All posts by admin

Social Security Benefits: Surviving Spouse – Deemed Filing

Hey Marc! – I have a client that we are working with who has questions about her widow benefit. The husband passed away, and the wife is age 58 and is eligible to receive a widow’s benefit at age 60. Her FRA is 67. I looked back on the NSSA training and found that deemed filing does NOT apply. Doesn’t this mean, that the client can claim her own SS benefit and wait to take her widow benefit until her FRA so that it isn’t reduced?

Answer – You are correct that DEEMED FILING does not apply to surviving spouses. A surviving spouse may begin their own retirement benefit at age 62 and switch to a full widow(er) benefit at FRA or begin the widow(er) benefit at age 60 and switch to their own benefit as late as age 70. You are a quick learner!

Social Security Benefits: Delayed Retirement Credits

Hey Marc! – We have a client who called SSA. My primary question is how could the client be getting the exact same amount of Benefit if he files in November compared to filing at FRA this past July. To me it doesn’t make sense but she swears she called three times. Three SSA representatives, and they all said the same thing. Why isn’t the benefit increasing for Delayed Retirement Credits.

Answer – DRC’s are not added to a persons benefit until after the year they are earned. His full retirement age is reached July 2021. If he takes benefits in July he will receive his full retirement age benefit with no DRC’s. If he files effective November the payments he receives for November and December will not include any DRC’s so it is the same amount as if he took benefits in July. However, in January he will receive the 4 months DRC increase (2.67%) added to his benefit. He eventually gets the increase but not until the year he earned the credits ended. DRCs earned in year of beginning benefits are credited to record in January of the following year. Exceptions is beginning at age 70. In this situation recipient will receive all of DRCs when benefits begin.

Social Security Online Account – Second Factor Authentication

Hey Marc! – My client recently changed her e-mail address and cell phone number. How does she change the Second Factor Authentication in her online My Social Security account?

Answer – Social Security recently issued instructions on changing the Second Factor Authentication. Second Factor Authentication serves as an extra level of security to prevent prying eyes from viewing sensitive information. Step by step instructions to change this feature can be found at SSA.gov.

National Social Security Association selects 2020 NSSA Advisor of Year

Thursday, Dec. 10, 2020

The National Social Security Association in Cincinnati has selected Beau Henderson, CEO of RichLife Advisors, LLC of Gainesville, Ga., as its National Social Security Advisor (NSSA) Advisor of the Year.

The award was announced by Marc Kiner of Blue Ash, board member of the National Social Security Association. Kiner is partner at Premier Social Security Consulting of Cincinnati, which teaches the NSSA Social Security education courses to professional advisors across the nation.

“Beau has shown himself to be a dedicated advocate for Social Security education in his community and the surrounding area,” said Kiner. “He and his company have conducted more than 200 Social Security information seminars around Gainesville, including Hall, Gwinnett, Forsyth, and Fulton counties. He uses media, podcasts and social media effectively to help workers and soon-to-be retirees learn how to secure a more comfortable retirement by maximizing their Social Security income.”

The NSSA program is the nation’s only accredited Social Security education certificate program. Accreditation is provided by the Institute for Credentialing Excellence (ICE) in Washington, D.C. The NSSA Advisor certificate is awarded to professional advisors who take the NSSA course and pass an assessment.

Henderson is the founder of RichLife Advisors, a financial advisor firm focused on retirement planning. He and his five employees have reached an estimated 3,000 clients over the past 20 years to help them improve their relationships with money and plan for a successful retirement that includes six components: maximizing income, including Social Security; optimizing assets for long-term growth; paying less in taxes; healthcare planning; protecting people and things they care about most; and helping them “live out their unique definition of a RichLife in retirement,” according to its website.

“Our philosophy is education first,” said Henderson. “We teach people how to realize their retirement goals by making the best decisions possible. If we teach people, they become much more capable about their money, which cuts down on regret and fear. With the right strategy, your retirement will be successful.”

Henderson was 23 years old and a graduate student in psychology when his father died of lung cancer at the age of 49. He helped his mother navigate difficult financial decisions as their family grieved, which led him to embrace a financial advising career as a way to help others and make a profound difference in their lives.

Henderson said the NSSA Advisor of the Year Award reinforces his company’s commitment to client education. “We’re grateful to be acknowledged for our commitment to financial education, including Social Security education,” said Henderson.

Henderson is the author of 10 books, including The RichLife: Ten Investments for True Wealth; The RoadMap to a RichLife: Success with Life, Relationships, and Money; Customized Social Security; and 12 Steps to a Successful Retirement. He is a podcast enthusiast and studio owner of North Georgia Business Radio X.

“There are more than 500 possible ways to claim Social Security,” said Jim Blair of Ross, Premier partner and a Social Security expert. “The best decision on when and how to claim goes back to your unique situation, which we call ‘Situational Social Security.’ More than 90 percent of workers today don’t claim optimally and can lose around $100,000 over the course of their retirement.

Premier teaches professional advisors the ins and outs of the Social Security system so they can in turn show their clients how to optimize Social Security income.”

The U.S. has an estimated 76 million baby boomers, which is about 20 percent of the nation’s population. Ten thousand boomers reach the full retirement age of 65 each day nationwide.

