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We have the cluster of mailboxes in our HOA. The USPS is the owner not the HOA. go speak to a manager at the PO
OP has done that. She spoke to the postmaster, who told her that the HOA had the keys. It sounds like he/she will have to have a new lock put in.
Our mailbox key was left us by the former homeowner, but I know that the PO services it. We had a lock stick on the package bin, and we were told to leave a note for the mail man. These must handled differently in different areas.
Dealing with this now. The answer depends on the mailbox cluster.
If it's branded USPS - eagle and everything - it's the USPS' responsibility. If you don't get traction, escalate it. They're the only ones who can rekey it by law.
If it's generic with no branding or lettering, it's the community responsibility - BUT not the HOA, at least not in this state...the owner of the mailbox is the one responsible.
On the house I purchased the previous owners were out of the property so long they I guess forgot which box number it was, somehow misplaced the mailbox key so I had to replace it but didn't know the box number. I went to a neighboring HOA to ask and they informed me about leaving a "brightly colored note" in the outbound. This I did with a phone number, and the postal carrier sent me a text letting me know what the box number was, and even went a step further, quite ghetto in fact, popped the door so I can replace the lock. I noticed his area code was from Los Angeles so maybe that's why - helping a fellow California transplant out.
I ordered a replacement lock from Amazon and had it shipped to the house, I'll be installing it today (hopefully).
Actually, you may have to pay a locksmith to change the lock and provide new keys. I purchased a condo that was a foreclosure and neither the bank or the HOA had a key. When I spoke with the Post Office, I learned that most community mailboxes are no longer under the USPS authority and they no longer provide or maintain them, it is the responsibility of the HOA/COA. The post office can verify which physical mailbox is assigned to each address/unit though.
Don't pay a locksmith. Seriously. It's less than $10 and you only need a flat head screwdriver and a socket wrench. Take you no more than 15 minutes. You just need the mail carrier to help pop out the old chuck from the back by removing the clamp.
I'm in contract for a property in an HOA, and their specific instructions include the fact that there is a key for the box, and it is held by the local USPS office, NOT the HOA.
My local post office replaced the lock and gave me keys at no charge.
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