One important factor many people overlook is the impact on survivor benefits. If you're married, the higher of the two spouse's benefits becomes the survivor benefit when one passes away. If you expect your benefit to be higher than your spouse's, waiting to claim increases not just your retirement benefit but potentially your spouse's survivor benefit as well. This creates an additional incentive to delay, especially with family longevity on your side. The survivor benefit protection is essentially free "insurance" that comes with delaying your claim. If you're concerned about Social Security's future, remember that any legislative changes would almost certainly be phased in gradually and likely wouldn't affect those already near retirement age. Current retirees and those close to retirement are typically protected in reform proposals.

i think your overthinking this. SS was never meant to be your only retirement income anyway. do you have a 401k or pension? if you got other money coming in just take SS now and enjoy it! none of us know how much time we got left.

THE WHOLE SYSTEM IS RIGGED!! I worked 43 YEARS paying into Social Security and now the government taxes my benefits?? We're being TAXED TWICE on the same money!! Anyone else think this is COMPLETELY UNFAIR??

Thanks everyone for the helpful information! I feel much better understanding how this works now. So to summarize what I've learned: 1. The $4,500 taxable amount from the calculator is likely correct based on our current income 2. We're dangerously close to the second threshold where taxation increases dramatically 3. Need to be careful about RMDs and other income that could push us over 4. The SSA calculator is probably more reliable than random websites I think we'll consult with a tax professional before making any decisions about additional income this year. This has been incredibly helpful!

My wifes cousin said something about a 5 year rule with Roths? Does that matter for this question too??

The SSA rules are SO FRUSTRATING!!! I spent 3 hours on their website trying to figure this out last month and got completely lost in all the legalese. Why can't they just make a simple chart - "these types of income affect benefits, these don't"? Would that be so hard???

dont 4get about medicare!! at 65 you need to sign up for that even if your on disabilty. its different from disabilty medicare and you could get penaltys if you dont signup at 65!!

Thank you all for your helpful responses! I've learned a lot and understand the situation much better now. It looks like I'll continue receiving my current SSDI benefit since it's higher than the spousal benefit I'd be eligible for. I'm going to try the Claimyr service to get through to SSA to confirm everything and make sure there's nothing else I need to know about how my benefits will change when I reach my own FRA. I appreciate everyone taking the time to share your knowledge and experiences!

Quick follow-up since there seems to be some confusion in the thread: survivor benefits reach their maximum at your FRA (66 and 6 months for someone born in 1959), unlike retirement benefits which max out at 70. The survivor benefit will be 100% of what your ex-husband was receiving or would have received at his FRA. And yes, you can absolutely switch between benefits - take survivors at your FRA, continue working (with no earnings limit penalty), then switch to your own retirement at 70 if it would be higher. This strategy could maximize your lifetime benefits.

does anyone know if the 10 year marriage rule is exactly 10 years or can it be like 9 years and 10 months? asking for my friend who's in a similar situation

One thing nobody's mentioned yet - make sure you get the one-time death payment of $255 if you were living with your husband when he passed. It's not much but it's something. Also be aware that if you do get approved for disability, there's a 5-month waiting period before benefits start, but survivor benefits can start right away if you're eligible.

Thank you all for the helpful advice! I've decided to apply for both SSDI and survivor benefits. Based on what everyone's said, it seems like the smartest approach is to try for disability first. If approved, I can get the full survivor benefit even at my age (58). If not approved for disability, I'll need to decide whether to take reduced survivor benefits now or wait until my FRA. I've scheduled a doctor appointment to get more documentation for my disability case. I'll update once I hear something from SSA (which sounds like it might be months from now...).

No, SSA doesn't contact your ex-spouse when you file for divorced spouse benefits. Your ex isn't notified and their benefits aren't affected. The delay is usually administrative - they need to verify your marriage records and confirm eligibility requirements.

Update: My sister called SSA this morning (took almost 2 hours to get through). The representative confirmed that they haven't fully processed her divorced spouse benefit yet! Apparently, they processed her retirement claim first and are still working on the divorced spouse portion. They said it could take another 4-6 weeks to process, but she will receive backpay for the difference once it's done. Thank you everyone for your help! This forum saved her a lot of anxiety.

Good to hear! Dealing with SSA is always soooo confusing. My mom was in a similar spot and the agent she talked to didn't even mention the Medicare Extra Help program being affected! She found out the hard way when her premiums suddenly went up.

Glad you got the information you needed! This is exactly why I always recommend speaking directly with SSA about your specific situation. The rules around these benefits can be quite complex with different programs interacting in ways that aren't always obvious. One additional suggestion - make sure to keep documentation of your reporting (date, time, name of representative if possible). If there's ever a question in the future about whether you reported the change, having that documentation can be invaluable. SSA's internal notes systems aren't always perfect.

Since your Social Security earnings were from the 1970s/1980s, remember that getting those 5 additional credits now won't significantly increase your benefit amount. SS benefits are based on your highest 35 years of indexed earnings. Working just enough to get the 5 credits won't add much to your calculation unless you earn significantly more than in those early years. Still, qualifying for even a small benefit is generally worth it, especially considering Medicare eligibility. If you decide to pursue this, remember that in 2025 you can earn all 4 credits for the year by making $6,920 total ($1,730 per credit).

My neighbor went through something like this. He worked just enough to get his 40 credits, then found out his monthly benefit was only going to be like $120 after WEP. He said even though it wasn't much, it was still free money he would have otherwise left on the table. Plus now his wife gets spousal benefits too I think. You already have 35 credits so might as well get the last 5!

In your specific situation, here's what will likely happen: 1. You'll continue receiving your reduced retirement benefit of $1,250/month until your husband files 2. When he files (regardless of his age), you'll be deemed to have filed for spousal benefits 3. SSA will calculate your spousal benefit (reduced because you started benefits at 62) 4. If that amount is higher than your current $1,250, you'll get the difference added to your check Generally, if your husband's PIA is more than double your PIA, you'll receive some additional amount as a spouse once he files. Given that you mentioned his earnings were "much higher," you'll likely qualify for some additional amount.

Good question about him waiting until 70. Your spousal benefit is based on his PIA (what he'd get at his full retirement age), not his actual benefit amount. So while HE would get a larger benefit by waiting until 70 (about 8% per year in delayed retirement credits), your spousal benefit wouldn't increase beyond 50% of his PIA. However, there's still an advantage to him waiting - if he passes away before you, you'd be eligible for survivor benefits equal to 100% of what he was receiving, including those delayed retirement credits. So his waiting could significantly increase your eventual widow's benefit. Given your age difference and his higher earning history, him delaying benefits could be a good strategy for maximizing your lifetime household benefits, especially if he has longevity in his family.