How Much Does A Postage Stamp Cost For 2013
Effective January 27, 2013, the price of a first class (1) ounce letter sent through the United States Post Office will go up $0.01 to $0.46. This applies to letters mailed within the U.S. which are subject to the same $0.20 fee per extra oz.
There will also be the introduction of a global forever stamp for delivery of letters anywhere in the world priced at $1.10.
Prior to this, there was an increase January 22, 2012, when first class stamps increased a penny to 45 cents for the same domestic delivery. That announcement followed a former increase that occurred approximately 2 years and 7 months prior.
Letters destined for Canada and Mexico will rise significantly - going from a prior $0.85 to now at $1.10 on the 27th, or a twenty five cent hike. The new rate applies to all international destinations. Before the 27th price adjust, international cost had been set at $1.05 total.
The rate at which the Post Office can take charges higher is based on a 2.6 percent inflationary rate that comes from the CPI.
History
The above increases are the result of the filing by the U.S. Postal Service of a
notice of mailing services price adjustments with the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC).
During 2013, the post office will by most accounts continue to sustain
heavy losses in the billions. For fiscal 2012 they experienced $15.9 billion in losses alone.July 2010 - the USPS initiated a proposal for a 2 cent rise in stamps, which was shot down later that year. Loaded with several billion dollars in losses, and closing a number of facilities, it appeared at that time that they would probably in the future be looking for ways to compensate.
Tips
Some consumers buy extra forever stamps since they are claimed to send even when higher postage surpasses these rates in
the years ahead. While postage continues to go up, there are still options like electronic mail, or a phone plan with generous
or unlimited long distance/texting such as with some of the cell phone carriers. For mailing out bills, many companies have switched
to the online payment option - that is, if you are comfortable with its measure of safety.