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QUESTION:
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Please HELP with this Complicated web of Social Security questions! | I will be 62 October 6, 2008 and plan to file 3 months prior, which I understand to be the first allowed time for early retirement/social security.
My husband of 7 1/2 years & I have been separated & living apart for 2 years but as of yet, have not made it legal, because that would end my insurance, (I wear hearing aids and have arthritis of the spine which can be VERY expensive medically.) Although we're best friends, he just recently requested that we make our divorce legal ASAP. (Which I will do. as he's been more than fair with me.) He's 67 and on SS and a pension, which is structured so that only his first wife could have shared in. We have agreed to part with NO strings, so the only thing I will take from the marriage besides my belongings & car, is our 2nd home, a 1974 mobile home in Florida. This is fine. However, I will no longer have insurance & I'm seriously concerned about SS benefits as foolishly, I have no savings or retirement funds of any kind. I believe I can only collect somewhere between $575 and $600 monthly on my own earnings at 62, from the form sent to me from SS a short while ago. Since my current husband and I will be divorced very soon now & prior to the 10 year rule, I don't believe that I can collect on his larger amount. However, I have been married before.
This sounds horrid, to say, three times. However, it's fact: Husband #1 and I were young & married in 1967, had a son in 1969 & divorced in 1971--only about 3 years. He's a very successful/wealthy CPA with five homes but maneuvered to have my second husband once we married, adopt his son in 1972 to avoid child support & entanglements. (And he never paid a dime to me although he was in the service at the time of our divorce.)
My 2nd husband and I, married in 1972, had a daughter in 1974 & tragically he died in 1981--after 9 years of marriage. There was no divorce between us.
I did not remarry for 14 years & husband #3 tragically died after less than two years of marriage. (We had no children together, I took nothing from that marriage; was not in the will--two of his adult children by a previous marriage were given everything.) This too is fine.
Three or four years later, after almost giving up on marriage, I married on 10/5/2000. I was married to very educated, bright & successful men, all college grads & had/have professional careers, earning far more than I have between taking care of my children, at much lesser positions, (often & currently sales with commission only.)
Is it possible to collect on a past husband's SS amount since I will be divorced by filing time this summer, & there was no divorce with the other two?
Sorry for this complicated, embarassing scenario, but this is my life! I have never believed in alimony or taking anything from a marriage that wasn't mine--but at this age & health I need to seriously think of the best way to handle the rest of my days so I'm not dependent on my children. |  | asked by TheCruiseGenie, 3/9/2008 |
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Categories:
Early Retirement, Social Security, Pre Retirement
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| ANSWERS: | | Answered by: Editorial, 03/11/08
Overall Rating:  Be the first to rate it. | Yes, a complicated question. And, as I see it, there are TWO distinct issues: 1) Social Security and 2) Medical Insurance.
1) Social Security: You may indeed be able to collect benefits based on the earnings of one of your dead husbands' earnings. You should contact your local Social Security office directly to explore this option. You can find a local office here:
You might want to visit your local Social Security office. You can locate it here: https://secure.ssa.gov/apps6z/FOLO/fo001.jsp You can also call the toll-free Social Security number 1-800-772-1213
2) Medical Insurance. Loosing your medical insurance from your current estranged husband could be disastrous for you.
-- I don't think that you will not be eligible for Medicare until age 65.
-- Private medical insurance for someone your age and with your pre-existing conditions will be prohibitively expensive if even available.
For these reasons, I would STRONGLY recommend that you seek employment at a job that offers medical benefits. This will be your only route to affordable health insurance.
Working would also enable you to delay the start of Social Security which will increase the amount of your monthly benefits when you start at a later date.
Please consider working. You can learn more about retirement jobs here.
http://www.newretirement.com/Services/Working_In_Retirement.aspx
And, learn more about the benefits of delaying Social Security here:
http://www.newretirement.com/Services/Social-Security-Benefits.aspx Login to rate this answer: | | Answered by: TheCruiseGenie, 03/11/08
Overall Rating: Be the first to rate it. | Thank you sooooo much for your reply -- I was truly worried how I would make it on less than $600 monthly! I called the Social Security number you provided and YES, IF I AM DIVORCED prior to filing for my early retirement, Social Security will go back into the records to see which deceased husband would be the most benefit to collect on. (Regardless if the marriages were less than 10 years as they did NOT end in divorce.)
It turns out that my check would be $819 more a month, collecting on my prior husbands benefits! You don't know what that means to my retirement! My heavens I will NOT be destitute now if my health gets worse and I can't work as much! Thank you so much for your help. Login to rate this answer: |
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