Based on what you've described, your best strategy is likely to focus on your own benefit. Since it will be higher than your potential spousal benefit (50% of your husband's FRA amount), you'll want to consider whether to take your own benefit early at 62 (with a permanent reduction) or wait until your Full Retirement Age (67) or even age 70 (for maximum benefits). Each year you delay claiming from 62 to 70 increases your benefit by approximately 8%, which is a guaranteed return that's hard to beat elsewhere. But of course, that depends on your health, financial needs, and other retirement income sources. And as others mentioned, definitely account for any potential WEP/GPO impacts in your calculations.

One thing I haven't seen mentioned yet is that you might want to look into whether your husband has enough quarters of coverage under Social Security to even qualify for benefits. Since he's been primarily in a teaching system that doesn't pay into SS, he may not have the required 40 quarters (10 years) of covered employment to be eligible for Social Security benefits at all. If he doesn't qualify for his own SS benefit, then there wouldn't be any spousal benefit for you to claim from his record anyway. You'd only be eligible for survivor benefits if he passes away and had enough work credits. This could actually simplify your planning since you'd just focus entirely on optimizing your own benefit timing. You can check his coverage by looking at his Social Security Statement online - it will show exactly how many quarters he has earned under the SS system.

Anyone else feel like were playing a game of financial Jenga with these benefits? One wrong move and the whole thing comes crashing down 😅

Dylan, I went through this exact same situation last year! The good news is that IRA rollovers don't count as earned income for SSDI purposes, so your benefits won't be reduced. However, you will owe taxes on the amount you convert from traditional to Roth, which could be substantial depending on your account balance. A few things to consider: • The tax hit from the conversion might push you into a higher tax bracket for that year • If you're on Medicare, a large conversion could trigger higher premiums due to IRMAA (as someone mentioned above) • You might want to consider doing partial rollovers over multiple years to spread out the tax impact I'd definitely recommend talking to a tax professional or financial advisor who understands disability benefits before making the move. They can help you plan the timing and amount to minimize any unintended consequences. Good luck! 🤞

One thing that helped me when I was in a similar situation was creating a simple spreadsheet to track my monthly earnings leading up to my FRA month. I made columns for the date, source of income (W2 vs consulting), amount earned, and cumulative total. This made it really easy to see exactly where I stood each month and avoid accidentally going over that $59,520 limit before July. Also, if you do any consulting work, consider timing when you invoice clients - you might want to delay some invoicing until after your FRA month to be extra safe. The peace of mind was worth more to me than rushing to get paid a few months earlier.

As someone new to this community, I wanted to share that I'm in almost the exact same situation! I turn FRA in August 2025 and have been so confused about these earnings limits. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful - I had no idea about the higher $59,520 limit that applies only to the months before FRA, or that there's no limit at all once you reach FRA. I'm particularly grateful for the practical tips about tracking monthly earnings and timing consulting invoices. I've been hesitant to take on any extra work because I thought I'd be stuck with that lower $22,320 limit for the whole year. Now I feel much more confident about planning some freelance projects for later in the year after my FRA month. Thank you all for sharing your experiences - this kind of real-world advice is so much clearer than trying to decode the SSA website!

To simplify what's been said and clarify a key point: if you wait until August 2025 (your FRA month) to START collecting Social Security benefits, then: 1. Your January-July 2025 earnings won't affect your benefits at all, regardless of amount 2. From August onward, you can earn unlimited income with no benefit reduction The earnings test only applies when you're actually receiving benefits before FRA. Since you're planning to start benefits exactly at your FRA month, the earnings test essentially doesn't apply to your situation at all. This is one of the advantages of waiting until exactly your FRA month to start benefits.

Just wanted to add one more consideration for your consulting work - make sure you're properly set up for self-employment taxes! Since you'll be earning $3k+ monthly from consulting, you'll likely need to make quarterly estimated tax payments to avoid penalties. The IRS generally expects payments if you'll owe $1,000 or more in taxes. Also, don't forget that as a consultant you'll be paying both the employer and employee portions of Social Security and Medicare taxes (15.3% total), though you can deduct half of this on your tax return. This is separate from the Social Security earnings test discussion but important for your overall financial planning. Good luck with the transition to consulting - sounds like you've got the Social Security timing figured out perfectly!

Thank you for the kind words! You're absolutely right - health comes first. I hope your husband is doing well now after his surgery.

I'm sorry to hear about your heart issues, but you're asking all the right questions. Based on what others have shared here, it sounds like withdrawing your application is definitely feasible since you're well within the 12-month window and haven't received payments yet. The once-in-a-lifetime restriction is something I wasn't aware of either - that's crucial information that makes this decision more significant. Given your medical situation and the substantial treatment costs you're facing, it might make sense to withdraw now, focus on your health, and potentially reapply closer to your FRA when you'd get higher monthly benefits. The 8% delayed retirement credits mentioned earlier could really add up, especially if you're looking at ongoing medical expenses where a higher monthly payment would be beneficial. Have you calculated what your benefit amount would be at 67 versus what you'd get now at 64? That comparison might help inform your decision.