What You Need To Know About Extra Help With - Social Security: Fill & Download for Free

Well, first, it seems, you have to teach them a little bit of math. Since that is the worst subject academically for most people that I run into, it would seem that you have an uphill battle!What is truly appalling about our public education system, is that even AFTER explaining the Social Security system to near retirees, they refuse to look at the facts, and stick with whatever decision they have already cherished in their minds for years! A reference librarian, who I recently attempted to discuss Social Security benefits with, has to listen to nut jobs talking about all SORTS of stupid and crazy stuff EVERY SINGLE DAY! So, they at least HAVE an excuse for tuning out all financial wisdom that comes their way!You, on the other hand, have no excuse whatsoever!There are two components that comprise the only sensible answer.Immediate cash, and “lost opportunity cost” cash.If you are properly cynical that the government has YOUR BEST INTERESTS at heart, then you might have an easier time swallowing the bitter pill that I am about to demonstrate to you.If you are already convinced, then let me congratulate you, and suggest that you skip ahead and save some time on reviewing basic quantum physics and hyperbolic functions!The government doesn’t love you. They make seemingly good deals, and then stick fish hooks in the middle of them, hoping that you’ll just swallow the whole bit of propaganda, “hook, line and sinker”, as the fishing enthusiasts like to say!First of all, the catch with taking your Social Security benefit payment later, is the chance that you will die. It happens. I am working with a woman right now, who's late husband died ONE MONTH before getting his first Social Security check. She lost the apartments, and then lost the house. No money coming in to make all of the payments, bills, taxes due, oh my goodness, life got SO out of hand when she went into grief mode! Her late husband? He doesn’t care that he lost everything that he had coming, he is DEAD! Score one for Uncle Sam!Next, the government doesn’t give you an 8% return on your money, as it sounds, (which would make this an almost reasonable sounding rate of return on a normal investment), now do they?Nope.You FORFEIT the entire wad of cash.Let’s be charitable. Let’s pretend that you are foolish for only ONE YEAR, and then you wake up to reality. Thus, it COULD be argued that you have a -92% rate of return on your forfeiture! You got an extra 8% the following year, so you didn’t lose absolutely everything, just ALMOST EVERYTHING!If you keep your head in the sand for two or more years, then you DO LOSE EVERYTHING! Yep! That’s -100% per year for you!Naturally, this is a fairly horrible rate of return on an investment, but you did poorly at math, so don’t let it bother you too much, okay?Some of you are saying, in protest, “but I don’t NEED the money right now!”Sure you don’t!So, send it to ME, and I’ll give you 9% more next year, and the same bonus every year thereafter, until you die! What? Now you are having TRUST ISSUES? I am FAR more honest than the government will ever be!My wife paid an additional $9,000 in Social Security “contributions” the last year that she worked. Her benefit was supposed to go up based on the average amount that her wages increased her earnings record. Since she had a couple of zero years, one of them was supposed to have dropped off. Hah! Her monthly benefit check went up $3.49 the next year. Which I personally believe was nothing more than a COLA on her existing benefit check.So, time for a little math. $9,000 / $3.49 per month = 2,578.8 months until she BREAKS EVEN! 214 years, to be exact! Do you REALLY think that the government is going to play fair, when they write the rules, interpret the rules, and then enforce the rules? Especially if the system is going to go bankrupt in a few years at the present style of paying the avalanche of old people coming on?Let’s do a simplified example.You were SUPPOSED to get, oh, let’s say, $1,000 per month. You gave it up for a year. That is $12,000.00 in hard, cold cash, right? C’mon, surely we can agree on THIS much, no?Next, you are going to TAKE your benefit check next year, so you are going to get an 8% increase, right?Wow! You gave up $12,000 in order to get $1,080 per month! FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE!Good thinking!$12,000 / $80 per month increase = 150 months to BREAK EVEN! Yeah, you heard me, correctly! You had better not do anything else stupid for the next TWELVE AND A HALF YEARS, because if you do, the government is going to WIN THE BET, AND KEEP ALL OF THE MONEY!So, you are starting to doubt whether or not waiting each year for an additional 8% is all it is cracked up to be?Just wait.It gets worse!MUCH WORSE!It is a commonly reported fact that HALF of all American citizens never got around to saving even ONE PENNY for retirement! HALF!ZERO DOLLARS upon retirement!So, chances are pretty good that you might be one of them! Right?Now, WHY DIDN’T you put away more money for retirement? No, don’t bother making excuses. It really doesn’t matter, because we are now going to show you the killer, hidden cost of waiting to take your Social Security benefit check! Lost opportunity cost!You didn’t make larger contributions to your retirement accounts because YOU NEEDED THE MONEY!So, let’s say, just for argument’s sake, that you wake up in a cold sweat, realizing the error of your ways, and you