Another important point: If you apply for spousal benefits now and your husband passes away later, you can switch to survivor benefits. The reduction in your survivor benefit would be based on your age at the time you apply for survivor benefits, not when you applied for spousal benefits. If you can manage financially, waiting until your full retirement age to claim spousal benefits would give you the full 50% of his PIA. However, there's always the time value of money to consider - getting some benefits for 4 years versus waiting for the full amount. I suggest creating a simple spreadsheet to calculate your lifetime expected benefits under different claiming scenarios. This can help you make a more informed decision based on your specific financial situation.

I went through something very similar with my mom a few years ago! One thing that really helped us was getting her complete earnings record from SSA (not just the online summary) to make sure all her work history was captured. You can request this by calling or visiting a local office. Also, since you mentioned your husband just turned 65, his SSDI benefits will automatically convert to regular retirement benefits at his full retirement age, but the dollar amount stays exactly the same. This won't affect your spousal benefit calculations at all. For what it's worth, we decided to have my mom start her spousal benefits early because we needed the monthly income, even though it meant a permanent reduction. Every family's situation is different, but sometimes the guaranteed money now is worth more than the potential for higher payments later. The peace of mind was valuable too. Have you considered visiting your local SSA office in person? I know it's a hassle, but we found the face-to-face service was much better than trying to get through on the phone.

I'm new to this community and going through a very similar situation with my disabled daughter's SSI application. Our representative also told us that property taxes and homeowners insurance weren't needed, which immediately seemed wrong to me since these are major housing expenses. Reading through all of your experiences has been incredibly helpful and confirms my suspicions that this is a widespread training issue across SSA offices. The consistency of representatives giving identical incorrect information is really concerning, especially when it affects benefit calculations for our most vulnerable children. Emma Wilson's insider perspective has been invaluable - having confirmation from someone who actually worked in the system that ALL housing expenses should be included gives me the confidence I need to call back and advocate properly. I had no idea Technical Experts who specialize in childhood SSI claims even existed, but I'm definitely going to ask for one when I call. It's frustrating that we have to become SSA policy experts just to ensure our disabled children get the benefits they're entitled to, but I'm grateful for this community support. The advice about documentation, POMS references, and being persistent but polite is exactly what I needed to hear. Rachel, I hope your call went well! Please update us when you can - your experience will definitely help guide the rest of us who are dealing with this same issue.

I'm new here but wanted to share that I went through something very similar with my disabled son's SSI application last year. Our initial representative told us the same thing about property taxes and insurance not being needed, and we ended up with a benefit calculation that seemed too low. After reading stories like yours in various forums, I called back and specifically asked for a Technical Expert. The difference was night and day - the TE immediately recognized that all housing costs should have been included and corrected our case. It took about 6 weeks to get the adjustment processed, but my son's monthly benefit increased significantly once they factored in our complete housing expenses. The key things that helped me were: 1) Being persistent but polite when asking for a specialist, 2) Having all my documentation ready (property tax bills, insurance statements, utility bills), and 3) asking them to note in the file that incomplete information was collected during the initial interview due to rep error, not parent oversight. Don't wait - call as soon as possible before they finalize the determination. Once it's processed incorrectly, fixing it takes much longer. Your grandson deserves the full benefit amount he's entitled to, and you're absolutely right to question this. Good luck!

I'm dealing with the exact same situation! Applied online in mid-February for benefits starting in September 2025 (I'll be 66 and 4 months). Haven't heard a peep from SSA and my status has been stuck on "under review" for almost a month now. I was really starting to panic, especially after seeing so many posts about people getting calls within 48 hours of applying. But after reading through all these responses, I feel so much better! The explanation about SSA prioritizing immediate start cases first and then working backwards makes perfect sense. Since we're all still 5-6 months out from our benefit start dates, we're just not urgent cases right now. It's actually reassuring to know that no contact often means everything is proceeding normally for straightforward applications like ours. Thanks for posting this question - you've helped calm the nerves of quite a few of us who are in the same boat!

