Postal Service’s Change-Of-Address Filings At Historic Levels

April 27, 2006, WASHINGTON—According to a recent report by the National Association of Realtors, “home sales should generally level out,” but “remain at historically high levels.” This means that address changes filed with the United States Postal Service will also remain at historically high levels. Last year, in fact, there were 45 million address changes, according to Postal Service officials, up from 44 million the previous year.

The fastest, easiest, and most convenient way to file a change of address with the Postal Service is with MoversGuide Online, available at usps.com. MoversGuide Online enables automatic processing of address changes and makes a trip to the Post Office unnecessary. An e-mail address is required for this service, and to prevent fraud, the Postal Service charges a $1 fee via credit card to verify identities. Alternatively, online forms can be printed and mailed without cost, left for mail carriers to pick up, or dropped off at local Post Offices.

The popularity of MoversGuide Online has more than tripled since 2002, its first full year of operation. Today, more than 6 million people have used the service to file a change of address. Other change-of-address options include Telephone Change of Address (1-800-ASK-USPS) and the hard copy Mover’s Guide packet found in Post Office lobbies.


Since 1775, the Postal Service and its predecessor, the Post Office Department, has connected friends, families, neighbors and businesses by mail. It is an independent federal agency that visits more than 144 million homes and businesses every day and is the only service provider delivering to every address in the nation. The Postal Service receives no taxpayer dollars for routine operations, but derives its operating revenues solely from the sale of postage, products and services. With annual revenues of $70 billion, it is the world’s leading provider of mailing and delivery services, offering some of the most affordable postage rates in the world. The U.S. Postal Service delivers more than 46 percent of the world’s mail volume—some 212 billion letters, advertisements, periodicals and packages a year—and serves seven million customers each day at its 37,000 retail locations nationwide.

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