Social Security Wages — link to spousal benefits
Terry,
I am 60 and my husband is 61. We are self employed. Historicaaly my husband to a bigger paycheck than me. He recently said I should take more wages to increase my social security benefit. We have enough money from other sources to provide for us until full retirement age. I feel we should continue to pay him a higher wage. If he passes away before me won’t I be able to claim his higher benefit instead of mine? Does that depend on whether I have already claimed my benefit or not?
Terry Says
At his death, you would be able to claim the DIFFERENCE between your benefit and HIS benefit– so yes, you’d get his full benefit. That assumes YOU wait until your full retirement age to start collecting your own benefits. But what would REALLY help you both is for him to wait until age 70 to start collecting. Then your eventual benefit would be so much larger! And his benefit will increase 8% for every year after FRA that he waits to collect until he must start at age 70. And since his benefit is based on his final earnings years, he should continue to earn the most. That way you win either way!!
