Social Security
What The 50+ Population Should Know About Retirement Planning
While no one should wait until their 50s to start retirement planning, this article does note four things that can be done as one approaches the decade before retirement. This is a list to which everyone 50 and older should adhere: 1.)…
Social Security – a record income in 2018
With all the gloom surrounding Social Security’s long term fiscal health, one fact rises above that. The income the program generated in 2018 surpassed $1 trillion for the first time ever. The program had been forecast to run a deficit. …
Delaying Social Security yields bigger monthly payouts
Social Security is a complex program with no simple answer regarding when one should start receiving benefits. But one axiom is absolutely true– the longer you wait, the more money you’ll get. This piece by Tanza Loudenback in Business Insider provides…
Widows, widowers and Social Security benefits
Mary Beth Franklin, writing for Investment News, notes surviving spouses have more claiming options than other types of Social Security beneficiaries, but timing is crucial. As an example, full retirement age for survivor benefits may be different than the full retirement age…
Social Security – Maybe It Shouldn’t Be For Everyone?
Stephen Kent’s op-ed in The Washington Examiner takes a totally different view of Social Security that no one is yet willing to even discuss. He believes the country lacks a political will to address Social Security’s problems. In Kent’s view, Congress should change…
Would raising taxes cure Social Security’s ills?
An easily quantifiable way to solve Social Security’s shortfall would be to increase to the 6.2% tax rate that employers and employees each pay on the first $132,900 in income in 2019. Matthew Frankel explores how much of a tax increase it would take…
Claiming benefits at age 70 is usually the way to go
Experts on Social Security generally agree on one thing, delaying benefits as long as possible is smart. It pays to wait, with one’s benefit increasing 8% per year from full retirement age (now 66 to 67) to age 70, the…
Rep. Adrian Smith (R-NE) says strengthen Soc Sec
Congressman Adrian Smith (R-Nebraska), a member of the Ways and Means Committee, summarized the challenges facing Social Security as referenced in the annual Trustees Report of April 22nd. Calling the report “alarming”, he challenged Congress to tackle the looming insolvency…
Social Security – It’s approaching CRISIS
“Tomorrow is here.” So says Marc Goldwein, senior vice president and Senior Policy Director for the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, writing this op-ed in The Hill. What was once a concern and then a challenge is close to becoming a…
Advantages and Drawbacks of Taking Social Security at 65
Full retirement age for Social Security is now between 66 and 67, depending on birth year. It is possible to and may be tempting to begin Social Security benefits at age 65 in tandem with applying for Medicare. But, as…