Hold or forward your mail during a temporary move?

When should you hold mail, and when should you forward it?

Hold Mail keeps mail at the Post Office while you are away. Forwarding redirects eligible mail to another address. USPS currently describes Hold Mail for 3–30 days and temporary forwarding for relocations of 15 days up to one year. Check the linked USPS instructions for your situation before acting.

Coordinate with anyone sharing the delivery address. The USPS glossary explains that Hold Mail applies to everyone’s mail at the specified address, including letters and packages. It is not a way to pause only one roommate’s mail while everyone else continues receiving theirs. Confirm how your exact unit or shared address is handled with USPS.

Use USPS directly for its application and identity-verification process. Allow time for forwarding; it is not an instant redirection service. If helping another adult, check USPS's requirements for acting on someone else's behalf.

Confirm the receiving arrangement first

A residence's city and ZIP code are not a complete mailing address. Before sending anything, ask the housing provider:

• Can residents receive USPS mail and packages, and which delivery services are accepted?
• What exact name, address and unit information should be used?
• How will you know an item has arrived, and how do you retrieve it?
• What happens to mail that arrives before move-in or after moving out?

Confirm Ocean Breeze's current mail arrangements with the team. This guide does not establish a delivery address or a mail-handling service at the residence.

Forwarding is not a complete sender update

USPS explains that a postal change does not update your address directly with companies or government agencies, and forwarding varies by mail class. Use USAGov's address-change guide to find official agency instructions and contact other senders through their own secure channels.

Make your own list of time-sensitive mail: statements, employer correspondence, agency notices and expected deliveries. Check upcoming items individually rather than assuming every item will follow automatically. Do not put account numbers, identity documents or your private address into a general housing inquiry.

A short record for the move

Confirmed receiving arrangement

Keep the approved address format and delivery instructions in a private record.

Dates to check

Move-in, departure or return, postal start/end dates and a reminder to review them.

Important senders

List each sender, the update method and whether confirmation was received.

Plans change

Record which postal request or sender needs an update if the move changes.

For example, a tentative room inquiry is too early to assume a delivery address is ready. First confirm the housing arrangement, then the mail instructions, and then submit the appropriate request. Use the packing and first-week guide for the rest of the move.