BBRoundtable

First class mail goes up to 42 cents the middle of May. They raised it last May to 39 & it sounds like there is some policy review every May so that's when they usually raise it.

Bleh.

Good Lord I just bought 41 cent stamps, dagnabbit!

This is why I don't bother to buy more than what I need at any time. Ya buy books of 'em, then they go up and ya end up having to go scrambling for silly 2 cent stamps and such Everything seems to be going up like crazy lately...

Like chooch, I just bought a book of $.41 stamps. Now I will have to go get some of those Forever stamps.

I think most "reasonable" post offices will give you the Forever Stamp instead of the regular stamps (more likely as the rate increase gets closer), but it doesn't hurt to ask.

With the rate of postage increases, I don't bother buying any postage until I actually want to send something in the mail. I can never keep up with what the rate is.

I have been a mail clerk for over 14 years and work in at a CPA firm and this not suprising to me by any stretch of the imagination. Here is a little food for thought. The postal service as an accuracy rate of around 94% and improving. You may complain about the increase but where else can you send a letter from LA to NY for any cheaper?

Email > Postage Mail

'Til you have to ship something.

We pay 52¢, and have a slightly lower quality lettermail service. The rest of our shipping options are significantly more expensive than the US equivalents (in fact, due to the difference in prices between CP and USPS, it is cheaper to send a parcel from BC to Texas than it is from BC to Ontario) and probably about the same quality.

1 post package every 5 years = 94%? A little surprising at how low the percentage is...

...but that percentage probably includes mis-deliveries (which are more common... but usually by one mail stop off).

However, UPS isn't perfect... considering they've mis-delivered a package as well (3 blocks off target).