Social Security Spousal Benefits  

You're listening to the network and TruthNetwork.com welcome to finishing well brought you by Cardinal� Certified financial planner belonged to child best-selling author and financial planner helping families finish well over 40 years of finishing well will examine both biblical and practical knowledge to assist families in finishing well, including discussions on managing Medicare IRA long-term care life insurance and investments and taxes. Now let's get started. Finishing well welcome to finishing well with certified financial planner upon trial today show is discovering Social Security spousal benefits which you about the mouth, but as always we you know that I think the Bible speaks to this in a way NN is really some gobs been showing me this week. I really really love this verse in the Psalms is one of 741 it says he sets the poor on high, far from affliction and makes their families like a flock.

What a promise from my perspective because if you're like me you got a family and and and you want them to be the shepherds flock. I mean like oh my goodness. If if they were in Jesus's flock. You know, mission accomplished, but but but still there and you're flocking and you want them set far from affliction at and so when I think about spousal benefits that the thing that I I've come to understand since getting to know you as all my understandings about what so security did in the case of my death and what my wife would get etc. etc. I was just like totally ignorant and and thought things that were just not the case and so II really like today's topic Hans to really uncover somebody if they were thinking like I was like well that's not true. Like I thought that if I died it any point in life you know after you know that my wife would get my Social Security in and it justice it doesn't work like that. Okay so so today's show were talking about spousal benefits, and so in Robbie agrees looking at from his own perspective. As many of you are your currently married your married husband wife and spousal benefits apply to you right, but the also apply. If you've ever been married so you did to the people that are single. If you've ever been married and you were married to another person for 10 years or more in there. Now you're either divorced or their deceased.

There's a benefit. Therefore, Frank and I want to give you some education on that and seller getting it all there is, however, were headed so just just say that I was going along like I thought it was going on it, say, 55 and Tammy's seven years younger than me and so you know she'd been in about 38 or 37 of the time and I passed away at 55 I would've told you that Tammy will start to get my Social Security sins iodized is not known know it's is so your Social Security benefit. Whatever that would have been 66 right that would establish the number based on your earnings history for Tammy is your now deceased so they can go forward to establish the number that when she can get that is going to be based on Tammy's age and so would mean I which actually applies right as I have to wait a number years because Tammy isn't 60 yet and so I take it at 60 she tempted not remarry before 65 instead of an effect that might hurt outline that Jack, that's one of the rules it doesn't remarry before 60.

She could also take it at 60 but it would be reduced benefit and it will also reduce her ability to earn an income outside income so you know they're just not what you think they are so limited score a couple rules. Number one is if this marriage is in the past.

So if a person is divorced or the person that you were married to his deceased so you're a widow or widower and you are not yet 65 are your 66. Her full retirement age, which are just out there you're a single person in your thinking that your own work record is going to determine your Social Security check. And it might if you have a good strong work record, but you're to be able to file on your either disease, deceased or divorced spouse record like you don't remarry before 60 you to be entitled to a benefit at full retirement or perhaps even earlier based upon your age in the future. Galanis was news to me because I was like wow, you mean so clearly I need to have whatever life insurance in place to take care of Tammy until she reaches the age where she would get her full benefit of what my so security would've been because she didn't work much know when I was running the dealership all assets or income, and very hot and and so like wow it would be traumatic for me to live under that assumption that she was going to have an income coming in.

When I passed away. He turned full retirement age that so you need life insurance. That's assuming I can be gone in the next few years. When you just so you need to carry life insurance to your own Social Security then you need to carry it for another 8 to 10 years or whatever till Tammy's full retirement age because she's not convenient title to your to the survivor benefit off of your record until she's full retirement.

You need life insurance benefit for that whole time and then after that so you're like 75 and she's 65 or what what whatever the numbers are you still needed.

After that, because you're going to be getting your full retirement, Social Security check, she's getting the getting half of your Social Security check as a spousal benefit in your to be living off of that. If you later die which you probably will at some point is probably to be before her.

Maybe, maybe not. But then, which is going to happen is she's going to get your full benefit which is nice but hers is going to go away so you still need life insurance rights heavily recommend real numbers in math so that for the audiences benefit our mind on it.

