Almost a year ago, on Aug. 1, 2011, I wrote about a change in Social Security Administration procedure when paper mailed statements regarding projected benefits were discontinued.
At that time, I complained that the handy annual mailed report needed for planning purposes, especially by "boomers" and those nearing retirement age, would be unavailable. How, I wondered, were they going adequately to replace it?
Although the agency said paper statements would be resumed for those nearing full retirement age and information would eventually be available on line, I remained skeptical. It was government, after all, and considering all the complaining about government in the age of budget cuts, how much could we expect? I assumed a "wait and see" mode.
It seems now may be the time to eat my prior words.
In another e-mail from my friend, Peter Mullen at Sherpa Financial, I learned that Social Security statements are now available on line, meaning that at any time we can check out the estimated benefit for us as individuals letting us know, for instance, what the difference in Social Security payments would be if we retired at full retirement age (currently age 66) or early retirement or at age 70. Other information is available from the Social Security Administration through the same on-line access I will discuss below.
In any event, for anyone who wants to check his or her information, this is what to do. Go to www.socialsecurity.gov/mystatement. Once on the site, you will be prompted by a series of questions to determine and confirm your identity. These may include the types of questions now familiar with credit card and bank statements such as former addresses, the names of grandparents and so on.
Once you have established this information and a user name and password, you should write this down and save it in a secure location.
For those who are interested, it seems that the system was designed consistent with Equifax, the credit reporting agency.
By the way, in the time between the discontinuance of mailed statements and establishment of on-line access, it was necessary to try to compute benefits on your own through an on-line calculator, "Retirement Estimator." The current method is much more convenient and likely to give a better result.
Also, for those 60 and over, the Social Security Administration has begun mailing statements again.
Now for the content.
First, the statement provides the dollar amount of retirement benefits estimated at age 62 (or current age if over age 62), at Full Retirement Age (currently 66) and at age 70 if you defer receiving benefits until age 70.
Next, disability benefits are estimated concerning what you would receive if you needed to file for Social Security Disability.
Information on Family and Survivor's Benefits follows. Survivor's Benefits describe what your spouse and/or minor children and, in some cases, dependent parents might receive based on your earnings record if you died.
Also, during your lifetime, others might claim on your earnings record without reducing your benefit. These may be your current or a former spouse or minor children if you are entitled to either retirement or disability benefits and your minor child has not yet reached the age of 18 or graduated from high school. There is a maximum overall family benefit.
You should check the earnings record listed on the statement of your Social Security account. If the information is incorrect, you can correct it. Along with many other activities, you can now do this on-line by following the instructions.
If you will recall from my prior columns, it is important, where possible, to have a work history with Social Security of at least 35 years since benefits for Social Security retirement are based on an average of your best 35 years' earnings. Each year less than the 35 is added back at zero causing those who have an abbreviated work history due to family obligations, child rearing and caring for aging parents to be at a severe disadvantage. One bright piece of news is that, if an earlier earnings record is insufficient, workers can make up some or possibly all of this lost time by working up to age 70. Work after age 70 does not improve your record.
Workers might also, in some cases, coordinate their claims with their spouses for maximum advantage.
For more, listen on Wednesdays at 4:30 p.m. to radio WCHE 1520, "50+ Planning Ahead," with Janet Colliton, Colliton Law Associates, and Phil McFadden, Home Instead Senior Care. Live streaming is available at that time on www.wche1520.com.
Attorney Janet Colliton limits her practice, Colliton Law Associates PC, to elder law, special needs, life care and estate planning and administration with offices at 790 East Market St., Suite 250, West Chester, Pa., 19382, 610-436-6674, colliton@collitonlaw.com. She is a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys and, with Jeffrey Jones, CSA, co-founder of Life Transition Services, LLC, a service for families with long term care needs.