50+ Lifestyles

YOUR SOCIAL SECURITY Rock Island, Illinois Office

By Christina Vital
Manager
Rock Island Social Security office

ALL ABOUT RETIREMENT

Social Security is as American as baseball and apple pie. Not everyone likes apples or baseball games, but almost every American who reaches retirement age will receive Social Security retirement benefits. In fact, 96 percent of Americans are covered by Social Security.

If you’re ready to retire in the near future, this article is for you. We’d like to share with you a few important items about Social Security retirement benefits and how to apply for them.

When you work and pay Social Security taxes, you earn “credits” toward Social Security benefits. If you were born in 1929 or later, you need 40 credits (10 years of work) to qualify for retirement benefits.

To qualify for retirement benefits, 10 years is the minimum. However, the amount of your benefit is determined by how long you work and how much you earn. Higher lifetime earnings result in higher benefits. If there were some years when you did not work or had low earnings, your benefit amount may be lower than if you had worked steadily or earned more.

Also, your age when you retire makes a difference in your benefit amount. The full retirement age (the age at which full retirement benefits are payable) has been gradually rising from age 65 to age 67. You can retire as early as age 62, but if benefits start before you reach your full retirement age, your monthly payment is reduced. Find out what your full retirement age is by referring to the convenient chart in our publication, Retirement Benefits, at www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs/10035.html. It’s in the second section.

Just as you can choose an early retirement and get a reduced payment, you also can choose to keep working beyond your full retirement age to take advantage of a larger payment. Your benefit will increase automatically by a certain percentage from the time you reach your full retirement age until you start receiving your benefits or until you reach age 70.

The decision of when to retire is an individual one and depends on a number of personal factors. To help you weigh the factors, we suggest you read our online fact sheet, When To Start Receiving Retirement Benefits, available at www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs/10147.html.

You may want to consider your options by using our Retirement Estimator to get instant, personalized estimates of future benefits. You can plug in different retirement ages and scenarios to help you make a more informed retirement decision. Try it out at www.socialsecurity.gov/estimator.

When you decide to retire, the easiest and most convenient way to do it is right from the comfort of your home or office computer. Go to www.socialsecurity.gov where you can apply for retirement benefits in as little as 15 minutes. In most cases, there are no forms to sign or documents to send; once you submit your electronic application, that’s it!

In addition to using our award-winning website, you can call us toll-free at 1-800-772-1213 (TTY, 1-800-325-0778) or visit the Social Security office nearest you.

Either way you choose to apply, be sure to have your bank account information handy so we can set up your payments to be deposited directly into your account.

To learn more, please read our publication, Retirement Benefits, at www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs/10035.html.

SOCIAL SECURITY RESOLUTIONS

Happy 2012 from Social Security! With the new year, many people put together lists of goals and resolutions. Allow us to share with you some new year’s resolutions that you may find worth keeping.

Think about retirement. Whether you’re 26 and beginning a career or 62 and thinking about the best time to stop working, give some thought to what your retirement plan will be. Social Security is the largest source of income for elderly Americans today, but it was never intended to be your only source of income when you retire. You also will need savings, investments, pensions or retirement accounts to make sure you have enough money to live comfortably when you retire. The earlier you begin your financial planning, the better off you will be. For tips to help you save, visit www.mymoney.gov.

Plan ahead. The best way to begin planning for retirement is by using the free resources provided by Social Security. Start by using our Retirement Estimator, where you can get a personalized, instant estimate of your future retirement benefits using different retirement ages and scenarios. Visit the Retirement Estimator at www.socialsecurity.gov/estimator.

Make sure you have all your numbers. While tax season may seem far away, now is the time that many taxpayers start gathering records and documentation for filing tax returns. One of the most important things you need is a Social Security number for everyone whom you will claim as a dependent. If you don’t have a number for one of your dependents, you need to apply now to have the Social Security number in time to file your tax return. Learn more at www.socialsecurity.gov/ssnumber.

Do a little light reading. The best way to learn more about Social Security, the benefit programs, and what they mean to you and your family is to browse through our online library of publications. You can find overviews as well as more detailed booklets. Our library at www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs is always open.

Help a loved one. Sometimes we get the most satisfaction out of helping someone else. If you have a grandparent, parent, relative, or friend who could benefit from Social Security, share our website and online services with them. You can even help a loved one apply for retirement or Medicare benefits — or for Extra Help with Medicare prescription drug costs — in as little as 10 minutes. Whether you forward a publication or sit down to help someone apply for Social Security, the place to go is www.socialsecurity.gov.

We hope you’ll consider some of these resolutions. Happy New Year from Social Security!