Social Security survivor benefits - does delaying my retirement benefit increase what I'll get when my 70-year-old spouse dies?
I'm trying to figure out the best strategy for my situation. My husband plans to work until 70 (he's 67 now) and his earnings have always been much higher than mine. I'm 65 and eligible for my own retirement benefit, but I'm wondering about survivor benefits down the road. If I wait until I'm 70 to file for my own Social Security retirement benefits, would that increase the survivor benefit I'd receive when my husband passes away? Or does delaying my own benefit only affect MY retirement amount but not the survivor benefit I'd eventually get? I know collecting my own benefit early would reduce what I get now, but I'm trying to understand if waiting to file for mine would have ANY impact on future survivor benefits based on his record. His benefit at 70 will be around $4,250/month while mine at FRA would only be about $1,800. Can someone who understands these survivor benefit rules clarify this for me? I'm trying to make the best long-term decision.
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Giovanni Mancini
Great question! The survivor benefit you'll receive when your husband passes away is based on HIS record, not yours. Specifically: 1. If your husband dies after reaching 70 and taking his maximum benefit, you would be eligible for 100% of what he was receiving. 2. Your decision to delay or take early YOUR OWN retirement benefits has zero effect on what survivor benefit you'd eventually receive. 3. While you're both alive, you might want to consider taking your own benefit now or at FRA, and then switching to the survivor benefit when he passes. The key is that survivor benefits and your own retirement benefits are completely separate calculations. Hope this helps!
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Amara Nnamani
•Thank you for explaining this so clearly! So just to double check - since he'll be getting his maximum at 70, I would get his full $4,250 as a survivor benefit regardless of what I do with my own benefit? That makes my decision easier.
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Fatima Al-Suwaidi
my mom did this and got screwed. she could have been collecting her own smaller benefit for years but waited thinking it would help her survivor amount. SSA never told her anything and she lost like 3 years of payments she couldve had. definitely collect your own now if you need the money!!
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Dylan Cooper
•There's a bit more nuance to consider here. If the OP takes her benefit early (before FRA), she'll get a permanently reduced amount on her own record. The decision should depend on several factors including current income needs, other savings, and expected longevity. It's not as simple as "definitely collect now" - each situation is different.
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Sofia Morales
I went through a very similar situation last year! Husband was the higher earner, waited til 70, I was wondering about my benefits. The SSA agent I spoke with confirmed EXACTLY what the first response said - my decision to delay MY benefit had zero impact on the survivor benefit I'd eventually get. After hours of being on hold and getting disconnected trying to reach someone at SSA, I finally used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to a rep right away. There's a video showing how it works at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU. Saved me from so much frustration and I got the answers I needed in one call.
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Amara Nnamani
•Thank you for sharing your experience! I've been trying to get through to SSA for weeks with no luck. I'll check out that service - at this point I just need to talk to someone who can look at our specific situation.
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StarSailor
i think theres one situation where your own benefit matters - if you take yours early and then try to get survivor benefits before YOUR full retirement age. then they might reduce the survivor amount. at least thats what happened to my aunt.
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Giovanni Mancini
•You're partially correct. If someone takes survivor benefits before their own FRA, those survivor benefits will be reduced. However, taking your own retirement benefit early doesn't directly reduce future survivor benefits. What can happen is that the deemed filing rules might force someone to take both benefits simultaneously in some situations, which can complicate things. But in the original poster's situation (where she's asking about taking her own benefit now and survivor benefits later when her husband passes), your own filing age doesn't affect the survivor amount - only the age at which you claim survivor benefits matters.
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Dmitry Ivanov
This WHOLE SYSTEM is designed to CONFUSE US!!! I spent 2 YEARS trying to figure out this exact question and got different answers from EVERY SINGLE SSA EMPLOYEE!!! One told me waiting would increase my survivor benefits, another said it wouldn't matter AT ALL, and a third gave me some complicated formula that made no sense!!! Meanwhile they kept all those extra dollars I could have been collecting while I was trying to get a straight answer!!! INFURIATING!!!
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Amara Nnamani
•I'm sorry you had such a frustrating experience. That's exactly why I'm asking here first - I've heard similar stories about getting contradictory information. Did you ever get a definitive answer about your situation?
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Dmitry Ivanov
•After all that, I finally found an SSA rep who actually KNEW THE RULES and confirmed that my waiting to file had NO EFFECT on survivor benefits. I could have been collecting my own benefit for those 2 years while I wasted time trying to get answers!! Just take yours now if you need it - your future survivor benefit is based ONLY on your husband's record, not yours!
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Ava Garcia
My brother in law worked for SSA for 32 years and he always said the only thing that matters for survivor benefits is when you claim THOSE benefits, not when you claim your own. If you claim survivor benefits before your FRA, they'll be reduced, but if you wait until your FRA to claim survivor benefits, you get the full amount regardless of when you claimed your own benefits. So basically, when your husband passes away (hopefully many years from now), you'd get 100% of what he was receiving if you claim survivor benefits at or after your FRA. Whether you take your own benefits early, at FRA, or at 70 won't affect the survivor amount.
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Amara Nnamani
•Thank you for sharing this insider knowledge! It's reassuring to hear this confirmed by someone who worked in the system. I think I'm leaning toward taking my own benefit now since it sounds like there's no advantage to waiting as far as survivor benefits go.
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Dylan Cooper
I'd like to add some important details that others haven't mentioned: 1. While your future survivor benefit won't be affected by when you take your own benefit, there are still potential advantages to delaying your own benefit if you can afford to. 2. If your husband lives a long time, your own benefit (if you delay to 70) could grow to be more valuable over time with COLA adjustments. 3. If you're still working, taking benefits before FRA could subject you to the earnings test, which temporarily reduces benefits. 4. Tax implications: Having both your own benefit and eventually a survivor benefit could push you into a higher tax bracket. The optimal strategy depends on your complete financial picture, health situations, and other income sources. You might want to consult with a financial advisor who specializes in Social Security claiming strategies.
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Amara Nnamani
•These are excellent points I hadn't considered. I'm still working part-time, so the earnings test could be relevant. And you're right about the long-term COLA adjustments - I hadn't factored that in. Maybe I should talk to a financial advisor before making my final decision. Thank you!
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Fatima Al-Suwaidi
wait i'm confused...if she takes her SS now at 65 isn't that still reduced since her FRA is probably 66 and something? my head is spinning trying to keep all these rules straight lol
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Giovanni Mancini
•Yes, you're correct. If she takes her own retirement benefit at 65 and her FRA is 66+something (likely 66 and 6 months if she's 65 now), her benefit would be permanently reduced by approximately 8-9%. However, that reduction only applies to her own retirement benefit. When her husband passes away, her survivor benefit would still be 100% of what he was receiving (assuming she claims survivor benefits at or after her FRA). It's confusing because there are essentially two separate benefit calculations happening at different times.
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