Ask Larry
At the moment’s Social Safety column addresses questions on figuring profit charges, taking retirement advantages earlier than later divorced spousal advantages and whether or not the 5.9% COLA applies to all advantages. Larry Kotlikoff is a Professor of Economics at Boston College and the founder and president of Financial Safety Planning, Inc.
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Have Social Safety questions of your individual you’d like answered? Ask Larry about Social Safety right here.
How Can I Decide When My Social Safety Retirement Profit Will Be $2,000?
Hello Larry, I’m 64 and eight months. If I began to gather Social Safety at this time, I’d obtain about $1,750. I need to begin gathering once I get to $2,000. How do I determine at what age that will be? The sliding scale on the SSA web site doesn’t embrace the 5.9% enhance presently as it’s previous to it going into impact. Thanks, Alice
Hello Alice, I’d begin by calculating your main insurance coverage quantity (PIA), which is the quantity you would be paid should you begin drawing at your full retirement age of 66 and 6 months. For every month that you just begin drawing previous to your FRA, your profit price could be 5/9ths of 1% decrease than your PIA. Or for every month you wait previous FRA to begin drawing your profit price could be 2/3rds of 1% greater than your PIA.
The profit calculator in my firm’s software program — Maximize My Social Safety or MaxiFi Planner —might do all the crucial math for you, in addition to analyze your entire submitting choices as a way to decide your finest technique for maximizing your advantages. Social Safety calculators supplied by different firms or non-profits might present correct recommendations in the event that they had been constructed with excessive care. Finest, Larry
Can I Take My Personal Advantages At Full Retirement Age And Change To Divorced Spousal Advantages?
Hello Larry, I’m planning on submitting for divorced spousal advantages. Can I take my retirement profit at 67 after which change to divorced spousal advantages at his full retirement age, which is eighteen months after mine. Thanks, Debby
Hello Debby, Individuals born after 1/1/1954 are usually not allowed to use for spousal, divorced spousal, or their very own Social Safety retirement advantages with out being deemed to have utilized for all of these advantages. So the one means that you may declare your individual advantages with out claiming your divorced spousal advantages on the identical time is should you aren’t but eligible for divorced spousal advantages if you apply to your personal advantages.
And so long as each you and your ex-husband are not less than 62 and in case your divorce has been last for not less than two years, you then’d be probably eligible for divorced spousal advantages so long as your ex-spouse’s main insurance coverage quantity (PIA) is greater than twice as a lot as your individual PIA.
Moreover, you’ll be able to’t begin drawing your individual advantages first after which change to a different kind of profit later. When you declare your individual advantages, should you additionally qualify for one more kind of profit you would be paid your individual profit plus a partial, or extra, auxiliary (e.g. spousal, divorced spousal) or survivor profit.
Even should you had been allowed to do what you recommend in your query although, it would not be a sensible technique. For those who’re eligible for divorced spousal advantages and should you file for them at your full retirement age (FRA) or later then your divorced spousal price would not be lowered for age even when your ex-husband hasn’t but reached FRA. In different phrases, you’ll acquire nothing by ready previous your FRA to say any divorced spousal advantages for which you qualify, even when your ex-husband is youthful than you might be. Finest, Larry
Is There Any Motive For My DWB Profit Not Growing By The Full 5.9% COLA?
Hello Larry, A 5.9% COLA has been utilized to my SSDI however to not my DWB advantages. My DWB profit elevated solely $30 per thirty days (a 3.25% enhance). Is there a cause for this? Thanks, Yvonne
Hello Yvonne, I do not know of any cause why the 5.9% enhance would not apply to each of your advantages. Disabled widow’s advantages (DWB) are lowered for age, however your gross quantity ought to nonetheless go up by roughly 5.9% as soon as the price of dwelling (COLA) enhance is utilized.
The bottom month-to-month Half B Medicare premium price is growing by $21.60 in 2022, however that would not have an effect on the rise your gross profit price. Nonetheless although, you probably have Half B premiums deducted out of your advantages then your web profit enhance will quantity to considerably lower than 5.9%. In any case although, should you do not suppose that your profit price is right it is best to most likely name Social Safety to attempt to get a proof. Finest, Larry
