#social-security

#social-security

Mom worked for almost two decades after her divorce, but could not financially make up for the years she spent as a housewife. The low-paying jobs she had while married - cleaner, waitress, and such - counteracted her higher income as an administrative assistant. She ended up grossing $575.00 a month from social security, despite the fact that she could have drawn against my father's social security allotment for more than double that amount.

The amount of your Social Security benefit is determined based on your average wages over 35 years and based on how old you are when you claim your benefit. If you have to retire sooner than planned, it's possible you won't have 35 good years of earnings on your record. Many people make more money as their career advances, and retiring while you're at your peak earning potential means that more early low-earning years are part of your benefits calculation.

In Social Security benefits will increase by 2.8% in 2026. This is the Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) that will apply next year. In most years, COLAs increase Social Security benefits. The purpose of COLAs is to help Social Security recipients avoid losing buying power due to the effects of inflation. Third-quarter data from a consumer price index is reviewed, and when it reveals rising prices, benefits go up based on the year-over-year increase in the cost of a basket of goods and services.

The mismatch stems from the way COLAs are calculated. Currently, the SSA bases annual increases on the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), a measure designed around the spending habits of younger, urban workers. An alternative measure, the Consumer Price Index for the Elderly (CPI-E) weights housing, health care and utilities more heavily and would have produced a 3.1% increase in 2026 instead of 2.8%, according to Investopedia.

The proposal would've been the largest-ever cut to the program, per an analysis from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. At the time, a spokesman for the Social Security Administration told the paper the agency was working on plans to "propose improvements to the disability adjudication process to ensure our disability program remains current and can be more efficiently administered."

For many retirees, being taxed on Social Security benefits comes as a huge shock. These benefits are earned benefits that come to you because you have paid Social Security taxes during your entire career. Given that you already paid into the system to qualify, it's understandable to assume that the government is not going to charge you more tax. Unfortunately, that's not necessarily the case.

A major mistake many Boomers are making is assuming they will be able to work far longer than most people actually do. The Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies reports that 56 percent of Boomers expect to stay on the job until at least age 70 or skip retirement entirely. It sounds like a smart strategy in theory, but real life often tells a different story.

AI Summary Senate Democrats have introduced a bill to expand Social Security Administration (SSA) and Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) benefits by $200 per month for six months, aiming to provide economic relief amid persistently high inflation. The move follows the Oct. 24 announcement of an average cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) of 2.8% in 2026 for the 53 million Americans who receive Social Security retirement benefits an increase of about $56 per month.

The cost of living got even more expensive for Americans last month, with prices rising at the fastest pace since the start of the year. Consumer prices rose 0.3% in September, which drove the annual rate of inflation from 2.9% to 3%, the highest it's been since January, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Friday. Gas prices, which shot up 4.2% for regular unleaded fuel (their highest monthly gain since August 2023), were the biggest culprit behind the monthly increase, BLS data shows.