Social Security Income: Recommendations to Help You Get the Most Out Of Your Social Security Retirement Income

There are plenty of choices to make, both psychologically as well as monetarily, as you plan for retirement. One of the most significant decisions you must make is when to start receiving your Social Security income. A few of the issues you will need to take into account include:

What age should you start collecting Social Security - 62, 66 or 70?
What age should your spouse start collecting Social Security?
Will you receive your spouse's benefits if he/she dies before you?
When is it better to collect based on your spouse's earnings record?
How can you collect on an ex-spouse's income?

If you didn't have a 100 questions about Social Security before, you should at this point! Below are some tips and ideas to help you get the most out of your Social Security retirement benefits:

Optimize Your Social Security Earnings:

Your retirement benefit is based on your top 35 years of income therefore it is advisable to get as many "high earning" years in as you possibly can. Therefore, working just one year more at a significant compensating position might make an impact in your retirement income.

Delay Receiving Your Social Security Benefits:

You are penalized for every month you receive your Social Security before you reach your full retirement age, with the maximum penalty being 25% in instances where you start collecting benefits at age 62. Though collecting your benefits earlier might be attractive, those people who are willing to wait can raise their Social Security income by up to 30% (this includes COLA adjustments) simply by holding out until full retirement age.

Work Part-Time During Retirement:

Although you are limited in how much you are able to make when you're under full retirement age and collecting Social Security, after you attain full retirement age you are able to earn as much income as you would like without your retirement benefits being decreased. Another plan would be to get a part-time job whenever you retire so that you can delay receiving Social Security benefits.

Collect Based on Your Husband or Wife's Benefits:

If you are married, you are able to withdraw Social Security retirement benefits based on your own income, or you could collect half of your spouse's benefit, whichever is larger. If you and your spouse are not the same age, you'll need to do some planning to make certain you maximize your benefits, but this is undoubtedly a strategy to take into account if one spouse earns a lot more compared to the other, and also if one spouse has been away from the work force for a few years.

Draw on Your Ex Spouse's Benefits:

The spousal benefit applies to ex-spouses as well. If you were married to your ex-spouse for a minimum of 10 years, and you also are not currently married to somebody else, you can collect as much as 50% of your ex spouse's benefits. It's not necessary to talk to your ex-spouse to apply for your benefits; in fact they may never know if you don't inform them, also it will not change their own benefits at all.

These are a few ideas to help you get the maximum Social Security benefits. Applying for your Social Security retirement income can be an extremely difficult decision and will influence the rest of your retirement, so make sure you consult with a specialist prior to you making any decisions on your own.