I'm in almost the exact same situation and this thread has been a lifesaver for my anxiety! Applied online in early February for benefits starting in September 2025 (I'll be 66 and 2 months). Like so many others here, no call from SSA and my status has been "under review" for over a month. I was convinced I'd made some error on my application, especially after seeing posts about people getting calls within days. What really helped me understand was the explanation about SSA processing applications in different queues based on start date proximity. It makes total sense that they'd prioritize immediate benefit cases over those of us who are still 6+ months out. The fact that so many people here have shared nearly identical experiences - no contact, months of "under review" status, then smooth processing - really confirms this is just how the system works for delayed start applications. I'm definitely going to follow the advice about waiting until I'm about 3 months out before getting concerned. For now, I'll just check my mySocialSecurity account monthly instead of obsessing over it weekly. Thanks to everyone who shared their timelines - it's amazing how much peace of mind comes from knowing this is completely normal!

I'm getting so confused by all the different rules! Let me see if I understand correctly: 1. My husband can apply for spousal benefits based on my SSDI 2. He'll get either that OR his own benefit (whichever is higher) 3. If he claims at 63, he gets a reduced amount 4. If he's earning too much, they'll take some back So is there ANY advantage to him claiming early? Or should he just wait until his Full Retirement Age? His health isn't great either, so we're worried about waiting too long...

Hey Sean! I went through something similar with my parents a few years ago. One thing that really helped us was creating a simple spreadsheet to compare the scenarios: 1. What he'd get claiming his own benefit at 63 (reduced) 2. What he'd get claiming spousal benefit at 63 (35% of your PIA) 3. What he'd get waiting until his FRA for either option We plugged in his estimated earnings from part-time work and factored in the earnings test deductions. It made the decision much clearer when we could see the actual dollar amounts side by side. Also, since you mentioned his health concerns - that's definitely a factor to consider. The "break-even" analysis is important, but peace of mind and having income now can be worth the reduction if you're worried about future health issues. Have you been able to find out what your actual PIA is? That's the key number you need to calculate the spousal benefit amounts. It should be on your SSDI award letter or your my Social Security account.

This has been such an incredibly informative discussion! As someone who works with seniors navigating Social Security benefits, I can't stress enough how valuable this real-world experience sharing is. What strikes me most is how TechNinja's success story demonstrates that persistence and knowledge really pay off - literally in this case! For anyone else reading this thread who might be in a similar situation, I'd add one more tip: if you're married and one spouse is receiving SSDI while the other is on retirement benefits, it's worth reviewing your situation annually. Sometimes people's circumstances change (like cost of living adjustments affecting benefit amounts) that could make spousal benefits newly available or more advantageous. Also, keep in mind that this spousal benefit eligibility works both ways - whether it's the older spouse on retirement and younger spouse on SSDI (like TechNinja's situation) or vice versa (like Dylan's upcoming situation). The $300 monthly increase TechNinja secured could amount to over $3,600 annually - that's significant money that many people are leaving on the table simply because they don't know these rules exist!

This thread has been absolutely invaluable! I'm in a very similar situation - my husband has been on SSDI for about 6 months (he's 58) and I've been collecting my own Social Security retirement since I turned 62 last year. My benefit is only $950 monthly while his SSDI is $2,200. Based on all the helpful information shared here, it sounds like I could potentially get an additional $150 per month (bringing me up to 50% of his $2,200 = $1,100). I had no idea this was even possible! I'm definitely going to call SSA next week to apply. One question though - since I took my retirement benefits early at 62 (before my full retirement age), will that affect my eligibility for spousal benefits in any way? I know there are different rules sometimes when you take early retirement, so I want to make sure I understand before I call. Thank you to everyone who shared their experiences - TechNinja's success story gives me so much hope that this will work out!