Another Voice: Delaying retirement means gains in Social Security

More and more retirees have come to rely on the third leg of the stool, Social Security, for most of their income. (The average monthly Social Security benefit in New York State is about $1,450 or some $17,000 per year, only slightly above the federal poverty line.) Even with Social Security, 10% of New York’s seniors live in poverty. The good news is that workers can increase the size of their future Social Security checks by delaying retirement.

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Delaying retirement boosts Social Security checks

Max Richtman

It’s no secret that American workers face a major retirement crisis. Wealth inequality and workplace changes mean more and more retirees have come to rely on Social Security for most of their income. But the average monthly Social Security benefit in Maryland is $1,472 — or roughly $18,000 per year, which is only slightly above the federal poverty line. And even with Social Security, some 7 percent of Maryland’s seniors live in poverty.

The good news is that Maryland workers can increase the size of their future Social Security checks by delaying retirement. Delayed claiming past the early retirement age of 62 results in bigger monthly benefit checks for life, and waiting until after the current full retirement age of 66 yields even greater gains — up to 44 percent more than early claiming.

But too few Marylanders are taking advantage of this “delay-and-gain” strategy, or are even aware of it. The average age for claiming Social Security in Maryland is 64 — two years older than the minimum, but early enough to be penalized with lower benefits, which are cut by roughly 6 percent for every year that they file for Social Security before the full retirement age.

Read our full op-ed by clicking here.

Source: bit.ly politics social security social insurance delay and gain earned benefits p2 elderly seniors retirement retirees retirement crisis entitlements entitlement reform retirement age retirement security

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Louisville workers can gain big by delaying retirement

Workers in Louisville face a major — and very real — retirement crisis. Wealth inequality and workplace changes have practically sawed off two of the legs of the traditional retirement stool: pensions and private savings.

More than half of today’s retirees rely on the third leg of the stool, Social Security, for most of their income. (The average Social Security benefit in Kentucky is roughly $16,000 per year, only about $3,500 above the federal poverty line for individuals.) Even with Social Security, some 13% of Kentucky seniors live in poverty. The good news is that workers can increase the size of their future Social Security checks by delaying retirement.

Max Richtman: Older workers can gain by delaying retirement

It’s no secret that American workers face a major – and very real – retirement crisis. Wealth inequality and workplace changes have all but kicked out two of the legs of the traditional retirement stool: pensions and private savings – both of which are at historic lows. More and more retirees have come to rely on the third leg of the stool, Social Security, for most of their income. (The average monthly Social Security benefit in Vermont is about $1,420 or some $17,000 per year, only a few thousand dollars above the federal poverty line.)

Even with Social Security, nearly 7% of the state’s seniors live in poverty. The good news is that workers can increase the size of their future Social Security checks by delaying retirement.

New Jerseyans should delay retirement, group says. They’ll have fatter Social Security checks.

People say they'll retire early because they are “sick and tired of working.” I respond that they will be even more sick and tired of not having enough money in old age.

It’s no secret that American workers face a major – and very real – retirement crisis. Wealth inequality and workplace changes have all but kicked-out two of the legs of the traditional retirement stool: pensions and private savings – both of which are at historic lows. More and more retirees have come to rely on the third leg of the stool, Social Security, for most of their income. (The average monthly Social Security benefit in New Jersey is about $1,500 or some $18,000 per year, only a few thousand dollars above the federal poverty line.)
Even with Social Security, nearly 7% of New Jersey seniors live in poverty. The good news is that workers can increase the size of their future Social Security checks by delaying retirement.
via NJ.com

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You can learn more from our education initiative, Delay & Gain, by clicking here.

Source: bit.ly delay and gain seniors social security social insurance elderly older americans retirement retirees retirement crisis entitlements entitlement reform earned benefits new jersey retirement security retirement age p2

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Opinion: Detroit workers win by delaying retirement

Workers in Detroit face a major — and very real — retirement crisis. Wealth inequality and workplace changes have practically sawed-off two of the legs of the traditional retirement stool: pensions and private savings. More than half of today’s retirees rely on the third leg of the stool, Social Security, for most of their income. Even with Social Security, some 7% of Michigan seniors live in poverty. The good news is that workers can increase the size of their future Social Security checks by delaying retirement.

Delayed claiming past the early retirement age of 62 results in bigger monthly benefit checks for life. Waiting until after the current full retirement age of 66 yields even greater gains — up to 44% more than early claiming. But too few of Detroit’s workers are taking advantage of this delay-and-gain strategy. More than half of Michigan workers retire by age 62 — four years before they can collect their full Social Security benefits.

Reps. Linda Sánchez Introduces Strengthening Social Security Act of 2016

Washington, DC – Representatives Linda Sánchez (D-CA), Mike Honda (D-CA), and Mark Pocan (D-WI) along with 45 original co-sponsors today introduced H.R. 5952, the Strengthening Social Security Act of 2016:

Max Ritchman, President and CEO of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare: “America’s seniors understand all too well that our nation faces a retirement crisis and improving Social Security benefits is vital to keeping millions from poverty. Rep. Linda Sanchez’s ‘Strengthening Social Security Act’ makes several important improvements for seniors by: phasing out the payroll tax cap so that the wealthy pay their fair share, creating a Cost of Living adjustment for the elderly and boosting benefits for all retirees including widows/widowers. NCPSSM strongly supports this legislation and applauds Congresswoman Sanchez for doing the right thing for America’s seniors and their families.”
via Representative Linda Sanchez.

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