One more thing to consider - waiting until your FRA gives you more flexibility. At FRA, you could choose to file a "restricted application" for ONLY spousal benefits (if you were born before Jan 2, 1954) while letting your own retirement benefit grow until age 70. This strategy could significantly increase your lifetime benefits. Given your current salary and age, waiting is almost certainly your best financial move.

Thank you all SO MUCH for your helpful responses! Based on everything you've shared, I'm going to hold off on claiming any benefits until at least my FRA. It just doesn't make financial sense to claim early with: - The earnings test that would withhold most benefits - Permanent reduction for early claiming - Deemed filing requirements - Tax implications I'm going to look more closely at my own earnings record and see what my benefit would be at 67 versus my husband's spousal benefit amount. Really appreciate all the knowledge and experience shared here!

my friend waited till 70 to maximize her benefit and then died at 71...all that waiting for nothing!

Based on your situation, filing now appears to be a sound decision. The calculation your financial advisor provided is accurate - the breakeven period of 17 years for those 4 months of delay is quite long, especially considering the survivor benefit would replace your retirement benefit when your husband passes. One clarification regarding work: at your age (past FRA), there is no earnings limit at all. You could work full-time earning any amount with no reduction in benefits. The earnings limit only applies before FRA. For a complete analysis, you might also want to consider: 1. Tax implications - additional income could potentially push you into a higher tax bracket 2. Medicare premiums - higher income can affect IRMAA surcharges with a 2-year lag But in most cases, these factors wouldn't outweigh the benefit of claiming now rather than waiting those additional 4 months.

I see from your comments that you're planning to call SSA. When you do, make sure to ask specifically for a "payment explanation." The representative should be able to pull up a transaction code associated with that payment that will explain exactly what it was for. Common codes for small adjustments include: - 396/397: COLA adjustment - 310: Medicare premium adjustment - 150: Retroactive payment - 456: Taxation adjustment It's important to get this documented in case there's ever a question about it in the future. Also, verify if this impacts your total expected 2025 benefits in any way or if it was strictly a one-time correction for a past period.

I just realized something - check if this might be related to the Medicare Part B premium adjustment that was announced for 2025. The standard premium went up to $174.70 (from $164.90 in 2024), but if you were entitled to a smaller increase based on the "hold harmless" provision, they might have made an adjustment. Did your Medicare premium change recently?

@RetireeQuestions The rules changed in 2015 with the Bipartisan Budget Act. Before that, people born before January 2, 1954 could file a "restricted application" for just spousal benefits at FRA while letting their own benefit grow, then switch later. That strategy is no longer available for people born after January 1, 1954 (which includes your wife at age 64). Your neighbor likely fell under the old rules.

Thank you all for the helpful information! This clears up so much confusion. I think my wife will apply for spousal benefits soon, but we'll calculate whether waiting until her FRA makes more financial sense given the permanent reduction. Good to know she doesn't need those extra quarters for spousal benefits, but interesting to consider if working just a bit more to get her own benefit might be worthwhile. I'll definitely use that Claimyr service when we're ready to apply - those wait times were my biggest concern!

So what DOES change on the statement year to year? Is it just my earnings record being updated? Is there any way to see what my family would ACTUALLY get with COLA included if something happened to me next year instead of right now?

Thanks everyone for the helpful responses! I understand much better now. Seems like this is just a limitation in how the Statement displays information rather than an actual difference in how benefits are adjusted. I wish SSA would make this clearer on the Statement itself to avoid confusion.

did u apply online or in person? seems like in-person applications get processed faster with fewer issues like this

Just wanted to follow up - did you receive your second letter yet? It's been about a week since your post.

my mother in law died last year and we just ignored the letters from SSA for a while and eventually they stopped coming? maybe just wait it out? the bank eventually unfroze everything after 6 months without us doing anything special

UPDATE: I finally got some traction! After mentioning the "Administrative Unfreezing" procedure that someone suggested here, the SSA supervisor knew exactly what I was talking about. She's submitted the request to the Payment Center and said it should be processed within 10 business days. She also put a temporary hold on the collection notices while this is being resolved. My state senator's office also called and said they've assigned a caseworker who will follow up next week to make sure everything is progressing. Thank you all for your suggestions and support. This has been such a stressful situation on top of grieving my mother.

Looking at what you described, I think you're misinterpreting the calculator results. The Re-indexed Widow Amount (RIW) is part of a complex calculation called the RIB-LIM rule that SSA uses for survivor benefits. It's not the final amount you'll receive. Since you're only 62, your survivor benefit will be reduced because you're claiming before your FRA. The reduction is approximately 0.396% per month before your FRA. The $2,675 figure might represent the full PIA amount, but your actual benefit would be reduced for early claiming. I'd estimate you'd receive closer to $2,175-$2,225 if you claim now versus waiting until your FRA for the full amount. When you have your phone appointment, ask specifically about the difference between claiming now versus waiting, and make sure they're accounting for the WEP/GPO repeal in their calculations.

I had the same issue when calculating my survivor benefits last year! The SSA detailed calculator is NOT user-friendly at all. When I finally got through to SSA (after calling for 3 straight days), the representative explained that I was looking at the wrong section. For survivor benefits before FRA, they apply a reduction factor based on how many months early you're claiming. In my case, claiming at 63 resulted in about a 13% reduction from what I would have received at my FRA. If you're having trouble getting through to SSA, I'd recommend using Claimyr.com - it saved me hours of frustration. They connect you directly to an SSA agent, usually within 10-30 minutes instead of waiting on hold all day. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU The SSA agent can calculate your exact benefit amount with the reduction factors applied correctly.

theres NO POINT continuing to work they just take it all back anyway the whole system is RIGGED against workers

Thanks everyone for the helpful replies! I'm going to keep working at my part-time job, staying under the earnings limit, and I'll check my Social Security account online each December to make sure any recalculations are applied correctly. It's good to know that my continued work might actually increase my benefit over time, even if the increases aren't huge.

This is a common reporting requirement if your Social Security benefits are affected by either the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) or Government Pension Offset (GPO). The most accurate method is to call and report the change, but I understand the frustration with wait times. If your MySocialSecurity account doesn't show an option to report pension changes (they've been updating the interface), you can use the general message feature to report the change. Include your updated pension amount, the date of change, and that it was a COLA increase. Alternatively, you can mail documentation to your local office, but I recommend sending it certified mail with return receipt requested so you have proof of delivery. If your pension COLA was less than 5%, some agents might tell you it's not significant enough to affect your benefits, but technically any change should be reported.

Thanks everyone for the advice. I tried that Claimyr service mentioned above and actually got through to SSA this morning! The agent said for my situation (I'm affected by WEP), I need to send a copy of my updated pension statement showing both the previous amount and new amount after COLA. She said I could either upload it through my MySocialSecurity Message Center (she walked me through where to find it) or fax it to my local office. She also made a note in my file that I called about this. Feeling much better now that I know what to do!