It that my so security if I wait till 70 to apply for which I'm going to do is my plan currently because I'm working would be right around $3000 of what I would get because I'm waiting. However, you know, one of the misunderstandings I have all that Tammy would get half which would be 1500 but that's not the case. To get half of your full retirement age, which is about 2600, so Tammy's half a really only be about 1300. My writing and sitting at my 3000 and you got her 1300 when she reaches 66 whatever she's gotta be about the time that happens. And so there's $4300 now you know I died 82. Whatever. Now all the sudden she loses she's no longer getting 43, she will just be kidding you delete the $3000 which is one of the big reasons that I really want to wait till I'm 70.

Because if I take my full retirement age of 66 1/2. She's going to be stuck with that check is she's much younger than me.

She can be stuck with that smaller check all the rest are I'm doing exactly the same thing with mine for run and the numbers aren't that different with this is a big deal when I call on these folks, 75, 80 years old that are live in this and then I call Efraim after the first spouse dies, you can look at Social Security and says not a lot of money here to this or that it's a lot of money to these people. I don't care how well-off they are there, it's a check that comes in every month and you need to plan for. So I wanted go to another example. My sister Margot passed away at age 57 and I'm still sad about it and she is very near and dear and she was a nurse practitioner. She had three jobs probably somewhat killed her.

She had an aneurysm working us trials are all workers, worker bees and her husband who is still my CPA and still good friend. He was 55 when she passed away at 57 now.

She made more money does or did I manage significantly more money so he wants to get her Social Security benefit when he through working and he's entitled to. So the because he's two years younger 55 he when you see any Social Security benefit for 11 years and that's really a couple years from now.

I coach him on this will he's coaching me on my taxes and the desolate stuff but have coached him through this one key thing is he couldn't remarry before 60 and still get this benefits.

In other words, she died.

He survived if he would've remarried someone before age 60 than this benefit would on her Social Security will not be eligible, but he made it to 60 remarried actually made it to 65 which is coming up here this month. He still is gonna wait till full retirement age, because he still working but in full retirement age for him is like 66 and two months or whatever and so when that month gets here ill file for the spousal survivor benefit. He'll get would've been her full Social Security check for the rest of his life that he won't get his senses that when you take that benefit based on spouse, you don't get to keep your successor.

He'll never file on his own work record. He'll just have it based upon the surviving spouse, so you may thinking wow.

There's a lot to this. There's that there's a lot of information in there is lot information is White's consular book, the complete Gartner guide to planning for living in retirement and there are the seven worries that are on this book that are listed). The title and he's placed them at his website which is cardinal guide.com which we talk about all the time of the garden before guiding cardinal guide.com if you click on the seven hours tab you can get the Social Security tab just absolutely free and oh my goodness, my misunderstandings like I was so ignorant about Social Security and some of these you know ins and outs that were really critical to know what God said and that's all that we want our families to be far from calamity without the sad news is that if you got a know what this stuff is so that you can plan for it appropriately.

You know, in the end there's a lot of ins and outs to it so this is really helpful information.

You can order the whole book right at the website or you could go on Amazon to get the complete cardinal guide to planning for living retirement and the company workbook all available there@cardinalguide.com you just send me a message on the website to Hansson. Just tell me like the Booker send it to McKenzie whose associate that will will ship with County. No charge.

We'd like to get you the information that because this is weird.

I had really, you know like wow I'm it was a really pleasant surprise for me when I realized well in a by the time Tammy's get half a mind and that in $4300 a month is a lot of money and and and you we can look forward to that. You know, and into whatever but then obviously gotta protect your family to keep him far from calamity which the good Shepherd to do that so we come back and gotten a few more stories. I think you'll be shocked.

I've shot the know some of the things that are in this, that are available and some that you think are available.

Hans and I would love to take our show on the road to your church, Sunday school, Christian or civic group.

Here's a chance for you to advance the kingdom through financial resources and leveraging Hahn's expertise and qualified charitable contributions veterans aid and attendance and IRA Social Security care and long-term care.

