A Conversation About Social Security

Ready to lock in a Social Security strategy you won’t regret later? We sit down with Hillary Hatch from the Social Security Administration to demystify the rules that decide how much lands in your bank account each month. From understanding your full retirement age to weighing early versus delayed filing, we unpack the choices that shape lifetime income, using clear examples and practical decision points for people born in 1960 or later.

We walk through the math behind claiming at 62, 67, or 70, why benefits don’t “reset” to the full amount once you hit your full retirement age, and how delayed retirement credits can boost your check until 70. If you plan to keep working, you’ll learn how the earnings test can reduce benefits before full retirement age and why that matters for near-term cash flow. We also address the most common myths around spousal benefits, including when the 50 percent rule applies, what happens if your own benefit is higher, and why filing early can limit future spousal amounts.

Planning starts with good data, so we highlight the My Social Security account at ssa.gov as your personal hub for estimates, earnings records, and easy self-service options. For those in the Walker area who prefer in-person help, we share how to schedule appointments and where to find the Grand Rapids office on Knapp Street NE. By the end, you’ll know the key levers—timing, work income, spousal coordination, and verified earnings—that turn Social Security from a confusing acronym into a dependable pillar of your retirement plan.

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If you have comments about this podcast, or ideas for future episodes, please email us at PODCAST@WALKER.CITY

Transcript

Welcome To Maiden Walker

SPEAKER_00 0:07

Welcome to Maiden Walker, podcast that connects you to the people, the stories, and the ideas shaping our community. From local innovators to everyday change makers, we're diving deep into what makes Walker a great place to live, work, and grow. Here's your host, Nicole DiDonato.

SPEAKER_01 0:26

This episode is especially helpful for our Walker residents who are working now or thinking about retirement in the next few years. Social Security, it plays a big role in long-term financial stability, but it can also be one of the most misunderstood systems that people navigate. But fortunately, we have Hillary Hatch here with the Social Security Administration to help clear up a few misconceptions. Hilary, thank you so much for being here. Yes, thank you so much for having me. I'm happy to be here. Well, one of the things we can start off with is for Walker residents who are in their 50s and 60s, what's one of the single most important things they should consider before they file for Social Security?

Full Retirement Age Explained

Early Vs Delayed Claiming Math

SPEAKER_02 1:05

So a lot of times, you know, one of the questions that we get asked most frequently is when is the best age to start collecting benefits? And there really isn't a one best age for everyone, but there's probably a right age for you when you decide to collect social security benefits. It's such a personalized decision. There are so many other factors to consider when you're thinking about filing for benefits in the right time. I think one of the most important things to understand is knowing your full retirement age and how that's going to impact your monthly social security benefit. So full retirement age for it's first of all, it's based on your year of birth. For individuals born 1960 or later, full retirement age is age 67. And why that is important to know is because at full retirement age, that is when you receive your full Social Security benefit. So if you file early, meaning prior to your full retirement age, your benefit is going to be reduced. And the reduction will just depend on how old you are at the time you start collecting that benefit. And the same is true if you wait until after full retirement age, that benefit is going to be higher. So for someone born 1960 or later, full retirement age is age 67. If they started collecting at age 67, let's say their benefit amount is$1,000 per month. If they filed at age 62, so that's the earliest that any of us can collect, their monthly benefit is only going to be$700 per month. And then from the time you reach full retirement age up until age 70, you can earn what we call delayed retirement credits. So for someone born 1960 or later, if their benefit amount at their full retirement age is$1,000, but they wait until age 70 to file, their monthly benefit is going to be$1,240. Once you reach age 70, the benefit doesn't increase anymore based on your age. So there'd be no point in delaying and filing. You don't have to file by the time you're 70. But if not, it's like you're losing out on money. So it's really important to understand your full retirement age and understanding, you know, the age that you start collecting benefits really impacts what your monthly benefit is going to be.

Working While Collecting Rules

SPEAKER_01 3:26

Yes. And you actually kind of answer that next question as far as why does it matter when you claim that social security? And what are some of the common uh timing mistakes that people can make?

SPEAKER_02 3:36

So a lot of times for individuals, you know, they're not sure if they are going to continue to work or, you know, what that's going to look like for them. I think it's important for individuals to know, you know, you can work while you're collecting Social Security benefits, but there are some earnings limits that are in place. So that's one thing to think about if you're going to continue to work or not. It's also really important to know once you file and start collecting, you're locked into that amount. So for example, if you start collecting benefits at age 62 and you're getting that reduced amount, once you reach full retirement age, your benefit doesn't jump up to that full retirement age amount, you're locked into that age 62 amount. There's typically cost of living adjustments that will take place each year. So that's one way the benefit will increase. But it's, you know, it's important to know when that time comes to really be informed on all the numbers and to really look at your situation and if you are going to keep working, if you're not going to keep working, you know, maybe you have income coming in from a different source and just really considering all of that.

SPEAKER_01 4:46

Yes, and I was listening to one of your uh radio spots that you'll do monthly with uh in uh Holland, uh, just talking about some folks that maybe were not eligible for 401ks and certain pensions and stuff and how that can really impact Social Security, as that is their only source of income at a certain age. Right.

How Social Security Fits Your Budget

Common Myths And Corrections

SPEAKER_02 5:04

Yeah, I mean we pay benefits to 75 million Americans, and we know that most for most individuals, Social Security benefit, it's not just extra income to them. You know, this is how they they get by, this is you know part of their their budget. Um so deciding, you know, when to file, knowing your benefit amount is extremely important. Um, and like you said, for a lot of individuals, social security is their only source of income.

