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Claiming Social Security at 62 can be the right choice
Many Social Security Advisors and Financial Consultants will suggest you delay applying for your Social Security benefits as long as possible because your benefit amount will continue to grow until you are 70 years of age. But there are certain…
Filing for Social Security online is easy, even a “restricted application”
Perhaps a trip to your local, usually crowded Social Security office to wait your turn in the queue isn’t high on your list of favorite things to do. Sometimes, even calling Social Security can require you to exercise controlled patience with a possible…
How to make the most of your 2019 COLA increase
The recently announced COLA increase means that the average beneficiary will be getting about $39 per month ($468 per year) more than they are getting this year. That number varies, of course, based upon whether your actual benefit is less…
What will your 2019 Social Security benefit be?
If you follow the news, by now you know that the Social Security Administration just announced that all recipients will receive a 2.8% Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) starting in 2019. But if you want to know how much that…
Getting Social Security before age 62
Age 62 is the “normal” eligibility age for those wishing to collect Social Security from a lifetime of working, or for the spouse of an eligible retireee. That would be considered “early retirement”, because Social Security’s full retirement age is between 66…
Should a mortgage be paid off when retiring?
Home ownership, of course, is an American dream. But it usually means a debt lasting as much as 30 years, which can often extend into your so-called golden years. While everyone’s goal would be to enter retirement debt-free, the reality…
COLA and the Medicare premium increase: Good news and bad news
Along with the “good news” announcement that Social Security recipients will be getting a 2.8% COLA increase in 2019, comes a “bad news” announcement that the Medicare Part B premium, which is deducted from the Social Security payment to about 70%…
Finding “free” spousal benefits – the Restricted Application
In this article by Laurence Kotlikoff appearing at Forbes, the author of syndicated column “Ask Larry” narrates a conversation he had with friends wherein he found they were missing out on spousal benefits they had been entitled to for years. That’s…
A bad rap for Republicans on Social Security
Listening to the sometimes hysterical hyperbole of liberals in Congress and often in the media, Republicans are the devil incarnate when it comes to Social Security. Accusations that they want to “gut” Social Security at the expense of America’s seniors…
The 2019 Medicare plans with 5 stars
(By Morgan Haefner for Becker’s Hospital Review) CMS released its report card for Medicare Advantage and Part D prescription drug plans Oct. 10. Medicare ranks Medicare Advantage and Part D plans on a quality scale of one to five stars, with five…