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Social Security

post #1 of 18
9/24/10 at 8:06pm
Thread Starter 
I lost my job when I was 54 (in 2004) and decided to retire. I had saved a lot when I was working. Ever since then I have paid for my medical insurance each month ($305 currently) with a deductible of $5,000. DH is 11 years older and obviously retired. I've been fine with money, but I am looking forward to receiving social security at age 62. I'll probably get about $900 a month, which, since I've had no income since age 54, will be great.

Here's what I am worried about: That some imbecile in government will raise the minimum age to higher than 62. I know social security is in trouble, but if they raise that minimum age, I will be fit to be tied! There are other ways to fund social security (tax income over $120K for one) or increase the social security tax (currently 12%).

Just sharing this one fear that I have with you guys.
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post #2 of 18
9/24/10 at 10:09pm
http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/ProgData/nra.html

Normal retirement age for you is in the yr 2016
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post #3 of 18
9/25/10 at 6:40am
Retirement age has been 65 for YEARS, not 62. Don't remember when it was 62. As far as I can see, it's only 62 if you are widowed or a widower, and grandfathered in for "early" retirement.
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post #4 of 18
9/25/10 at 6:44am
I thought you can retire earlier, you just pay a penalty by getting less benefits.
http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/quickcalc/ea...tml#calculator

I just tried it for myself - if I retire at age 62 (month after my birthday) I get 72% of the primary amount.

http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/ProgData/ar_drc.html
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post #5 of 18
9/25/10 at 9:52am
The real problem is not with retirement age. As of this year, Social Security is paying out more than they are taking in. I am concerned about if the funds will be there when my husband retires at age 66. He is trying to work until then so he can draw the maximum amount.
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post #6 of 18
9/26/10 at 9:45am
Quote:
Originally Posted by GingersMom View Post
Retirement age has been 65 for YEARS, not 62. Don't remember when it was 62. As far as I can see, it's only 62 if you are widowed or a widower, and grandfathered in for "early" retirement.
Actually, it depends upon when you were born. "Normal" retirement for my age isn't until I'm 67.
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post #7 of 18
9/27/10 at 12:02pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by GingersMom View Post
Retirement age has been 65 for YEARS, not 62. Don't remember when it was 62. As far as I can see, it's only 62 if you are widowed or a widower, and grandfathered in for "early" retirement.
Anyone can start receiving retirement benefits at age 62. The longer you wait, the more money you will receive. But I will start at age 62.
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post #8 of 18
9/28/10 at 7:25am
Quote:
Originally Posted by blueyedgirl5946 View Post
The real problem is not with retirement age. As of this year, Social Security is paying out more than they are taking in. I am concerned about if the funds will be there when my husband retires at age 66. He is trying to work until then so he can draw the maximum amount.
I have a dumb question....the SS that I pay into, is that also used to provide checks for the children who has a parent in prison?

I have come to the conclusion that there will be no social security when I get to the age of retirement.
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post #9 of 18
9/28/10 at 1:17pm
My generation should be working towards their own method of retirement rather than hoping that SS will still be a viable option when we're old enough to collect. DH and I have been putting away money in various different investments since we got married, just because of this. We don't expect SS when we're old enough.

To the OP, I sympathize with your situation. I can't imagine working hard for years, planning and preparing, only to get to the point where you can finally do what you planned only to find out that maybe, someone is going to take that away from you. I don't think what's happening to the SS system is fair or right, and I'm sorry that you might get caught in the middle of it. No matter what happens, good luck!
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post #10 of 18
9/28/10 at 1:55pm
Just a quick reminder about 401k's in case anyone here has one, especially the youngsters. With 401k's there's also a minimum age to collect without penalty - I think it's 59 and a half. I say this because sometimes really basic info like this can sometimes slip into the "forgot about that" section of the brain. As we get older, our memory sometimes goes downhill.
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post #11 of 18
9/28/10 at 9:59pm
i didn't read the whole article but i hope it helps
http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com...nl_6013.4.5.59
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post #12 of 18
9/29/10 at 5:06pm
Social Security could continue to be viable if only Congress would remove the cap on SS payroll tax, just like they did on Medicare some 20+ years ago. As it stands today, the SS tax is unfair because it hits those earning less than $105K annually at a higher percentage than those earning over that amount. In other words someone earning $20 million a year pays the same maximum amount as someone earning $105K a year. I don't think this is fair at all.
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post #13 of 18
9/30/10 at 5:22am
That sounds like a surprisingly socialist comment.
Seriously the benefits are capped, so why should someone who earns more than $105 k / year pay more if they can't also receive more?
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post #14 of 18
9/30/10 at 8:02am
Quote:
Originally Posted by 2dogmom View Post
That sounds like a surprisingly socialist comment.
Seriously the benefits are capped, so why should someone who earns more than $105 k / year pay more if they can't also receive more?
For the same reason that people who earn more money are taxed at higher rates. They don't get any more for their contributions than those that pay less. I'm all for removing the cap or at least raising it by quite a bit.
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post #15 of 18
10/1/10 at 10:09am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by emrldsky View Post
To the OP, I sympathize with your situation. I can't imagine working hard for years, planning and preparing, only to get to the point where you can finally do what you planned only to find out that maybe, someone is going to take that away from you. I don't think what's happening to the SS system is fair or right, and I'm sorry that you might get caught in the middle of it. No matter what happens, good luck!
Thanks. The worse thing for me would be that they raise the starting age to 63, rather than the current 62. That would be a big disappointment. But, one way or the other, I will eventually receive a monthly social security check. Which, as others have pointed out, may not be there for the younger members here when they retire.
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post #16 of 18
10/11/10 at 9:56pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by 2dogmom View Post
That sounds like a surprisingly socialist comment.
Seriously the benefits are capped, so why should someone who earns more than $105 k / year pay more if they can't also receive more?
Because it is a TAX and not a savings account! And while I'm a pretty conservative person in most respects, I do feel that Social Security should be available for those senior citizens who can't finance their own retirement, and those SS payments should be financed by everyone's earned income, no matter how high that income may be. I do not think it is fair that the person earning $105K/yr is paying the same tax as someone earning $105M a year. The 105K person is paying 6.2% of his earned income in SS tax while the $105M person is only paying 0.0062%. As it stands now SS tax is regressive, and that makes it unfair to those earning $105K or less per year.
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post #17 of 18
10/13/10 at 1:17pm
Thread Starter 
I agree with the above.
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post #18 of 18
10/15/10 at 8:43am
Quote:
Originally Posted by 2dogmom View Post
I thought you can retire earlier, you just pay a penalty by getting less benefits.
http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/quickcalc/ea...tml#calculator

I just tried it for myself - if I retire at age 62 (month after my birthday) I get 72% of the primary amount.

http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/ProgData/ar_drc.html
Yes you can retire earlier but you have to be at least 62 to do this. I had to retire at 62 and I did not get full benefits but I've been living with it and it's ok, I also get a pension from a job I worked at for 22 years, if not for that I would be in trouble.
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