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Handling Outgoing Mail In Your Commercial or Residential Property

When it comes to handling with incoming mail and packages, it’s typical to think of curbside mailboxes, parcel lockers, and centralized mail kiosks. But when it comes to handling outgoing mail for your tenants, whether they be commercial or residential, what comes to mind?

Many people think of two things: the local post office, or those old, blue collection boxes. However, it is difficult to find such collection boxes anywhere besides outside of a post office, which often necessitates a trip. Going to the post office can take a resident or business time—time that may add up to the average 21 hours per week wasted by business leaders and employees.

There are solutions to the outgoing mail issue which can help residents and businesses save time. A variety of outgoing mail options are available, depending on which type of property you manage.

Outgoing Mail For Residential Properties

The good news is that outgoing mail capacity for residential rental properties, such as apartments and other communities, is often included with certain types of mailboxes that will be needed to manage incoming mail for such properties.

Centralized Mail Delivery

Curbside mailboxes allow for some outgoing mail if the volume is small, but with larger properties, centralized mail delivery systems are often the most secure choice when it comes to all mail. This includes setups such as horizontal 4C mailboxes, which can mount to walls, recess into surfaces, and mount on pedestals. These boxes include a number of horizontal customer units, parcel lockers, and often have outgoing mail slots designed to hold outgoing mail.

These slots lock, and can only be accessed by a USPS employee. They are ideal for handling regular-sized mail such as letters and envelopes. However, they are not ideal for packages.

If residents send out packages, and taking them to the post office would be an inconvenience, then mail package drop locking mailboxes may be a solution. These pedestal-type units are USPS approved and can receive packages, which are secured until an employee is able to pick them up.

Smaller Outgoing Mailboxes

If a residential property does not have a centralized mail system, but needs a solution for outgoing mail, then vertical collection boxes may work well.

Vertical collection boxes may be ideal for smaller communities or those that cannot make use of centralized mail delivery. These vertical mailboxes are locking, and can mount onto, or be recessed into, a wall. They can complement existing wall-mounted mailboxes if no outgoing mail slot is available, and offer residents a safe, convenient way to send out regular-sized outgoing mail. A USPS employee will be able to unlock and retrieve such mail.

Before choosing the right type of mailbox to handle outgoing mail, it may be a good idea to check how much mail volume the area normally sends out, as different states will vary.

Handling Larger Mail Volumes For Commercial Properties

Commercial properties and businesses will need to handle larger volumes of outgoing mail as they often handle marketing materials, invoices, and other business-related mail. This means that solutions for outgoing mail will be more varied and need to be more versatile than those for residential properties.

Such solutions exist, whether the mail in question is commercial or private.

Collection Boxes

Collection boxes, which used to consist mainly of the iconic blue USPS mailboxes, are now most often used for private mail collection. However, they can help an entire commercial property with outgoing mail and save time.

These boxes can be wall-mounted, freestanding with legs, or in pedestal form. They can be placed both indoors and outdoors, and hold a larger volume of regular mail and even small packages. Businesses sending out mail can place it through a slot, and a private employee can then retrieve the mail and take it to a post office, if necessary. This will save time for each business on a property.

Or, if direct USPS pickup is needed, there are models that are USPS-approved as well. 4C collection mailboxes are available, which can mount beside existing, centralized 4C mail setups. These units contain a slot for outgoing mail and a large compartment for holding larger mail volumes. They can be wall-mounted or freestanding.

Letter Lockers

Letter lockers are ideal for holding one or two letter bins for USPS pickup, and are most often used in office settings where high volumes of paper mail go out daily. They are also used for places such as universities, government facilities, and healthcare facilities. These letter bins collect outgoing mail, and can then be placed inside a high-security letter locker for USPS pickup.

Letter lockers are good for both incoming and outgoing mail. They are mounted on posts and have a locking door to hold both. If damaged, replacement posts can be ordered.

When installing letter lockers, however, the approval of the postmaster general will need to be obtained before mail delivery and pickup begins.

Mail Hampers

While the USPS will not pick up mail directly from a mail hamper, they can be useful when it comes to handling outgoing mail in places such as busy mail rooms and offices. These hampers are often made of fabric and can be rolled from place to place to collect outgoing mail and packages.

With hampers, the liners can often be removed and the mail bagged up for a trip to a post office, giving employees the ability to keep mail organized and together. Smaller packages can also be handled with mail hampers.

Start Handling Your Outgoing Mail Today

When it comes to handling outgoing mail and saving time for both residents and commercial employees, the effort will not go unnoticed. Tenants appreciate safety and convenience, and providing help with outgoing mail will help to retain tenants for years to come. In order to get started, contact us at National Mailboxes today.