Will Social Security widow benefits be affected by getting a home improvement loan?

Home improvement loans aren't counted as income for Social Security purposes. Income that affects widow's benefits would be earned income from working, not loans that you have to pay back. Loans aren't income in SSA's eyes because you're not actually increasing your financial resources - you're creating debt that must be repaid.

my sister got a loan for her roof last yr while on ss and it didnt effect anything. ur fine

Just make sure you're not taking out a REVERSE mortgage! Those are completely different and CAN affect benefits in some cases depending on how you receive the money. Regular home improvement loans are fine though.

I worked as a financial advisor for many years, and I can confirm that home improvement loans are not considered income for Social Security purposes. The SSA only cares about earned income (from working) when you're receiving widow's benefits, and even then, only if you're under Full Retirement Age which is between 66-67 depending on when you were born. What DOES matter for some Social Security benefits is RESOURCES (assets), but that's primarily for SSI (Supplemental Security Income), not for widow's benefits which are based on your deceased spouse's earnings record. SSI has strict asset limits, but regular Social Security retirement and survivor benefits don't have asset tests.

What's important to remember is that Social Security distinguishes between different types of income: 1. Earned income - from working (wages, self-employment) 2. Unearned income - from investments, pensions, etc. 3. In-kind support - someone providing you food or shelter 4. Deemed income - from a spouse or parent you live with A loan doesn't fall into any of these categories because you have to pay it back. It's not income, it's debt. The only exception would be if the loan was forgiven, then it could potentially be treated as income in the month it was forgiven.

Thank you all so much! This has been really helpful. One more question - do I need to report the loan to SSA at all? Like on any annual forms or anything?

I've been on widow benefits for 3 years and let me tell you my experience with Social Security is ALWAYS a nightmare anytime I need to talk to them. Last year I had a question about my COLA increase and spent WEEKS trying to get through to a real person. Kept getting disconnected or waiting for hours! I know this isn't directly related to your loan question (which others answered correctly), but if you ever DO need to contact SSA about anything, save yourself the headache and use Claimyr.com - it's the only way I've been able to actually get through to SS without losing my mind. They have a video showing how it works at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU

Off topic but does anyone know if widow benefits increase every year with cost of living like regular retirement does? My aunt is thinking about applying soon.

I went through something similar last year when I needed to replace my furnace. I was so scared of messing up my benefits that I initially put it on credit cards instead of getting a proper loan! Big mistake - the interest was killing me. After talking with an SSA rep (finally got through after multiple attempts), I learned that loans don't count as income. I got a proper home improvement loan with much better terms and have had absolutely no issues with my widow benefits. One thing to watch out for though - if you withdraw money from retirement accounts for your bathroom, THAT could potentially affect benefits if you're under FRA. But a standard loan is completely fine.