IMMEDIATELY file for your Social Security benefit, AND ASK FOR BACK PAY RETROACTIVELY!You get to practice discipline, and act like a grownup, by not spending that chunk of money, because you DON’T NEED THE MONEY, REMEMBER?You keep working at your job, past the Full Retirement Age, (FRA), because you were going to anyway.So, your Social Security benefit check doesn’t get reduced, by the sneaky system of now PENALIZING you for “making money” while collecting Social Security benefits.If you are NOT at FRA, then see some of my other Quora answers on this topic to learn other possible ways around this difficulty.Now, what you do, is you LIVE on your SSA benefit check. Worth $12,000/year, in this hypothetical example, (you would adjust the numbers for your particular reality). And you deposit an equal amount in your IRA and your spousal IRA, $6,000 each, for the year, right? If you are single, just contribute the whole $12,000 representing AT LEAST what you are now getting from your Social Security payment to your 401(k), or split it between your standard, (traditional), IRA and your 401(k). Either way, you get a deduction from your taxable, earned income, of $12,000 for the year. If you got back pay, then boost up your first year contributions by a pro rata amount per paycheck for those funds as well.What tax bracket are you in? State AND Federal combined? 15%? 25%? 50%?Let’s say that you are a “typical” couple, and are in the 35% tax bracket.No matter HOW BAD you are at math, I’ll bet you can correctly answer the following question: Which is larger, 8% or 35%?So, the bottom line, if you are not yet maxing out all of your eligible contributions to over 5 different types of retirement plans, then you are losing BIG MONEY, big, fat, GUARANTEED money, by not taking your Social Security benefit LAST YEAR!I won’t make you cry over spilled milk. I will not put you through the torture of seeing how much MORE it grows every additional year that you wait!Suffice it to say, the time to change your mind is in the Present!Ask your old 4th grade math teacher to help you run the numbers, if this all seems too complicated to think out carefully!Now, for completeness’ sake, let’s answer the original question: How do I decide whether it would be better to spend money in my 401(k) (and wait for the 8% to kick in BIG time and make me incredibly rich), or take Social Security?Show of hands, please!That’s good! Most of you got it!Spend all of your taxable money first, including Social Security. Which might, or might not, be taxed, depending on your total income level. Sorry if you did SO badly at math that you are now so unfortunate as to not have to pay any income taxes on your Social Security benefit!Next, spend money from your 401(k) and taxable IRA accounts.LAST, and I DO mean ABSOLUTELY LAST, take out money from your Roth IRA!Anybody who talks about marginal tax rates, or other tax code mumbo jumbo, is overlooking something REALLY basic!Grow your tax free money for as long as possible. THAT is how you maximize your share of the pie!As always, upvote and follow me, either if you are entertained by my answers, or, if you would like to learn how to MAKE 9% or better, on your no longer deferred Social Security benefit payment! Beating out Uncle Sam by over 1% annually for the rest of your life!Thanks for watching!(Content: FB CC)

Honestly, the 25 year caveat in the question eliminates any possibility of early retirement.If you are interested in retiring early, then the Social Security Administration (SSA) website has a retirement calculator. This calculator will allow you to run numerous what-if scenarios. If you find that this isn't helpful, you should make an appointment with your local SSA office since they can offer detailed and accurate information. However, write down all of your questions and have them in hand at your appointment. The SSA people will certainly answer any and all questions, but they will not offer any advice or make any suggestions. If there is a little-known rule that would be to your benefit, they will not tell you about it. It is entirely your responsibility to know about the various benefits for which you may be eligible. As long as you know about the benefit, you can ask any questions you wish about that benefit and you will receive honest answers. If you need specific details, then be prepared to ask because they not offer the information. I realize that this doesn't sound very helpful, but it is the way the beneficiary one-on-one contact at the Social Security office works. I retired about one year ago and a friend provided this advice. He was right and I was prepared.I can do a little math that produces the correct deduction for a particular benefit amount. This is merely an example of what to expect, but it will not be accurate to your particular situation given the fact that only you and the US government are aware of your lifetime earnings. These numbers assume that you have a sufficient number of working credits to retire at 65. The benefit amount will not take into consideration any COLA (Cost of Living Adjustments) or other possible benefit deductions like prior Social Security Disability payments, a public sector pension which can trigger Government Pension Offset or a private sector pension which can trigger the Windfall Elimination Provision.The question asks about retiring at 65 instead of 67. I can only assume that your full eligibility is in fact 67 years of age. There is no mention whether early retirement is a full two years, 24 