SPEAKER_01 5:34

And you do a lot of presentations, just educational seminars, and you were mentioning um some of the the maybe common misconceptions or myths. What are some of those that you are seeing repeatedly that people seem to think or still think?

Spousal Benefits Basics

Create Your My Social Security Account

SPEAKER_02 5:48

Um so one of the common misconceptions is when is um surrounding full retirement age. So a lot of people think that full retirement age is age 65, and it used to be, but that has changed. Again, full retirement age is based on your year of birth. Um, so for a lot of us, so if you're born 1960 or later, full retirement age is age 67. So full retirement age has definitely changed for a lot of people, so that's really important to know. Something else that gets a bit confusing for a lot of individuals is understanding how spousal benefits work. So if I'm entitled to a benefit off of my own social security record, how we determine if someone is entitled is by how much they have worked and paid into Social Security and they have to have earned enough work credits to get a social security benefit. So for an individual, that's 40 credits, which is 10 years of work. That's how you are entitled to a social security benefit. So you're working, paying Social Security taxes, and you're earning those work credits. So you have your own social security benefit, but then there's also spousal benefits that could be payable. But not everyone is entitled to a spousal benefit. And it really that's where a lot of confusion comes into play when we talk about survivor benefits. So I'll not survivor, I'm sorry, spousal benefits, survivor benefits, totally different topic. Um, but with spousal benefits, you know, I'll try and give you a basic understanding of how that works. So when it comes to survivor or spousal benefits, the most that a spouse can receive is 50% of the worker's benefit at their full retirement age. But they're only going to receive that 50% if they start collecting at their own full retirement age. If they start collecting prior, that benefit amount is going to be different. The percentage will just depend on how old they are at the time they start collecting. If they are due a benefit off of their own work record and it's higher than that 50% amount, they're not eligible for a spousal benefit. So, for example, let's say my husband at his full retirement age, his benefit is$2,000. That means the maximum that I can receive is 50% of that, so$1,000. But if I'm entitled to a benefit off of my own work record, let's say it's$1,200, I cannot collect a spousal benefit because my own benefit is too high. There's always a lot of confusion around that. If the benefit on my own record is less, let's say it's only$700. So that means I can collect$700 off of my own record plus an additional$300. And the combination of the two would equal 50% of his. But again, I'm only going to get those amounts if I'm at my full retirement age. So sometimes we'll hear people say, you know, I'm going to file for my own benefits at 62. Then later on, when my spouse files, I'll start getting, you know, that 50% amount. It doesn't automatically jump up to that 50% amount if you file on your own benefits before your full retirement age. So I know it can be overwhelming, you know, and difficult to understand. And so when it comes to spousal benefits, you know, that's really where we start to see a lot of questions and some of that confusion come into play.

unknown 9:20

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 9:21

Well, you know, as ways for folks to contact you. I know that uh you've done um a lot of work, the Social Security Administration, just as far as answering people's questions when you call them online, there's ways that uh you can get that information easily, more easy now. What are the best uh ways to actually contact you?

SPEAKER_02 9:37

Yeah, so our website is www.sssa.gov. Make sure it's g-ov, the dot gov, that's important. Um and if you create an online account, we call it a My Social Security account, that's where individuals will have access to all their personalized social security information. So if you want to get a benefit estimate as to how much your retirement benefits will be, if your spouse would be eligible for benefits off of your record, all of that information is available through your My Social Security account. One thing that we used to mail out to everyone, which I'm sure some Walker residents have received over the years, is their Social Security statement. So the statement used to go to everyone and it provides benefit estimates and it will show a snapshot of the earnings record for an individual, but we don't mail those out anymore. Only certain individuals get those in the mail. Everyone else can access their social security statement through their My Social Security account. And that's a really great starting point when it comes to planning for retirement benefits. For individuals that are working with a financial professional, a lot of times they will ask their clients to provide them with their social security statement as a starting point to determine, you know, what the best option is for that person and their family, whether it's benefits for themselves, if they have minor children, if they have a spouse that could be eligible to collect. That's a really great financial planning tool.

SPEAKER_01 11:10

Yeah, that is a great, that was gonna be my next question was what is the one thing or important thing that folks should start as far as uh keeping track of their social security or checking in every once in a while.

Appointments And Local Office Info

SPEAKER_02 11:20

So yeah, yeah. Definitely having that online account is it has so much information in there. Also, for individuals already receiving benefits, they can do business online through their My Social Security account instead of having to call and wait on the phone or you know, wait at the local office. Um, most of our services now are appointment-based. So for individuals wanting to apply for benefits or even get a replacement social security card, you have to have an appointment to do so unless you do it online. So by having that My Social Security account, you can do all of that online. If you don't want to do it online, you certainly don't have to, but then you do want to have an appointment. And you can individuals can call our national 800 number, they can call their local office directly in order to schedule an appointment. For Walker residents, their local office is the Grand Rapids Social Security Office. We're located at 3045 Knapp Street, Northeast, so it's the corner of Knapp in the East Belt line.

SPEAKER_01 12:23

Hilary, you are a wealth of knowledge, and we are so grateful that you were able to help break this down in simpler terms for us. Thank you so much for all the information you've provided. Thank you, and we appreciate you for tuning in as well.

SPEAKER_00 12:35

Thank you for joining us for this episode of the Maiden Walker Podcast. If you have comments or questions about this podcast, or if you have suggestions for future episodes, we'd love to hear from you. Please drop us an email at podcast at walker.city. Maiden Walker is the official podcast of the city of Walker, Michigan. You can find Maiden Walker wherever you get your podcasts.