Collecting reduced spousal SS at 64 while caregiving, then switching to survivors and my own benefits later?

Yes, you can start spousal benefits now at a reduced rate (about 30% reduction if you start at 66 when your FRA is probably around 67), then switch to survivors when your husband passes. Survivor benefits would also be reduced if you claim them before your FRA. However, there's a key fact you need to know: once your husband passes, you can't switch back and forth between your own retirement and survivor benefits as you want. The old "claim now, claim more later" strategy was eliminated for most people by the 2015 budget act. You'll need to choose either: 1) Take reduced survivors now, then switch to your own at 70 2) Take your own reduced retirement now, then survivors later The best strategy often depends on which benefit will ultimately be larger at age 70. Given your numbers, option 1 might be better, but you should really consult with an SSA representative directly to confirm.

my condolences on ur husbands condition. i was in similar situatuin in 2019. took spousal at 63 then when my wife passed switched to survivor. got a bit more $ but both were reduced cuz i took early. never got to switch to my own cuz my own benefit was less than survivors even with the reduction. pretty sure u CAN go from spousal to survivor to ur own if ur own is bigger at 70. thats what the lady at SS told me when i called.

I'm so sorry about your husband. The rules are complicated but I think I can clarify a bit based on experience. You CAN take reduced spousal benefits now, then switch to reduced survivor benefits when your husband passes away, then switch to your own retirement benefit at 70 IF your own benefit at that point would be higher than the survivor benefit. The "claim now, claim more later" restriction that was mentioned applies to switching between retirement and spousal benefits, NOT to survivor benefits. Survivor benefits have different rules. The key is comparing these three amounts: 1. Your reduced spousal benefit now (probably around 35% of his FRA benefit) 2. Your reduced survivor benefit when he passes (likely 82-85% of his benefit if you're taking it before your FRA) 3. Your own retirement benefit at 70 (124-132% of your FRA amount

DONT DO IT!!! If you start ANY benefit early you are PERMANENTLY reduced for EVERYTHING! The SSA doesn't tell you this because they WANT you to take benefits early so they save money! My brother-in-law's wife did this and she's stuck with a tiny check forever! Once you go on spousal you CAN'T ever get your full amount on anything else! They don't care about us!!!!!

Hi there, I had to deal with a similar situation recently. The rules are confusing but I managed to figure it out after countless calls to Social Security. One thing nobody mentioned yet - when your husband passes, you should report his death to Social Security promptly. They don't automatically know and switch your benefits. You'll need his death certificate to apply for survivor benefits. I tried calling SSA for weeks but couldn't get through - constantly disconnected or on hold for hours. I finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an agent in about 20 minutes. They have a video showing how it works at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU - totally worth it for important benefit decisions like this. The agent confirmed I could go from spousal to survivor to my own retirement at 70. Hope this helps during this difficult time.

when my husband died last year i got a one time death payment of only $255 dollars?????? like what is that supposed to cover? not even one month's rent. the whole system needs to be fixed its ridiculous.

Let me clarify the sequence for you since there's some confusion in this thread: 1. YES, you can claim reduced spousal benefits now at age 66 (roughly 35% reduction from what you'd get at your FRA) 2. When your husband passes, you CAN switch to survivor benefits. These will also be reduced because you're claiming before FRA (reduction of about 15-18% depending on exact age) 3. At age 70, you CAN switch to your own retirement benefit if it would be higher than your survivor benefit The key calculation: Your FRA benefit of $2,700 with delayed retirement credits to age 70 would be approximately $3,350-$3,400. Compare this to the reduced survivor benefit (about 82-85% of your husband's $3,150, so around $2,600). In this case, switching to your own at 70 makes mathematical sense. This strategy is completely permitted under current Social Security rules. The "deemed filing" restrictions from the 2015 law specifically exempted survivor benefits.