months, more than 24 months or less than 24 months. Therefore, I will assume 24 months. Social Security states that the first 36 months of early retirement benefits will be subject to a benefit reduction equal to 5/9 (or .5556) of 1% per month.A 5/9 of 1% for 24 months reduction yields 13.33% less in monthly benefits or saying it in another way the reduced benefit will be 86.67% of the full benefit allowed.For example, let's assume that you have been told by SSA that you are eligible for a $2,000 per month benefit at age 67.Thus, you can expect to receive 86.67% of the full benefit of $2,000. To derive the reduced benefit amount, we multiply the total benefit and the early retirement reduced benefit percentage or $2,000 * 86.67 = $1,733.33 or ($2,000 * .8667 = $1733.33 rounded to two decimal places). When we compare the two amounts, there is a difference of $266.67. This might represent the ability to pay all of your monthly bills and a small, but important cushion.Being lazy, I used Excel to do the heavy lifting of adding up the monthly benefits. Below I am providing a subset of the cells of my spreadsheet.Obviously, the first 24 months (cells) for 67 Year Old are set to zero (0) since no benefits paid until full retirement, 67, age is reached. On the other hand the 65 Year Old column has received $1,733.33 every month. The following month, 25, is particularly striking since it is the first month that the 67 Year Old receives a benefit check of $2,000, compared to the 65 Year Old column with a total of 43,333.33. This represents a substantial difference of $41,333.33 in benefits paid, but this won’t last because the 67 Year Old catches up rather quickly.At month 25 the 67 Year Old has received the $2,000, representing the first month of benefits paid out. The 65 Year Old has received total benefits in the amount of $47,666.67. A substantial difference, which will take some time for the 65 Year Old to equal.Here we are at 60 months or 5 years into receiving benefits. The 67 Year Old column has received total benefits amounting to $72,000, while the 65 Year Old has received a total of $104,000. This represents a benefit gap of $32,000.I have pasted month 120 or 10 years of receiving monthly benefits. The 67 Year Old column has a monthly benefit total of $192,000, while the benefit total for the 65 Year Old stands at $208,000. The total benefit gap now stands at $16,000.Here we are at month 180 or 15 years and in month 180 the totals benefits paid for 67 Year Old is now equal to the total benefits paid the 65 Year Old at $312,000. Beginning in month 181 the 65 Year Old will have a total benefits received greater than the 65 Year Old.At 20 years, 240 months, we see that the 67 Year Old has total benefits of $432,000, compared to $416,000 total benefits for the 67 Year Old. The represents a difference of $16,000.The biggest question of all is one that only you can answer. Can you pay all of your expenses and buy food on the reduced amount that comes with retiring early? If your answer is NO, I DON'T KNOW or MAYBE, then you should probably continue to work until at least age 67, when you can re-evaluate your decision. Ideally , you want to continue working until the answer to the question is an absolute YES. If after taking your benefits early you find that the reduced monthly benefit will force you to scrap the bottom of the barrel to get pay your monthly expenses, then you should probably continue working until you can have a monthly cushion that will help to cover those expenses. Unfortunately, you cannot count on the Social Security COLA to fully cover increases in your expenses, but any increase in the COLA is welcome.Finally, you can actually try out social security. What I mean is that you can make an appointment and meet with your SSA representative. They can tell you precisely the benefit you can expect to receive and the start date for your first check. If after 6 months you decide that you made a mistake or prefer to work, then go back to SSA and tell them that you have changed your mind. They will stop your benefit checks. More importantly, it will be just like you never collected benefits. It’s the equivalent of a social security do over. You can wait until you are 67 or even 70 and your benefits will continue to grow. In our example where you are eligible for $2,000 at age 67, by stopping you benefits and working the 2 extra years you will be eligible to collect the full $2,000 a month when you retire the second time. The key to this little tip/trick is to avoid collecting 12 consecutive months of benefits. If you collect 12 consecutive months of benefits and suspend your benefits for 2 years, you will have to continue collecting the same reduced benefits when you decide to retire a second time. Therefore, stop before you reach 12 consecutive months benefits. They may also ask that you return the amounts paid, but ask if they will accept a repayment plan or if you can work an extra year to make up for the difference in paid versus earned benefits.Good Luck!(Disclaimer: The above is informational only. I do not offer it as advice or a recommendation. Each person considering retirement should consultant with a representative the Social Security Administration. The above information represents information that I picked up through reading and talking with Social Security Administration staff. All of the above calculations are based on information percentages and other information that is readily available on the Social Security Administration.)

