Three Social Security Questions

[sakowitzm]

Just trying to confirm my understanding of things...

I am 61. My wife passed away last year and had been receiving social security disability benefits for several years. I am continuing to receive a spousal benefit based on her disability benefit. For that reason, I will wait until I turn 70 to begin receiving social security benefits on my own account. I stopped working in 2016.

Question 1. Can you confirm that my receiving disability benefits based on my wife's disability/death will have no impact on what I collect when I start collecting on my own account at age 70?

Question 2. My earnings record at the social security website shows $0 for 2017 and "Not yet recorded" for 2018. That information is correct, and I do not plan on going back to work. I believe this means that the calculation of my benefit will assume $0 income each year going forward, and thus the benefit amounts should be correct. Assuming status quo. Can you confirm this?

Question 3. The website shows my age 70 benefit to be $3,656/month. I know that includes an 8%/year increase from FRA to age 70. But does it also include SSA's estimate of inflation between now and FRA? In other words, if everything goes as SSA estimates, I would get $3,656/month? Or would I get some greater amount, due to inflation between now and FRA?

Thank you!
mjs

 

[pb4uski]

Just trying to confirm my understanding of things...

I am 61. My wife passed away last year and had been receiving social security disability benefits for several years. I am continuing to receive a spousal benefit based on her disability benefit. For that reason, I will wait until I turn 70 to begin receiving social security benefits on my own account. I stopped working in 2016.

Question 1. Can you confirm that my receiving disability benefits based on my wife's disability/death will have no impact on what I collect when I start collecting on my own account at age 70?

Question 2. My earnings record at the social security website shows $0 for 2017 and "Not yet recorded" for 2018. That information is correct, and I do not plan on going back to work. I believe this means that the calculation of my benefit will assume $0 income each year going forward, and thus the benefit amounts should be correct. Assuming status quo. Can you confirm this?

Question 3. The website shows my age 70 benefit to be $3,656/month. I know that includes an 8%/year increase from FRA to age 70. But does it also include SSA's estimate of inflation between now and FRA? In other words, if everything goes as SSA estimates, I would get $3,656/month? Or would I get some greater amount, due to inflation between now and FRA?

Thank you!
mjs

1. I don't know but someone will come along and weigh in.
2. Yes, assuming that you have 35 years of earnings... if you have less than 35 years of earnings then those zeros will trickle in and reduce your PIA.
3. Yes, the amounts shown on the SSA statement do not include COLA adjustments.... they effectively assume future COLA adjustments are zero.

 

[Bir48die]

Are you asking if they will alter your future SS benefits due to you currently collecting your wife's disability payments now? IMHO that would be no.

 

[GravitySucks]

I'm in a similar boat.
1. You are probably receiving survivor benefits, not disability benefits. I was assured by the clerk at the SSA office that filing for survivors benefits will not effect my filing for my own benefits at 70.
2. & 3. - See what PB4USKI wrote.

 

[pb4uski]

Regarding 1.

https://www.disabilitysecrets.com/r...survivors-benefits-death-disabled-worker.html

Own retirement benefit. For widows who are of retirement age, the benefit that they could receive based on their own work history may be higher than the money that they receive from their deceased spouse’s SSDI benefits. You can choose to receive whichever payment is higher.

Sounds like you won't get both.... you'll get the higher of you deceased spouse's SSDI benefit or the benefit based on your own work record.

 

[joeea]

I am 61. My wife passed away last year and had been receiving social security disability benefits for several years.

I am sorry for your loss.

Question 1. Can you confirm that my receiving disability benefits based on my wife's disability/death will have no impact on what I collect when I start collecting on my own account at age 70?

You cannot receive disability benefits unless you yourself are disabled.

Receiving survivor benefits has no impact on your own benefits.

Question 2. My earnings record at the social security website shows $0 for 2017 and "Not yet recorded" for 2018. That information is correct, and I do not plan on going back to work. I believe this means that the calculation of my benefit will assume $0 income each year going forward, and thus the benefit amounts should be correct. Assuming status quo. Can you confirm this?

Yes.

Question 3. The website shows my age 70 benefit to be $3,656/month. I know that includes an 8%/year increase from FRA to age 70. But does it also include SSA's estimate of inflation between now and FRA?

No. Estimated inflation is not part of any benefit projections.

In other words, if everything goes as SSA estimates, I would get $3,656/month? Or would I get some greater amount, due to inflation between now and FRA?

You will get about $3,656 - adjusted upward for any COLAs that occur between not and then.

 

[sakowitzm]

Thank you all for your responses; very helpful.

One final detail. We all know that your benefit increases 8% per year between FRA and age 70. But does it actually increase that 8% PLUS COLA?

 

[MissMolly]

Thank you all for your responses; very helpful.

One final detail. We all know that your benefit increases 8% per year between FRA and age 70. But does it actually increase that 8% PLUS COLA?

Yes.

 

[Perryinva]

It is not really 8% per year. It is .667% per month of your PIA amount. So the first year after your FRA IT IS 8%. But every year after that, the amount stays the same, so the percent increase over the previous year drops. Still a very nice amount. I am surprised about survivors benefits before filing. I was not aware of that.

 

[pb4uski]

Thank you all for your responses; very helpful.

One final detail. We all know that your benefit increases 8% per year between FRA and age 70. But does it actually increase that 8% PLUS COLA?

Yes you get 8% plus COLA.

A finer detail. The 8% increase is simple interest and not compounded.... so if you delay for 4 years you would get 132% [1+ (8%*4)] of your PIA....not 136% [1* (1+8%)^4] of your PIA.

So if you delay for 4 years is it more like 7.25% compounded.