Just go to cardinal guide.com and contact to schedule a live recording of finishing well at your church Christian or civic group contact Tomczyk cardinal guy.com that's cardinal guide.com welcome back to finishing well with certified financial planner Hans Schild today show discovering Social Security spousal benefits and that's whether it's your spouse or your spouse, you know, there's also to these things involved in it and as promised, and you got a story that I think everybody out here.

This story blows my mind before I tell the story. When I after you hear the story you might be inclined to s�ance the problem with the Social Security system they're paying out too much money to two spouses or whatever benefits and what what I would like to suggest especially if you're right, at retirement or you're in retirement is. Let's just let the government worry about the Social Security systems and send the check� Get focused on your benefits and how you can affect them. And the reason I say that is is that people spend a lot of energy analyzing the stuff for the government and going on a lot of things that usually part of them is true and it just causes a lot of let's just say distraction from how stuff really works is not a lot of benefit to the kingdom. I think to be distant Social Security are offered suggestions that a manager will give focused on her own benefit. So so this lady. She was married to a higher earning man back in the 70s and 80s. She was married for 12 years as a doctor yet Very made a lot of money and then she had a couple children and they were divorced and she didn't have much of an earnings record was while she was married to him. She didn't work hard and work much and then after she left him or he left her. Whatever they she was raising the children and so she dutifully doesn't have much of an earnings history so she at some point, got herself educated on what benefits she's entitled to, based upon his Social Security and your good divorce lawyer I guess is, education that can stop and she discovered that when she reaches full retirement age at age 66 for her at the time, based on her age. Not his that she will be entitled to collect half of his Social Security benefit as an alternative to her Social Security vent which wasn't very big because this lady established a career in her 50s and 60s, so she was doing well but she hadn't done well long enough to accumulate a nice benefit to where half of his was better than all of hers which he also discovered which she knew all along and actually he remarried to a woman about the same age as her. She also was collecting the 50% spousal benefit. So you had to spouses being paid out about 1500 bucks a month.

Him being paid out over 3000 a month, all based upon his earning record so they're going along, march along.

She's doing her job just got the small relatively small Social Security check.

He dies she had been married to him for like 30 years, he dies her benefit then goes to his full Social Security benefit which had grown through inflation delight. 3500 bucks a month. She was getting paid 35 bucks hundred bucks a month and the surviving spouse which he was still married to his death. She's getting 3500 bucks a month so the government so security systems band seven grand a month out for the rest of their lives to both of these women he's dead right and both of them actually needed. I mean, you know you can see where they this is why in the surviving spouse needed it worse than this lady did.

Because this is just a windfall. When the Social Security check doubled when he died, but he won a windfall for the lady that was married to them because her surviving their household was getting his check in her check and then got a �500 Alexander three yeah so there was a loss there in household income but what we really want to do on the show's were want to get across to people that there is a benefit for you based upon being married to somebody for longer than 10 years and is if you don't remarry before 60 or you haven't remarried before 60 there's gonna be a benefit for you, but that benefit is not really gonna start until you're in your mid 60s when his father thinks to to an extent, to get in a bigger overview of the whole Social Security system. I think you said it well, as we are preparing for the show that Social Security was set up with the overall idea of taking care of society not having individual benefits for individual situation so much as making sure that people are taking care of at some level we demand people out and whenever benefit society writing a just so you got this whole system is really set up in self-interest for the government. This is put it that way where we don't have people in the streets. We do have people in the streets, but a lot of that is by choices that most people in this country are eligible for some kind of a check if they would just get in and apply for stay with the rules and specifically Social Security provides a you know a base level of income to keep people of some minimal level of living, and it also takes care of the sick and me where you are confused earlier that you thought if you died at 55 and Tammy was 45 that picture � she would start getting your check where the confusion comes. This is possible if that would've happened that she would've gotten some check because she was taking care of minor children okay so there's a benefit for that. I don't want to get into the details that but that's not a spousal benefit. It's a I guess you could say it's a spousal benefit, but it's so if she was not working, or didn't have a strong work. You died your minor children can get a benefit that benefit is in stop and those kids graduate from high school or the turn 18 and they're no longer in school. It's over with so that's an even worse situation where a benefit starts within it has an end date so that there is that there is there's a need for life insurance people have that I managed to make that decision when there are 40 or 50 or even 60. It beats from the standpoint of getting a rate for the rest your life. Those would be really great decisions when you made up when you were much younger and they've reached near huge benefits and not men. I even think about my own situation with Tammy and we made a lot of life insurance decisions back years ago and before I got cancer and boy it really well. That's one reason to buy life insurance when you're younger is it's less expensive but I give you another reason you might die soon, so you could look at that with a benefit for me as I think I felt less like a heartbeat. Just so that's one reason that I've been a bit lower rate.

