Social Security replaces a percentage of your pre-retirement income, based on your lifetime earnings. The portion of your pre-retirement wages that Social Security replaces is based on your highest inflation-adjusted 35 years of earnings<\/strong><\/a> and varies depending on how much you earn and when you choose to start benefits.<\/p>\n If you qualify for benefits on your own earnings record, you\u2019ll be entitled to receive them as soon as you\u2019re eligible. Eligibility is based on your age. The earliest you can claim your benefit is 62, but it will be a reduced benefit. Your so-called \u201cfull retirement age<\/strong><\/a>\u201d is when you\u2019re eligible for an unreduced Social Security benefit. Your full retirement age depends on when you were born. If you\u2019re willing and able to delay the start of your benefits<\/strong><\/a>, you can receive a higher monthly payment. It\u2019s not always straight-forward to determine when you should apply for your Social Security benefit. That\u2019s because the strategy that produces the largest lifetime benefit for you may not fit with your overall financial and retirement plan. For example, delaying Social Security beyond full retirement age means you\u2019ll need other financial resources to provide income for the period between the date you stop working and that when your higher benefits begin. And delaying your benefits well beyond full retirement age generally only makes sense if you plan to live well into your 80s or 90s. As a single woman, you\u2019ll be able to claim benefits based on your own earnings record, and you\u2019ll be able to receive them as soon as you\u2019re eligible.<\/p>\n Ideally, you\u2019ll determine the best claiming strategy \u2013 early, full retirement age, or delayed \u2013 based on a retirement plan that\u2019s been created especially for you. <\/br><\/p>\n If you were married, you may have some additional flexibility when it comes to claiming Social Security benefits, even if you only worked for a few years \u2013 or never worked at all \u2013 under Social Security.<\/p>\n Social Security offers something called an \u201cex-spousal benefit\u201d, which you may be eligible to receive, depending on a number of factors.<\/p>\n So, the best strategy is to claim the greater of your own benefit, or a ex-spousal benefit.<\/p>\n To be eligible to claim an ex-spousal benefit:<\/p>\n If you were married (for at least 10 years) and divorced more than once, you can claim a divorced spousal benefit on the ex-spouse with the largest benefit.<\/p>\n The maximum divorced spousal benefit is 50% of the ex-spouse\u2019s benefit at full retirement age. If your ex-spouse delays filing for benefits beyond full retirement age, their benefit will increase, but your ex-spousal benefit will not.<\/p>\n To receive your maximum ex-spousal benefit, you should wait to claim until you reach your full retirement age.<\/p>\n The following flowchart can help you understand whether you\u2019re eligible for an ex-spousal benefit (clicking on image opens chart in new tab):<\/p>\n <\/br><\/p>\n If you\u2019re the widow of a spouse who worked long enough under Social Security, you can receive a benefit that is the greater of your own, and that of your deceased spouse\u2019s \u2013 called a survivor benefit. You can receive a reduced benefit as early as age 60, and if you qualify for benefits on your own earnings record, switch to your own (reduced) benefit at age 62. If you have a disability, and your disability started before or within seven years of your deceased spouse\u2019s death, you can begin receiving benefits as early as age 50. You can receive survivors benefits at any age, if you haven\u2019t remarried and you take care of your deceased spouse\u2019s child who is under age 16 or who has a disability and receives child\u2019s benefits. If you remarry after you reach age 60 (or age 50 if you have a disability), your remarriage will not affect your eligibility for survivors benefits.<\/p>\n As a widow you can\u2019t apply online for your Social Security benefit \u2013 you need to contact Social Security directly, either by phone or in-person.<\/p>\n The following flowchart can help you understand whether you\u2019re eligible for a survivor benefit (clicking on image opens chart in new tab):<\/p>\n <\/br><\/p>\n Many widows don\u2019t know that it\u2019s possible to claim a survivor benefit if your ex-spouse has died.<\/p>\n If your ex-spouse has died, you may be entitled to receive Social Security survivor benefits, which have different eligibility rules than those for a living ex-spouse. For example, you can apply for benefits as early as age 60, rather than at 62. And if you remarry after age 60, your remarriage won\u2019t affect your eligibility to receive a survivor benefit.<\/p>\n The percentage of your deceased ex-spouse\u2019s benefit that you\u2019re entitled to receive depends on a number of factors:<\/p>\n As a surviving divorced spouse you can\u2019t apply online for your Social Security benefit \u2013 you need to contact Social Security directly, either by phone or in-person.<\/p>\n The following flowchart can help you understand whether you\u2019re eligible for a deceased ex-spousal benefit (clicking on image opens chart in new tab):<\/p>\n <\/br><\/p>\n If you need help with Social Security planning, consider working with a Certified Financial Planner\u2122 (CFP\u00ae<\/sup>). Advisors who hold this designation had to meet rigorous educational, experience and ethics requirements.<\/p>\n <\/br><\/p>\n America\u2019s Social Security program provides economic security to millions. The Social Security program provides you with a source of income when you retire, or if you can\u2019t work due to a disability. It can also provide benefits that support your legal dependents in the event of your death. Understanding the complex world of Social Security […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":8552,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[150,3,152,11],"tags":[49,66,107,117,118,126,140],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/springwaterwealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8543"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/springwaterwealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/springwaterwealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/springwaterwealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/springwaterwealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8543"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/springwaterwealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8543\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8554,"href":"https:\/\/springwaterwealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8543\/revisions\/8554"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/springwaterwealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8552"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/springwaterwealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8543"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/springwaterwealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8543"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/springwaterwealth.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8543"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n<\/br><\/p>\nWhen Should I Claim My Social Security Benefit?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\n<\/br><\/p>\nSocial Security for Single Women<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/br><\/p>\nFind a CFP\u00ae<\/sup> professional to help you build a retirement plan<\/strong><\/a><\/span><\/h2>\n
Social Security for Divorced Women<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/springwaterwealth.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/2022-Flowchart-Social-Security-Divorced-scaled.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nSocial Security for Widowed Women<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n<\/br><\/p>\nHow soon can I claim a benefit?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\n<\/br><\/p>\nWhat if I\u2019m disabled?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\n<\/br><\/p>\nWhat if I have kids at home?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\n<\/br><\/p>\nWhat if I remarry?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/springwaterwealth.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/2022-Flowchart-Social-Security-Surviving-Spouse-scaled.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nWhat if my ex-spouse has died?<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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<\/a><\/p>\nGetting Help From an Advisor<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Contact us today to learn how a Certified Financial Planner\u00ae<\/sup> professional can help guide you, answer your financial questions, and plan for a secure financial future.<\/strong><\/a><\/span><\/h2>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"