COLA
Where will you be on October 12th?
Are you waiting for October 12, 2023, at around 8:30 a.m.? If so, you are not alone. More than 67 million Social Security recipients will be waiting to hear the Social Security Administration announcement of the 2024 cost-of-living adjustment. However,…
Some of Social Security’s rules change every year
Around October 12th, the federal government will announce some of the new Social Security rules for 2024. Among those new rules will be the 2024 COLA, a higher wage cap for tax purposes, and a higher earnings threshold for earned…
Could hurricanes play important role in the 2024 COLA?
How will the heightened hurricane activity this season affect the 2024 Social Security cost-of-living- adjustment? Some experts are expectorating on how the storms will impact supply shortages and price increases. Gas prices contribute to the inflation index used for calculating…
The two events that could reduce your Social Security Increase in 2024
The Social Security’s Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) is to ensure that the purchasing power of Social Security benefits does not erode by inflation. COLA calculation is based on the percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and…
COLA Watch: We’re in the Homestretch for a 2024 Figure
We’re now in the third quarter of the year, and the projections for 2024’s Social Security cost-of-living adjustment are starting to come into focus. Remember, of course, that each year’s COLA calculation results from comparing the third quarter average Consumer…
COLA Expectations Must be Tempered for 2024
Trevor Jennewine reviews the large 8.7% cost of living adjustment (COLA) granted to Social Security beneficiaries in January 2023. It was the result of very high inflation not seen in several decades. But inflation has slowed greatly, which will translate…
What is the latest estimate on 2024 COLA
The Department of Labor released The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) numbers for May 2023, with inflation falling to 4%; this was the smallest 12-month increase since the period ending March 2021. So, what will this mean…
How to fix Social Security before benefits are cut
Many Americans think since Congress resolved the debt limit crisis by suspending it until 2025, all is well with the federal funding of government programs. That is not the case. For the past thirteen years, the Social Security program has…
Lower inflation means lower COLA
2023 saw one of the highest Cost-of-living-adjustments increases since 1981. But will Social Security beneficiaries receive another significant increase in 2024? Although it is too early to calculate the 2024 COLA amount, Keith Speights suggests that retirees are better off…
Claiming Social Security Benefits–What Time is the Right Time?
That’s one of those questions that typically gets a response of, “Well, it depends.” As frustrating as that may be, it does encapsulate the point that the answer does in fact depend on some significant variables. Deciding when to claim…