When is stamps going up in 2011

Forever stamps, introduced in , are always equivalent to the current price of a first-class stamp. Since , virtually all first-class stamps sold are Forever stamps. You can even use Forever stamps for outbound international letters. You'll have to add additional stamps to get to the correct amount of postage for international mail, however. For international letters, a Forever stamp has the monetary value of the price of a first-class stamp on the day it is used.

Join today and get instant access to discounts, programs, services, and the information you need to benefit every area of your life. It's no secret that widespread use of email and the shift to online banking have taken a toll on the post office. People need fewer stamps for letters and bills these days, and businesses can reach customers more affordably and efficiently with email instead of junk mail.

The original Post Office Department, established in , was reorganized as the USPS, a separate agency, in , and generally receives no taxpayer money for operating expenses. A law capped postage increases at the Consumer Price Index , the government's main measure of inflation. Note: We are currently in the process of replacing our commenting service, so it may take a few days for previous comments to appear.

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You will be asked to register or log in. But other first-class mail rates are going up 1. The changes take effect on Jan. Here are a couple of examples of the price hikes: A letter that's overweight will cost 20 cents for each additional ounce, up from the current 15 cents.

The price of mailing a postcard within the U. Postal officials say in the news release that they believe these new rates will help keep the Postal Service competitive while providing some needed revenue.

Within the U. The stamps are always sold at the same price as regular first-class postage. Your forever stamp will be worth the domestic first-class-mail letter price the day you use it. You might use two or more forever stamps on letters that are weightier or are going to international destinations, but that may not be the best strategy. Again, an additional ounce will cost you 20 cents starting in late January. That's paying 35 cents too much. It's better to save your forever stamps for regular mail and buy a mix of stamps in smaller and larger denominations to help you hit the higher rates on oversized and international letters and cards.

Postage prices are roughly tied to inflation. Postal Service requests rate increases as inflation rises, meaning prices at the post office go up most years.

A good deal of the USPS' revenue comes from stamps — so why does it want you using older forever stamps when rates go up? Wouldn't it make more sense for the agency to make and sell new stamps with higher values? Well, it turns out that the increased revenue from offering new, costlier stamps would be more than offset by the expense of having to collect and destroy outdated stamps each time the postage rate changes.

With forever stamps, everyone wins. You can buy a stockpile of stamps when rates are set to go up and save yourself those extra cents. Meanwhile, the Postal Service wins because it will never have to track down "expired" postage. As of p. Inflation is at a year high. But these Mad Money megatrends could help you fight back.

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