But how about thinking if I'm absent, you know, I bought my life insurance for the cash in accumulation benefits and I borrowed against it for my business and I did all I can stop so I I got the agreed factors as well, but if I would've died like a year or two or three after I monitor five or seven run would've gotten a couple million bucks or whatever hemming and then just she did needed it right into one of the heartbreaks you know if my ages and we have transit pass away.

You know more and more center in the older I get the my mother used to say in might build up more treasure in heaven. Every because your friends are passed away but as you do you see like oh my goodness, this dear friend was a good man. He was a good man left nothing. Due to some circumstances, no life insurance literally has when I was in a situation like how Mike and I bury my husband how many bear and what is so security gives 250s. It did turn $55 and so here's this you know actually I know that it was his son that in that pain to bury his father and it was just to you know one of those things. It is told at your heartstrings like manna, you know he didn't think he was gonna die. Obviously none of us to mommy pensions work the same way if you're 40 years old or 45 years old and married and your spouse work somewhere in there entitled to a pension which is rare these days, but it you know the work for the government or something and there's a benefit of $3000 a month that you would have if you to live your spouse is entitled to something that they don't get it till there so the spouses 65 a minute then I'll start sending you pension check to a window that's 40.

Based upon the death of a worker manages stuffs in the future so that's what calls for life insurance.

If you got a standard of living, or just a minimum standard of living.

That's for life insurance was invented for the know. If you say you can't afford it. You can use term insurance. Term insurance was set for that and we can guarantee term premiums for 20 or 30 years. Very inexpensively, or for those people who are 72 1/2 now. Based on our Inola commitment have been the minimum distributions on their IRAs is there's all sorts of ways to measure that you need life insurance at every age. In the end the only life insurance policies. It's really valuable to you is the one that's in force on the day he died. It's not so much valuable to you is as valuable to the flock. It connects your signature to the family to the beneficiaries is valuable to you. Just knowing that's there that just gives me so much comfort, or just knowing my family and my spouse are going to be just fine if I'm at on a facile rally today and we talked about it many many times for the spirit bears repeating that there can get that tax-free. They don't have to mean a like money out of an IRA or or other money that would be taxed that would be income.

This is not to be income to them that for time immortal laid they said life insurance benefits are the contacts for the Fisher and then the real creativeness is to continue the interest that's made on that money is to make that tax-free or tax-exempt or low taxed eminences and brings on another financial planning opportunity but we that's that's what we do. Okay, so what today show again.

It's part of the seven worries tab Barrett Cardinal guide.com under so security which you know we are doing so security spousal benefits today and as we've always said you can get the free PDF. There you can order the book at the website. Lots of information that is really really helpful when you really if you look at your family, your flock you wanted to be Christ flock, but she wanted to be far from affliction. It's it's worth getting some information especially no one is lying in the street and is absolutely free to Cardinal guide.com.

We hope you enjoyed finishing well brought you by Cardinal guide.com visit Cardinal.com for free downloads of the show or previous shows on topics such as Social Security, Medicare and IRAs, long-term care and life insurance, investments and taxes as well as cons best-selling book, the complete Cardinal guide to planning for and living in retirement and the workbook once again for dozens of free resources past shows more to get Hans book go to Cardinal guy.com if you have a question, comment or suggestion for future shows. Click on the finishing well radio show on the website and send us a word. Once again that's Cardinal guide.com Cardinal guide.com