Change Your Address When You Move

When you are getting to ready to move, you remember all the big things -- hiring movers, packing, cleaning and other major portions of the moving process. But it's the smaller details of your move that may fall through the cracks. Have you given enough thought to changing your address? It's a small step that, if forgotten, will create a less-than-smooth move into your new home. And the process of turning in a change-of-address form can occasionally turn into a harrowing experience. Sometimes it's your fault. And sometimes it isn't.

"The United States Postal Service receives tens of millions of address change requests annually; 43.8 million were processed in 2009," says Sue Brennan of the U.S. Postal Service, "and while the vast majority are processed correctly and mail is forwarded seamlessly, inevitably there are some issues."

But there are things you can do to make the process of successfully changing your address a smooth one.