Where Does USPS Leave Packages In Apartments

The United States Postal Service delivers to homes and residents all over the country. They’re used to delivering to homes, offices, and residential complexes. Where should you expect USPS to deliver your package if you live in an apartment building? 

When delivering to an apartment building, USPS will generally leave packages in a designated mailbox associated with the individual apartment unit. Commercial buildings will often have packages delivered to a mail room or a front office. There are exceptions, though, and it’s best to check with USPS ahead of time if you are expecting a uniquely large or important delivery. 

Keep reading to learn more about the USPS delivery process, where you’ll most likely find your delivered package and some steps to take if you’re expecting a large or important package. 

Where Should I Look for My Package?

If you live in an apartment building and are expecting a package, the most common place for a package to be left by the United States Postal Service will be in a designated mailbox or sometimes right outside of your door if the building is very small, and your postman is familiar with the building. 

Otherwise, check your unit’s mailbox for the package or notification of attempted delivery. The USPS worker should have a key to that mailbox, and most of your mail should be able to fit in there. Exceptions exist for larger packages, and if a package won’t fit in your mailbox, a notification of attempted delivery is often left in its place. 

Suppose you get a notification of attempted delivery. In that case, you can use the failed delivery slip to re-schedule a new delivery date for when you will be at home (this is done via the website mentioned on the slip) or else pick up the package at the local post office.

Exceptions That Cause Problems

An issue that many mail recipients face, however, is the issue of a consumer postman who needs to have your apartment’s individual unit number printed on the package. For example, if you live at 190 Blue Ridge Drive, Apartment 5, and the package you’re waiting for needs the apartment or unit number, the USPS will not simply leave the package at the building.

More likely, the USPS will refuse to leave the package outside of the building and will keep the package at the local post office for individual pick-up. You should get a notice informing you that the package could not be delivered. If so, go ahead and pick up the package at the post office location used by your mail carrier and notify the sender of your apartment number. 

Commercial Buildings

Suppose your package will be delivered to a commercial building with multiple businesses or offices. In that case, the most common package destination will be the building’s mail room. This mail room is a central hub for all incoming letters and packages and is the best place to search for your expected package. 

Alternately, some commercial buildings have separate mail lockers for each business, usually located right outside of the building itself. If the package does not fit in the mail locker, you’ll likely get a slip in the mail locker notifying you of an attempted delivery. You can re-schedule the delivery using the website mentioned on the slip or pick up the item at the nearest post office. 

Tips For Sending Mail

If you’re about to send a package to an apartment building or a specific office within a commercial complex, ensure you get the entire address correct. The building address is important, but so is the apartment, unit, suite number, business name, and recipient’s name. 

Make sure to carefully read and reproduce the address when sending packages, and double-check the address with the recipient. Make sure to include as much information as possible, including 

• The full name of the business you’re mailing to
• The number of the apartment unit or the office suite within the building and
• The name of the specific recipient

An example of this could be 

Enterprise Express Solutions, 123 Broad Street, Suite 10, Care of Mr. Robert Slane, Any-town Massachusetts, 00001

We have the company’s name, the building’s address, the suite number, the recipient, the town or city, the state, and the zip code all mentioned here. This gives the USPS the maximum amount of information to work with and gives the package or letter the best chance of making it to Mr. Slane. 

Preparing for Large Packages

If you’re expecting an unusually large package, you can let the USPS know ahead of time, and schedule a time to pick it up from the nearest post office. The largest package dimensions allowed by the USPS will be 108 inches of combined length and girth. 

For example, a package that is 50 inches wide and 58 inches long would be acceptable. Your package can also weigh up to 70 lbs. This is a measure in place to help protect postal workers from injury and keep all mail in transit smoothly. 

For anything larger than this, it would be best to ship your item via UPS, as they have the ability and the know-how to deliver much larger items, including entire pallets of freight. 

Conclusion

When packages are delivered to apartment buildings by the USPS, the most common place for them to be left is in designated apartment mailboxes. If the package fits, your postman will leave a slip notifying you of an attempt to deliver. You can either re-schedule a delivery via the website printed on the slip or head to your local post office to pick up the package in person. 

When mailing a package to a commercial building, ensure the maximum amount of information in the recipient’s address, including business name, building address, suite or unit number, and the name of any specific recipient.

UPS would be a great alternative for packages larger than 108 combined inches of length or girth and/or heavier than 70 lbs in weight, as the USPS can not ship packages larger or heavier than these dimensions.