Social Security is a application run through the federal authorities. The application works by using the usage of taxes paid into a agree with fund to provide benefits to those who are eligible. You’ll need a Social Security number when you apply for a task.How Do Benefits Work and How Can I Qualify?While you work, you pay Social Security taxes. This tax money goes into a agree with fund that pays blessings to:Those who are presently retiredTo people with disabilitiesTo the surviving spouses and youngsters of workers who've diedEach year you work, you’ll get credits that will help you come to be eligible for benefits whilst it’s time on the way to retire. Find all the advantages Social Security Administration (SSA) offers.There are 4 main kinds of blessings that the SSA offers:Retirement advantagesDisability advantagesBenefits for spouses or other survivors of a member of the family who's passedSupplemental Security Income (SSI)How to Open a “my Social Security” AccountIf you get hold of or will get hold of Social Security advantages, you may need to open a "my Social Security" account. This online account is a carrier from the SSA that permits you to hold track of and manipulate your SSA advantages. You can also make changes for your Social Security record.How to Find More HelpIf you've got particular questions on your Social Security advantages, you can:Review the Social Security Administration’s often requested questions.Contact Social Security Administration directly.Social Security Retirement Benefits PlannerHow much Social Security income you’ll acquire depends on:Your income over your lifetimeThe age at which you'll start receiving blessingsWhether you'll be eligible to receive a spouse’s gain as opposed to your very ownYou can use Social Security’s retirement advantages planner to:Estimate your benefits at every age, from 62 (the earliest you could acquire them) to 70 (when you hit your finest amount)Apply for retirement blessingsLearn about earning limits if you plan to work even as receiving Social Security benefitsGet, Replace, or Correct a Social Security CardWhat is a Social Security Card?Your Social Security card is an essential piece of identification that you'll want to get a job and collect Social Security and different authorities benefits.When you apply for a Social Security number (SSN), the Social Security Administration (SSA) will assign you a nine-digit number, that's the equal number printed on the Social Security card that SSA will difficulty you. If you exchange your name, you will want to get a corrected card.How to Get a Social Security CardGather your files—Learn what documents you'll want to get an original, replacement, or corrected Social Security card, whether or not it's for a kid or adult, U.S. Citizen or noncitizen.Complete your application—Read the instructions for and fill out an application (PDF, Download Adobe Reader) for a new, replacement, or corrected card.Mail your software—Print your application and find out in which to take it in man or woman or mail it.Getting a Social Security Number for a New BabyWhen to Get a Social Security Number for Your ChildThe easiest way to get a Social Security number on your baby is at the clinic after they're born and whilst you give statistics on your baby’s delivery certificate.If you wait to use for various at a Social Security office, there may be delays even as SSA verifies your toddler’s delivery certificate. Processing times common about weeks. See SSA’s regularly asked questions for an estimate to your state. Learn extra with the Social Security Numbers for Children publication (PDF, Download Adobe Reader).If you want to say your child as a dependent on your income tax return, open a bank account of their name, get medical coverage for them, or apply for government services for them, they may need their own Social Security number.