I am from the US and in the dozens of sits I have done over the years. I can only recall two instances of hosts putting their mail on hold so I don’t think this is all that common, and you won’t have to worry too much about it. But if it is something that concerns you, definitely something you can ask about.
Though if this was something they preferred to do, personally I probably wouldn’t feel comfortable asking them not to, unless I knew ahead of time I was going to be receiving something very important during my stay that could only be sent via USPS.
But that is just me, and some people probably wouldn’t have a problem with this request if asked. I guess it would ultimately depend on their reasons for wanting to do it in the first place.
most of my bills are paid automatically so I don’t need someone to sort my mail, and if there’s anything personal I don’t need to wonder about it
replacing a post box key is a MASSIVE hassle - way harder than replacing the keys/changing the locks to my home. I don’t want even the remote possibility of someone losing or leaving with my mail key. This is my main reason.
This isn’t something I’m super concerned about, but I’ve seen it come up in discussions on the forum in the past - someone who stays a certain amount of time can claim they live there, even if they are not paying rent. Having mail sent to the address is one way to establish residency. This might be a US issue, but I have seen some members concerned that a sitter might refuse to leave (not sure it’s actually happened, just that there was a post about it like a year+ ago).
Also a tip for trips between 30-60 days: I have the 30 day mail delivered, and set up another hold starting the next day until the day after I return. That way I get the first batch on my return, and the the second batch the next day.
Many US houses have mail slots in the door also. I just live in a multi-unit development where our mailboxes are centralized at the end of the driveway and need a key to open them.
In some large apartment developments, the mailboxes could be far away from the apartment and hard to find.
As mentioned, many U.S. homes have mail slots. Multi family units tend to have boxes. And new developments can’t get mail slots any more, because the U.S. Postal Service decreed it — it saves money to deliver to centralized clusters of mailboxes.
Another idea is to ask a friend or neighbor of the current Owner if you could have something delivered to THEIR address instead, and you can pick it up there.
Thanks for the tip! General Delivery worked beautifully. I stopped by the post office near my sit and they confirmed they accept General Delivery packages, and my package was delivered with no problem. The USPS website even has an FAQ on how to address the package. Thanks for the tip!