Question about what qualifies for 40 quarters of Social Security credits

Thanks for explaining! So if she does handle tenant calls, arranges repairs, shows the properties to new renters, etc. - all that could potentially count? Does she need to set up a formal property management business or can she just report it as self-employment on her taxes? And how would the IRS view someone suddenly starting to report property management income when they've owned rentals for years?

If she's genuinely performing property management duties like handling tenant relations, coordinating repairs, showing units, and similar activities, then yes, that can potentially qualify as self-employment income. She doesn't necessarily need to form a separate business entity - she can operate as a sole proprietor and report the income on Schedule C. As for the timing concern, there's nothing inherently wrong with starting to report management income now. Many landlords initially handle properties passively but later take a more active management role. Just make sure she's actually performing these services and keeping good records of her management activities, time spent, and the reasonable value of those services.

How exactly does this work? Does it connect to the Social Security database somehow? I'm always wary of giving access to my SSN or personal info to random websites.

I'm curious about this too. My dad is in a similar boat but I thought Social Security records were pretty set in stone. How can a website find "missing quarters" if the government doesn't have them recorded?

The system doesn't directly connect to SSA databases - you upload your Social Security statement which has your earnings record (you can get this from ssa.gov). The AI analyzes that document along with any other tax records you provide to identify discrepancies and potential issues. The reason it can find "missing quarters" is because sometimes income was reported incorrectly by employers, or there were classification issues with certain types of income. The government only knows what was reported to them, and mistakes happen. The tool helps identify these mistakes so you can request corrections through the proper SSA channels.

Wait, how does this actually work? Are they like a priority line or something? I've been trying to get through to social security for weeks.

Sounds like a scam to me. There's no way around the SSA phone system - everybody has to wait their turn. What are they doing, paying SSA employees under the table to answer their calls first? 🙄

It's not a priority line - they use technology to navigate the phone systems and wait on hold for you. When an actual person picks up, you get a call back and are connected immediately. They basically handle the waiting part so you don't have to sit there listening to hold music for hours. No, they definitely aren't paying SSA employees or doing anything shady. They're just solving the problem of long hold times using clever technology. You still talk to the same regular SSA representatives everyone else does, you just don't have to waste hours of your life waiting to reach them.

Thanks for mentioning this! She's actually widowed - her husband passed away 5 years ago. I believe she's currently getting some smaller widow's benefits, but we were told she could get more if she qualified on her own record since she had higher income during the years she did work. Is that correct? Does being a widow change the advice about trying to earn those last few quarters?

Yes, that changes things. As a widow, she may already be eligible for survivor benefits based on her late husband's record. If her own benefit would be higher than the survivor benefit, then it makes sense to try to qualify with those extra quarters. Survivor benefits are typically 100% of what the deceased spouse was receiving if claimed at full retirement age. If your mom's own potential benefit would be higher, then pursuing those additional quarters could definitely be worthwhile. I'd suggest contacting SSA directly to get a comparison of what she'd receive as a survivor versus what she might get on her own record if she completes the 40 quarters.

This is what my dad did. He was 3 quarters short and took a job as a grocery store greeter for 4 months. Made minimum wage but it was enough to get those last credits. Way less complicated than trying to reclassify rental income.

That's a great suggestion about volunteer work with stipends! I hadn't thought about that option. The idea of checking her existing earnings record is really smart too - I'm wondering if we should use one of those services mentioned earlier like taxr.ai to analyze her current record before she starts trying to earn new quarters. It would be awful to have her work for months only to find out there was an error in her existing record that could have been corrected instead. Plus, if there are any discrepancies, it might be easier to fix those than to earn entirely new quarters through employment. @Lauren Johnson - do you know roughly how much those volunteer stipend positions typically pay? We d'want to make sure it s'enough to actually qualify for the quarterly credits.