.

Richard

 

[amycurl]

I sent about 70 Christmas cards last year, including about a dozen international cards. I have many past seasons' forever stamps; I never actually purchased any new stamps for my 2016 cards.

Beyond Christmas cards, we may mail 3-6 non-packages throughout the year. At work, we're more likely to pay bills via check/mail, so maybe 6-12 things a month.

USPS was required under the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 2006 (PAEA) to prefund its future health care benefit payments to retirees for the next 75 years in a single ten-year time span – a measure that was specifically designed to benefit the for-profit carriers in terms of their ability to compete with the USPS, since the for-profit carriers were not required to fulfill this significant financial burden.

 

[MuranoJo]

...I'd say, on average, we get 10 bills and 200 pieces of junk mail in a month. I get maybe 3 XMas cards a year and haven't received a handritten letter in as long as I can remember.

Speaking of...I actually received a HANDWRITTEN, 5-page letter today! I cannot remember the last time I got one, but I'll bet it's been about 8 years. And ya know what? I sat down with a cup of tea and thoroughly enjoyed the tactile experience of reading a real letter.

 

[WinniWoman]

I get just a few XMAS cards now and I actually stopped sending them many years ago. I get no letters, maybe one birthday card, mostly junk mail. Everything comes via email.

Oh, and I get maybe one telephone call per week, if that.

 

[Phydeaux]

You folks are still mailing stuff??

 

[pedro47]

USPS does a decent shop on delivering packages from online retail stores. USPS is cheaper than FedX & UPS in this area.

 

[vacationhopeful]

You folks are still mailing stuff??

Yes ... as required by the law for stuff which must be sent with proof of service (not that anyone signs for legal letters .. but proof I sent it certified mail and regular mail).

And I rather get checks than have a money transfer to my bank account reversed 29 days after 'I THINK' I got paid. (PS I sometimes still go directly to the originating bank and cash a check at their counter ... I rather get a USPS money order).

 

[Talent312]

You folks are still mailing stuff??

We have to mail our personal-home HOA fees twice a year.
It's a small outfit and they don't do direct-deposit or CC's.
.

 

[Phydeaux]

We have to mail our personal-home HOA fees twice a year.
It's a small outfit and they don't do direct-deposit or CC's.
.

Does your HOA accept these?

 

[Talent312]

Ha! Bought postage Friday. Saved a whopping $2.00... Woo-Hoo!

.

 

[WinniWoman]

Ha! Bought postage Friday. Saved a whopping $2.00... Woo-Hoo!

.

I bought 3 "books". Didn't books used to have 25 stamps? Now there are 20 per "book.

Anyway, I am happy to save even just the few bucks. Sometimes I am looking for just a few bucks in my wallet and I don't have any.

And I return our bottles and cans also. That usually gives me at least $3 or $4.