There can be confusion about Federal Employees and Social Security about CSRS, FERS, and something called “CSRS offset.” Let’s see how these federal retirement plans interact with Social Security. The Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) was enacted in 1920 to give federal employees pension benefits at retirement. When the Social Security Act was passed in 1935, […]
Social Security does have a maximum payout called the Family Maximum. It may apply to families who are retired, family survivors, and families of a disabled person receiving benefits. There is a formula for the benefit which is complicated. Your Social Security statement specifies what the maximum benefit may be. The values the formula uses […]
Most people don’t realize (or do, but don’t plan for it) that, as a couple, there is lost income from Social Security automatically built in. I discussed examples in a post titled “Social Security and Survivor Considerations.” In this post, the question is … How much money* is needed to replace that lost income? First, the […]
Security Planning isn’t just for people who haven’t claimed yet. People who are already receiving Social Security often forget about other benefits they may be entitled to after having filed. The wise owl circles back to review things they’ve done in the past to be sure something wasn’t forgotten! This is not second guessing – it […]
Did you know that Social Security for couples has a built in pay cut for survivors? How does that happen? Retirement has three basic phases for couples: Phase 1: Both are here – Retirement Plan. Phase 2: One is here as the survivor – Survivor Plan. Phase 3: Neither are here – Estate Plan. Most couples […]
Did you turn 62 by 1 Jan 2016? Your options later if you didn’t. If you did turn 62 by then … … you retain the ability to claim just your spousal benefits (Why? answer later) from your spouses Social Security record when you turn 66 or later (called restricted claim for spousal benefits). With a couple of […]
Okay, the first part of the new Social Security rules* has gone by – we’re into May now and you may have read already about the demise of File and Suspend. Rather than talk about what one could have done (a moot point), I’ll discuss what works now. I’m writing this in early February thinking […]
Changes needed for Social Security to be better funded often ignore a simple point – who benefits from the change? Short answer – anything done, to improve funding, benefits our children and grandchildren. Social Security is a multi-generational program … people forget this when they view it as a government program and mentally picture government (bad) […]
Gone are the days of work, golden watch and retirement with a pension. Few companies offer pensions today and government workers are also being shifted to retirement savings plans where they contribute instead of being solely employer based. Longevity was shorter when pensions were the rule so the pension plan was on the hook for […]
Many people take Social Security too soon because of many different reasons. If you can structure your retirement just a bit differently, delaying Social Security leads to higher benefits once you do start. For some, delaying is not an option because they didn’t save enough for retirement to begin with – and thus Social Security becomes the […]
