nun
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
- Joined
- Feb 17, 2006
- Messages
- 4,872
Get the survivor benefit, or at least a benefit certain period.
This would be important in some marriages, less so in others. Some couples keep separate careers, separate bank accounts, they take seriously the "I" in "IRA", etc. For these folks, the survivor benefit of a pension might not be worth it, or even logical.I feel someone should mention the possible emotional cost to the marriage of not providing the benefit. I have seen that become a source of ongoing resentment in a previously strong marriage where he developed cancer shortly after he RE'd.
I know several women whose spouses did not provide for survivor benefits, to the wife's detriment.
I only knew of one guy who did that and his wife was a SAHM! My opinion of him went way down when I learned about that. It's just selfish and cruel.
Looking at getting FIRED from my teaching job of 36 years. Is that really early?! The question is whether to take a survivor benefit on my Washington State pension. My wife and I are both 59, she is in good health - I'm struggling with A-fib but hope to hang in there for a long time. The reality is ....who knows?
The pension will be $1900 a month. To take the full survivor benefit the total will drop to $1600 a month. We have $1.2 million saved and own $1 million of real estate between two properties.
I was quoted a 20 year level term life policy of $100,000 for $130 per month.
If I go early the wife will have a decent asset base to live off of, but the income from my pension would not fly out the window if we took the survivor benefit.
Your thoughts?
Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum
plans subject to IRS Section 417 require that a spouse reject the QJSA benefit - did he get his wife to sign the waiver?
I don't know - this was back in the mid to late '70's. Was that requirement even in effect then? I do recall she was looking into suing the employer but if she signed a waiver she'd have no case.