Mail Forwarding and Temporary Housing

ThornMartin

So, I'm moving out of state soon...

9/14 - 9/19, staying in a hotel in current location
9/20 - 10/20, staying in a hotel (aka temporary housing) in new location
10/20 onward, staying in a house in new location that I should close on on 9/30 (hopefully -- it's a short sale).

How do I handle mail forwarding in this case? The hotel I'm staying at said not to officially forward my mail there, because it's a commercial address. I'm told that USPS won't forward mail from a commercial address to a residential address at the end of my stay.

What should I do regarding credit cards and the like? Should I do an address change with them to my temporary housing during the interim, and then change it again once I get my house?

I have a friend/coworker in the new area (he's the only guy I know there); would it be legal to get my mail forwarded to his home during that interim, and then change it again once I get my house?

Beazle

Get a post office box or a mail box at a Mail Box ect or whatever they are called now. It will cost you a little money but you won't have to worry about losing your mail. If you go the Mail Box Ect route they will accept packages and you will have a street address.

ThornMartin

To sign up for one of those, do I have to physically go to the particular MailBox Etc? I know for PO Boxes, you have to physically go into the particular post office and show photo ID before receiving a box there. If so, it won't work for me because I'm not going to be in the new location until the 20th (I'd still need to figure out what to do from the 14th until the 19th).

Captain Vash

Honestly that's your best solution.

How far apart are these places going to be?

I don't think anyone will expect you to have a street address in a city you've never been to, before you ever arrive there.

ThornMartin

So, I was able to sign up for a PO Box online. While it won't allow me to see the number until I present my photo ID and application at the post office, a simple call to the post office yielded my number.