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Social Security (and Disability) and Medical Debt…A Complex Issue
For seniors carrying substantial medical debt, the garnishment of federal benefit payments, specifically Social Security and Disability payments, can produce frightening anxiety at a time of extreme vulnerability. CBSNews.com contributor Angelica Leicht helps relieve some of that anxiety with an…
Here’s a claiming strategy that may be worth considering, depending on nuances.
For claimants having dependent children under 18, there are provisions in the Social Security rulebook that could make it beneficial to file at age 62 but remain fully employed. It’s called a “claim-early-and-keep-working” approach that would enable payment of benefits…
“AI Apocalypse” Downplayed, Impact on Workforce Not as Great as Feared.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, speaking at a conference last week, publicly announced that “AI would not lead to a global ‘jobs apocalypse’ and the technology had not claimed as many white-collar jobs as he had feared.” His remarks and the…
Benefits Calculated for an Early Filer Can Increase…Here’s How
Nearly a quarter of those reaching Social Security’s early retirement age (62) elect to take that step and absorb the benefit reduction—30% if your full retirement age is 67. They assume that to be a permanent reduction, and in the…
The Evolving Retirement Playbook: What Has Changed?
Many seniors currently living in retirement have traveled the same road: get an education, find a stable job, and launch a career that will last about 49 years. And along the way, be systematic about saving for those “golden years,”…
Social Security Insolvency: Thoughts on Preparing for the Worst
Social Security’s projected inability to pay scheduled benefits in full is garnering increasing airtime in the media today. As the trust fund’s full depletion looms closer and closer, this level of attention will undoubtedly continue to ramp up, as will…
Advice to Those Just Begining a Career
So much has been written over the past few years about the critical importance of preparing financially for the future–and even more explicitly–for retirement, and in most cases, it comes down to being diligent in accumulating wealth for those later…
SSI Rule Change Warning Issued
An article posted yesterday on newsweek.com explains the implications of a proposed rule change that could affect benefit levels for “hundreds of thousands of Americans, including many of the most financially vulnerable.” The proposed ruling would change “how household income…
Changing the Payroll Tax Rate to Address Social Security’s Shortfall
How Much of an Increase would it take? As various organizations weigh in with specific suggestions to fix Social Security’s looming financial train wreck, we often see proposals to raise the payroll tax rate to bolster the revenue side of…
Social Security COLA and Inflation: Defining the Shortfall
With inflation resurfacing as a concern (think oil prices and their effect on so many areas of the economy), and as a variety of pundits offer projections on what next year’s Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) will be, now’s a…