[sourdough]

OP it depends on the length of the trips and how you have all of your "stuff" in order. I don't get any mail I "need" to read on an immediate basis.

We take trips up to 5 months in length. All our bills are paid electronically and I get email confirmations of those transactions. I subscribe to a service from the USPS where I get notifications and pics of any incoming mail/packages on a daily basis.

We have an arrangement with our carrier to hold our mail from the time we leave until we return. Haven't had an issue in years. I HAVE had multiple issues when I've tried to rent mail boxes, have mail forwarded etc. - it always fails. This works for us.