{"id":696,"date":"2021-06-15T08:52:57","date_gmt":"2021-06-15T14:52:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gpswp.com\/ursadvisory\/?p=696"},"modified":"2021-06-15T08:57:59","modified_gmt":"2021-06-15T14:57:59","slug":"maximize-benefit-amount","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gpswp.com\/ursadvisory\/maximize-benefit-amount\/","title":{"rendered":"What Widows Need to Know About Social Security to Help Maximize Their Benefit Amount"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
Losing a spouse is undoubtedly one of life\u2019s greatest challenges. Unfortunately, the difficulty of this traumatic loss is compounded by the complex financial decision-making that comes along with it. From settling the spouse\u2019s estate to analyzing cash flow and planning for the future, there\u2019s no shortage of important choices that will need to be made; maximizing social security benefits as a newly single individual is no exception.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Social Security is one source of income that can be a lifeline for widows or widowers, but the different claiming strategies can make the process of deciding when and how to claim quite difficult. You may already be familiar that a widow entering retirement can choose to claim Social Security benefits based on her own work record or that of her deceased spouse. These benefits are what is known as the worker benefit and the survivor benefit[i]<\/a>, respectively. But what you may not be aware of is that there are strategies you may be able to use to help maximize the income by using both.<\/p>\n\n\n\n How? It\u2019s all in the proper timing of the claims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At first glance, the most logical option may seem to be that the widow or widower automatically claims the higher of the two benefit incomes, but there is another way to approach it. We believe integrating the two benefits can provide a higher lifetime income for the surviving spouse as we demonstrate below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n