Forever Stamps Get a Price Hike

Starting Sunday, Jan. 22, 2017, it will cost you a little more to mail that 1-oz. first class letter. The Forever stamp will get a 2 cent increase, going from 47 cents to 49 cents.

First introduced in April 2007 at 41 cents, the last increase to the forever stamp was in January 2014, when it went from 47 to 49 cents. However, in April of 2016, the Postal Regulatory Commission issued an injunction to the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) to lower its prices, which was the first time the USPS was ordered to drop its prices in 97 years, according to USA Today.

While 2 cents may not seem like it would break the bank, when you're a company that does business by mail, it may have some implications. USA Today in particular, pointed out one businesswomen who is less than thrilled by the price increase.

Lynne Golodner, the chief creative officer of the public relations firm Your People of Huntington Woods, Mich., was annoyed by the cost hike. She buys stamps in bulk.

"I was stunned. It feels like we just had another increase," she said. "It’s an inconvenience, I am kind of old-fashioned. I use stamps, I pay bills by mail. I mail out checks to employees. I guess I could do a lot of that digitally, but I just don’t."

The "Forever" in Forever stamps indicates that the stamps can be used for 1-oz. first class mail indefinitely. So if you're thinking about sending out birthday cards or paying your bills with a check in the mail, you might want to stop by the closest post office this weekend.

But, only buy them if you're actually going to use them, otherwise you might be contributing to the USPS's financial woes.