Should We Stock Up on ‘Forever Stamps’?

By The Wall Street Journal

RISMEDIA, July 10, 2007—(MarketWatch)—Q: Does it make sense to stock up on “Forever” stamps?

A: Stamps are a pain — you’re always scrambling to find one, and if you succeed, you most likely need three cents more to send your letter. So the U.S. Postal Service’s new Forever stamp is definitely a welcome development. It costs the same as a regularly priced stamp and is good on first-class mail anytime in the future, regardless of price increases. (When postal rates rise, so does the cost of the Forever stamp.) But don’t buy in bulk to insulate yourself from rising stamp prices. Stamp prices have largely tracked the rate of inflation, the Postal Service says. And that’s unlikely to change, thanks to a new law that will keep future prices tied to inflation.

Bottom line: “Don’t start warehousing stamps,” says Bob Goldman, a financial adviser in Sausalito, Calif. “You want an investment that beats inflation.”

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