- Joined
- Nov 27, 2014
- Messages
- 9,251
Not as planned, but I'm starting SS in January. I'll be 62 but the path to SS was a bit different than I expected. The good news is that I'll be getting my full SS amount as if I had waited until FRA. Unfortunately, that's because I have a medical condition that put me on the disability track.
I had an autoimmune problem and it attacked my kidneys and I ended up on dialysis. Apparently, once you're on dialysis (End Stage Renal Disease), you're considered disabled. I was dubious that it was that straight forward, but I submitted my application in early July and I got my approval letter today in the mail. Kind of hard to believe that, being retired, I can be disabled. Heck, I wasn't going to work anyway. It was weird filling out the application. It had a bunch of questions that you would expect around my physical abilities. Frankly, I feel pretty good and answered the questions accordingly. It's an inconvenience to go to dialysis, but overall, I'm doing pretty good. So, I guess it is pretty much a given - kidney failure = disability.
The first payment will start in January of 2023. There's a 5 month waiting period. DW will be at full retirement age this year (November) and we see no reason to wait any longer and her payments will start in January also. At that time, my pension plus our two SS checks will cover our budget. This has been a heck of a ride medically, but it will be good to know that we'll have very little, if anything being withdrawn from our retirement accounts - at least until RMDs kick in.
I have to give some kudos to SSA. The process went very smoothly. I applied online, they did send me some questionaries that I filled out and mailed back to them and they updated the status of their review in my SS account online. I'm sure it's not that way for many, but in my case, it went well.
So, it doesn't make up for my medical situation, but I can't help but be a little happy that I'm getting my FRA amount at 62.
Question - The letter says that SS is not taxable for a married couple making under $32K. My pension, our only income other than SS, is just under $30K. Does that mean that mine and DW's SS will not be taxed?
I had an autoimmune problem and it attacked my kidneys and I ended up on dialysis. Apparently, once you're on dialysis (End Stage Renal Disease), you're considered disabled. I was dubious that it was that straight forward, but I submitted my application in early July and I got my approval letter today in the mail. Kind of hard to believe that, being retired, I can be disabled. Heck, I wasn't going to work anyway. It was weird filling out the application. It had a bunch of questions that you would expect around my physical abilities. Frankly, I feel pretty good and answered the questions accordingly. It's an inconvenience to go to dialysis, but overall, I'm doing pretty good. So, I guess it is pretty much a given - kidney failure = disability.
The first payment will start in January of 2023. There's a 5 month waiting period. DW will be at full retirement age this year (November) and we see no reason to wait any longer and her payments will start in January also. At that time, my pension plus our two SS checks will cover our budget. This has been a heck of a ride medically, but it will be good to know that we'll have very little, if anything being withdrawn from our retirement accounts - at least until RMDs kick in.
I have to give some kudos to SSA. The process went very smoothly. I applied online, they did send me some questionaries that I filled out and mailed back to them and they updated the status of their review in my SS account online. I'm sure it's not that way for many, but in my case, it went well.
So, it doesn't make up for my medical situation, but I can't help but be a little happy that I'm getting my FRA amount at 62.
Question - The letter says that SS is not taxable for a married couple making under $32K. My pension, our only income other than SS, is just under $30K. Does that mean that mine and DW's SS will not be taxed?
