With Anytime Mailbox, you can manage your mail no matter where your RV takes you. Here's how to use the Anytime Mailbox app and service…
It's funny when people start planning for life on the road and then suddenly it dawns on them. What about my mail?!
This is an evergreen question in our Facebook Group. We can count on it being asked at least once a week!
How do you get mail while you're traveling around the country, moving to a new place every few days?
In the past, the only solution was putting a hold on your mail or volunteering a family member or friend to pick it up for you. Or, at best, start sending your mail directly to their house.
But, today, there's a better option that lets you manage your own mail in real-time, from anywhere. It's called a virtual mailbox. Jennifer and I have tried all kinds of mail management over our 10+ years living the RV Lifestyle, from friends to forwarding services and more. Virtual mailboxes top them all.
Through our experiences, we have come to really appreciate Anytime Mailbox. So much so, that we are now partnering with them as affiliates to help our fellow RVers take advantage of their extremely useful and easy-to-use service. Let me tell you all about them, and I won't be surprised if you decide to use them, too.
What is Anytime Mailbox?
Anytime Mailbox is an app that turns your physical mail into a digitized format. It then places it into your own, personal virtual mailbox. The app can be used on your phone, tablet, or computer.
Instead of holding a physical piece of mail in your hand, you can read that same exact piece of mail digitally using your digital device.
When setting up your Anytime Mailbox, you pick a physical location where your mail can be received. There are over 675 locations to choose from across the United States.
This location can be in your home city, or across the country – you choose!
Many times, the location address is a mail business center or “cowork” location that is authorized by the US postal service to receive and digitize your postal mail and packages.
Plans start at as low as $9.99 per month when you sign up.
How to Use Anytime Mailbox
Anytime Mailbox is simple to use.
When mail is received, the authorized person takes a picture or “scans” the outside of the envelope. They do not open it! You then receive an alert on your phone or in your email inbox that you have a new piece of mail or package.
Then, you use the app on your phone or computer to choose what to do with the mail. You simply login into your virtual mailbox and request one of a number of different services.
You can request your mail to be opened and scanned, forwarded to another location, picked up, recycled, or shredded.
Open and Scan
If you request a mailpiece to be opened and scanned, it usually takes between 12 to 24 hours to receive it in digitized form.
In this process, the mail is opened, all of the pages are scanned, and a PDF of those pages is provided to you in the app or dashboard of your virtual mailbox.
Do note that the times for opening and scanning may vary by location.
This service can simplify and declutter your life. You can keep the digitized copies, and no longer have to worry about paperwork overflowing your space.
In addition to keeping the digitized copy of the mail, you can label it to make it easy to search for within your app.
This is a great option for those traveling in their RV. Not only can you prevent paperwork from filling up your precious RV storage space. But you can always find that piece of mail when you need it – right at your fingertips!
Forward
Another option is to forward the mail to another address – anywhere in the world!
Have it sent to your home address, work address, to a friend’s house, or other location where you are traveling.
This option is great for RVers traveling somewhere for an extended period of time. Do you need a hard copy of a particular piece of mail? It's no problem – just have it forwarded to your location!
Pick Up
Another option is to pick up your mail.
If you are in town or have a friend or family member that is willing to grab your mail, it's one more convenient option available to you!
Recycle
If you receive junk mail or any piece of mail that you have no use for, you can opt to recycle it.
The great thing about this option is that you are helping keep our planet and an environment free from excess paper products. And you do not even have to touch the mail!
Shred
If you receive a piece of mail that is essentially junk mail but has personal and sensitive information on it, you can choose to have it shredded. The good news is that you do not have to buy a shredder since they do the shredding for you!
For example, you might receive a credit card offer that has personal, financial information listed on it. Instead of simply recycling it, you can request to have it shredded instead.
That way you can ensure that your personal information does not fall into the wrong hands.
It Can Completely Replace a Home or Business Address
Through the magic of social media here's a little video re-cap of their services.
A virtual mailbox provides a real street address. This is a recognized street address that is honored by all major financial institutions.
That means your bank, mortgage, and insurance companies, and all federal, state, and government agencies will recognize and accept this address!
This is great news for RVers that have decided to hit the road permanently, and no longer have a permanent home address.
In the past, RVers relied on PO boxes to receive mail. You'd have to pick up the mail yourself or have someone else do it, limiting your travel time. Plus, most major institutions do not accept or recognize a PO box as your permanent address.
This is where Anytime Mailbox can save the day. Your virtual mailbox provides a real street address so you can continue doing business with those major institutions.
Business Perks
Furthermore, having a real street address through a virtual mailbox can be beneficial for your business. It helps your business appear professional since you are no longer using a home address.
In addition, it protects your home address when registering your business. You do not have to worry that the wrong person knows where you live. It also makes it easier for you to obtain business credit since you can provide a real business address, and not your home address.
Want to Try Anytime Mailbox or another service?
You can try Anytime Mailbox by clicking this link.
And you see read through some of our other recommendations through time right here.
What are you using these days to see your mail while living the RV Lifestyle? Let us know in the comments.
January 31, 2022at9:20 am, Ann Maes said:
What do full time or part time RVers do about voting in local and presidential elections?
January 31, 2022at8:16 am, Steve Schrimsher said:
How is this different from many existing forwarding services? I have used St. Brendan’s Isle for over 20 years and they do everything that you describe. They have performed flawlessly for me both nationally and internationally as I have traveled by boat and RV.