Social Security Service May Get Worse

A blue and white logo of the social security administration.


Despite a large increase in its budget for 2023, the Social Security Administration has admitted that service to beneficiaries seeking out help will not improve for most of this year—and in some areas, it will deteriorate, according to the AARP Bulletin.  Areas which are supposed to get worse are getting help on the 800 number and getting a decision on disability benefits.  The SSA got a 6% increase in its budget for 2023, which gives it $14.1 billion to spend.  But the agency says that most of that money is already spent and it doesn’t think customer service will improve until fiscal 2024.

Learn More About The Carmel Foundation on Tuesday, July 11

A woman is combing the hair of an older person.


Find out more about the Carmel Foundation on Tuesday, July 11, at the Carmel Foundation’s Diment Hall.  The place is a great place to socialize with other seniors, take classes, have meals and discussion groups, they even have various dance classes like Greek, Line Dancing and Nia Freedance.  They also have various groups like photography, papercraft and Needlecraft.  They recently had an outing to the Legion of Honor in San  Francisco and an upcoming jaunt to Golden Gate Park will occur on Tuesday June 20.  For more information go to www.carmelfoundation.org or call 624-1588.

Learn More About The Carmel Foundation on Tuesday, July 11

A woman and an older lady standing next to each other.


Find out more about the Carmel Foundation on Tuesday, July 11, at the Carmel Foundation’s Diment Hall.  The place is a great place to socialize with other seniors, take classes, have meals and discussion groups, they even have various dance classes like Greek, Line Dancing and Nia Freedance.  They also have various groups like photography, papercraft and Needlecraft.  They recently had an outing to the Legion of Honor in San  Francisco and an upcoming jaunt to Golden Gate Park will occur on Tuesday June 20.  For more information go to www.carmelfoundation.org or call 624-1588.

Learn More About The Carmel Foundation on Tuesday, July 11

A man and woman looking at a laptop


Find out more about the Carmel Foundation on Tuesday, July 11, at the Carmel Foundation’s Diment Hall.  The place is a great place to socialize with other seniors, take classes, have meals and discussion groups, they even have various dance classes like Greek, Line Dancing and Nia Freedance.  They also have various groups like photography, papercraft and Needlecraft.  They recently had an outing to the Legion of Honor in San  Francisco and an upcoming jaunt to Golden Gate Park will occur on Tuesday June 20.  For more information go to www.carmelfoundation.org or call 624-1588.

Learn More About The Carmel Foundation on Tuesday, July 11

A group of people giving thumbs up to the camera.


Find out more about the Carmel Foundation on Tuesday, July 11, at the Carmel Foundation’s Diment Hall.  The place is a great place to socialize with other seniors, take classes, have meals and discussion groups, they even have various dance classes like Greek, Line Dancing and Nia Freedance.  They also have various groups like photography, papercraft and Needlecraft.  They recently had an outing to the Legion of Honor in San  Francisco and an upcoming jaunt to Golden Gate Park will occur on Tuesday June 20.  For more information go to www.carmelfoundation.org or call 624-1588.

You May Live Longer Than You Think : Financially Plan For It

A woman is helping an older man with his shirt off.


The Wall Street Journal recently ran an article entitled “Plan on living past your life expectancy,†which emphasized the fact that with people living longer, many outlive their money.  There are many reasons that this could happen, among them claiming Social Security too early, passing up the opportunity to buy annuities or long-term-care insurance, or simply mis budgeting.  Life expectancy refers to the average number of years someone will live from a given age, while longevity refers to how long someone might live if  everything goes well.  Many people, unfortunately, are ignorant of their so-called longevity risk, which is the probability of living a very long life.  Speak with your financial advisor to see if you are prepared for a long retirement.

Social Security Pressured By Congress To Improve Service

A blue and white logo of the social security administration.


After a flood of customer complaints which have gotten even worse following pandemic-related shutdowns, the Social Security Administration, SSA, is under intense pressure from Congress.  Leaders of the House Ways and Means Committee wrote a letter to acting SSA commissioner Kilolo Kijakazi which said, in part, “Many people, some of whom are elderly…have had to wait more than six hours to get help. …People have had to come back multiple days to get service.â€Â  Those who called faced a similar situation with much longer than average wait times.  “Agency-wide, we are at our lowest staffing level in 25 years, driven by years of insufficient funding,†Social Security spokesperson Nicole Tiggemann said in an email to AARP.

 

It’s Official : Social Security Payments To Rise By 8.7% In 2023

A woman is combing the hair of an older person.


The Social Security Administration announced that starting in January, Social Security checks will increase by 8.7%, the largest cost-of-living COLA increase since 1981.  The increase will benefit 70 million Social Security recipients benefits which will go from $1,699, on average, to $1,814.  This will be welcome news for those who have been struggling with high inflation.

Tips On When To Take Social Security

A woman and an old lady smiling for the camera.


If you are thinking about taking early retirement, think again.  With the stock market in a funk and inflation soaring, this is a painful time for everyone but especially those who are living on a fixed income.  When thinking about retirement, don’t look at the average life expectancy as the most probable outcome.  This is an average, and many people live much longer.  Sharon Carson, executive director of retirement insights for J.P. Morgan Asset Management, told USA Today that you should plan for 35 years of retirement if you are a non-smoker in excellent health.  She also says that the lower your expected long-term investment return (which is typical as you get older), the more it pays to wait longer before claiming Social Security.  So, for instance, a woman who expects a long-term investment return of 5.5% and has a life expectancy of 88 should consider claiming at age 70.

Social Security Checks Projected To Go Up Up 8.7% In January

A man in a suit and tie sitting inside of a car.


According to an estimate by Mary Johnson, a policy analyst for the Senior Citizen League, an advocacy group, Social Security Payments could see the largest increase since 1982 in 2023.  That’s the good news.  The bad news is that inflation is still very high so the 8.7% increase may not mean much as far as purchasing power goes.  For the average retiree who currently gets a check for $1,656, the cost-of-living hike would bring them an additional $144.10 a month in 2023, making the average payment $1,800.