quote:

Originally posted by sigmonkey:
You have to have a mailbox by law. If you don't, the federal government will mail you a fine.

"That's some catch, that Catch-22."

"It's the best there is."

quote:

Originally posted by hjs157:

quote:

Originally posted by Jimineer:
. . . if you do have one the USPS owns it regardless of whether you paid for it.

I have a slot which allows mail to be securely delivered inside of my home. Do the USPS folks own my whole house, or just the small closet in which the mail drops? I'm not being snarky - simply questioning the arrogance of the feds. Thanks!

If someone puts a pipe bomb in your mail slot it's a federal crime, so kinda. Fedex, the paper boy and UPS can't use your mail slot or mail box.
I've had people put their cigarettes and booze, taco bell etc. in their mailbox, and when I take it out and through it on the ground, they get pissey and get even pissier when I tell them that their box belongs to me, and that only US Mail goes in that box. If they keep it up, I terminate their service FOREVERRRRRRRRRR....or until I retire, whichever comes first.

When I retired (again) in 2001, we sold everything and purchased a 5th wheel and truck. We hit the road, no forwarding address. 4 years later we joined a mail forwarding service in South Dakota, and got SD registration and drivers license.

We built our home on 30 acres a couple of years ago and don't have a mailbox and that is fine with our local post office which is only a mile away. The only problem I have is when I'm having something shipped.....Have to know if product is getting shipped UPS,UPS Smart Post, or FEDUP....Got a package from FEDUP in limbo right now because it was shipped to my PO Box.

Not in Tennessee. My neighbor has no delivery/no mailbox at his house - he has a PO Box.

No requirement to have a mailbox. But the gubbermint generally contacts you by mail. If you don't have mail, the first time you learn that the IRS has a beef with you might be when they seize your bank account.

quote:

Originally posted by sigmonkey:
You have to have a mailbox by law. If you don't, the federal government will mail you a fine.

While funny as usual, it strikes me that if the IRS were to audit you, they'd have nowhere to send the notice unless you have a P.O. Box. Like wise your county/city government wouldn't be able to send you jury notices or tax related documents concerning your property. Some entities won't mail to a P.O. Box either. The government entities won't call you on the phone, you have an address, they expect to be able to use USPS.

PO Box instead? HOA BofD wants a way to serve notices pertinent to the HOA community.

quote:

Originally posted by jhe888:
No requirement to have a mailbox. But the gubbermint generally contacts you by mail. If you don't have mail, the first time you learn that the IRS has a beef with you might be when they seize your bank account.

The IRS will contact my CPA because of some form I signed (I think). A jury summons could be a problem though.

Anyway, my wife wasn't too keen on the idea.

quote:

Originally posted by flashguy:
I suspect there is a USPS regulation that requires one to have some kind of mailbox. They have to have someplace to deliver the mail to. If someone has paid to send you mail, USPS has to deliver it.

flashguy

No, they don't force anyone to receive mail. I own a weekly-rental house that doesn't have a mailbox, mailslot or mailbox. Anything sent via USPS to its address gets held at the local post office for a while, then returned to sender.

quote:

Originally posted by jbcummings:

quote:

Originally posted by sigmonkey:
You have to have a mailbox by law. If you don't, the federal government will mail you a fine.

While funny as usual, it strikes me that if the IRS were to audit you, they'd have nowhere to send the notice unless you have a P.O. Box. Like wise your county/city government wouldn't be able to send you jury notices or tax related documents concerning your property. Some entities won't mail to a P.O. Box either. The government entities won't call you on the phone, you have an address, they expect to be able to use USPS.

And if you have a HOA, boy will they be pissed when one blade of grass is higher than all the others and no place to send your letter...

quote:

Originally posted by DaBigBR:
Put a mail slot in a garbage can...

LOLOLOL that's a great idea!

My mother lives in the Ocala National Forest. It's not quite the end of the world, but you can see it from there.

No mailbox. No mail service, I believe. She has a PO box though.

Although rare, Amazon sometimes ships via USPS.

House I bought had no box for 40 years. Wasn't even on a route. It is just outside of town limits. One route in town, One rural route started a couple miles further out. Neither had ever served this house. Previous owner had a PO box at the Post Office 1 mile away.
I thought about doing the same but just put up a box instead. They had to serve it. Rural route person had to add it to her route.

My only contribution; as an Election official (Precinct Chief Judge).

In order to register to vote you must show proof of residency. This is done by producing a government issued document or utility bill with a Physical address on it. P.O. box isn't accepted.

We have a cabin in AL that didn't have a mailbox at all until a few years ago. Not indicative of legal requirements, but they never tracked us down until we mistakenly had something sent there by USPS instead of UPS. Then the mail lady was all torqued up!

Gentlemen,

By PO regulation, you must have a mailbox. It can be at the Post Office or on your property. I personally went through this with our local postmistress several years back. My rural box on the side of the road took a hit and I was not going to replace it. I was just going to go to the front desk at the Post Office every day and pick up my mail. I was allowed to do that only for a very short while. The postmistress and I got into it because General Delivery is/was still allowed. However, for residential address delivery, you had to have a mailbox. They could not pass your mail over the front counter. She pointed out that I could research it for myself by looking at the postal regulations. I did just that and found that she was right and I was wrong.

You must have a mailbox.