Mighty Bargain Hunter

Wait until right before the price hike to buy 19,512 stamps

May 25th, 2007 | by mbhunter |

I got some Forever Stamps a couple of days ago.  One sheet: enough to mail twenty letters to my twenty favorite organizations awaiting payment for services rendered or taxes assessed.

Why, oh why, did this guy buy $8,000 worth of Forever Stamps?

Flexo suspected that it might be because he didn’t want to stand in line again — ever.  Which I suppose has its merits.

But the price increase to 41 cents is barely two weeks old.  If I wanted to buy that many stamps (which I really don’t) I’d want until right before the next price increase (assuming the USPS announces it).

Let’s assume that the rate of price increases exactly follows the rate of inflation.  And let’s say, for the sake of argument, that the USPS will raise the price of a first-class stamp to 45 cents on August 25th, 2008.  (I’m making this up.)

Now, the price of the Forever Stamp, if it continues to be the same price as the current price of a first-class stamp, will still be only 41 cents up until five minutes before the post office closes on August 22nd, 2008.  (August 25th, 2008, is a Monday.)  But because inflation happens every second of every day, what would have cost me 41 cents mid May, 2007, will cost me maybe 44.96 cents on August 22nd, in then-present-day cents.

That’s the time I’d want to buy a ton of Forever Stamps.  (Maybe I’d get two sheets.)  Then they’re a deal!

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