Blair is a 35-year veteran of the Social Security Administration. He is regularly interviewed by national media on Social Security issues.

The National Social Security Association has awarded certificates to more than 2,500 advisors nationwide since 2013. NSSA Advisor certificate training is offered during the pandemic via webinar training, where students participate in a live, one-day program with an NSSA instructor. They can also opt for a 19-module, video-based, on-demand course taught by NSSA instructors. On-demand students can complete workshop lectures and activities on their own time.

NSSA certificate holders receive ongoing Social Security support and education resources throughout the year. Ongoing support includes questions answered and monthly webinars. The webinars help NSSA certificate holders maintain Social Security knowledge and keep up to date.

Once pandemic concerns are lifted, NSSA training will be offered again in live classroom settings and for private groups in cities across the nation.

For more information on RichLife Advisors, LLC., visit https://richlifeadvisors.com or call (770) 249-7424.

For more information about the NSSA Advisor certificate program, visit https://www.nationalsocialsecurityassociation.com or call Kiner at (513) 247-0526.

Melinda Zemper, Oak Tree Communications

Situational Social Security – Restricted Application

We emphasize SITUATIONAL SOCIAL SECURITY in the NSSA® Certificate program, as all of your clients are UNIQUE. Your clients may be single, married with wide age differences, married with narrow age differences, divorced, surviving spouses, eligible to file a Restricted Application, public employees, etc. Advisors, (YOU), must understand the issues and questions that related to every unique client. You are your clients’ trusted advisor and must understand Social Security. Advisors attending the National Social Security Advisor Certificate program change their mindset and become PROACTIVE. NSSA® Advisors do not wait for clients to bring up the topic Social Security. NSSA® Advisors are confident in their knowledge, and actually BEGIN THE DISCUSSION. Which type of advisor are you? Hesitant to discuss SS? Confident in your understanding of SS? Proactive?

In this installment of Situational Social Security, we will discuss a very powerful SS option, the Restricted Application. The majority of advisors are clueless about the Restricted Application, but this is a very powerful Social Security strategy.

RESTRICTED APPLICATION – This strategy allows your client to file for a spousal benefit while their own benefit earns Delayed Retirement Credits. What? WOW! Impossible! Say what? Yep, your client can file for a spousal benefit while earning DRCs on their own retirement benefits. Let’s say that my FRA is 66 and that I am eligible for $2,000 of SS benefits at my FRA. Additionally, I am also eligible for a spousal benefit of $1,000 at my FRA as my wife worked and is eligible for her own retirement benefits. At my Full Retirement Age, I can file a Restricted Application and receive a spousal benefit off of her work record. I will receive $1,000 benefits for 48 months, ($48,000), and then at age 70 will turn on my benefits. At age 70, my benefits will have increased 32% due to DRCs, resulting in a monthly benefit of $2,640. WOW! WHAT? Kind of like having your cake and eating it too. I receive $48,000 in spousal benefits and earn Delayed Retirement Credits of 32%. This strategy, (Restricted Application), is only available upon reaching Full Retirement Age. A very powerful strategy. Unfortunately, only clients born by January 1, 1954 are able to use this strategy. SO, if you are meeting with a client that was born by January 1, 1954, you must consider a Restricted Application in your client’s Social Security options. Just think what your clients can purchase with $48,000 – 9,000 cups of coffee at Starbucks!!!!! Or a brand new car!!!!!

But the next question you should be asking is does the other spouse have to be receiving a Social Security benefit for a Restricted Application to be beneficial? YES, YES, YES and YES. I cannot file a Restricted Application if my wife is not receiving a SS RETIREMENT or DISABILITY benefit. I will repeat, my wife must be receiving a SS RETIREMENT or DISABILITY benefit, otherwise I am not able to file for a spousal benefit off of her work record. So, my wife turns on her Social Security allowing me to file a Restricted Application and receive a spousal benefit.

A very common strategy for married couples is for a wife to take her own benefits as early as age 62. This may allow the husband to delay to FRA or as late as age 70. And if the husband was born by January 1, 1954, he can file a RESTRICTED APPLICAITON for spousal benefits while he waits to begin his own benefits. In this scenario, widow benefits are maximized as the husband waits to age 70. Thus, sometimes it makes sense for folks to begin benefits prior to reaching FRA.

About half our our clients can still file a Restricted Application as they were born by January 1, 1954. The benefits of a Restricted Application will disappear in 2024. The RESTRICTED APPLICATION must be in your Social Security toolbox. If you are meeting with clients and discussing their Social Security options please ask this easy question – what is your birthdate? If born my what date? Oh yea, January 1, 1954, you MUST include the RESTRICATED APPLICATION in the discussion.

DO NOT FOREGET THE BENEFITS OF THE RESTRICTED APPLICATION. DO SO AT YOUR OWN PERIL!

For additional information about the National Social Security Advisor Certificate program, please visit www.premiernssa.com or contact Marc Kiner at 513.218.8505 or by email at mkiner@mypremierplan.com.

Social Security Retirement Benefits Eligibility

We emphasize SITUATIONAL SOCIAL SECURITY in the NSSA® Certificate program, as all of your clients are UNIQUE. Your clients may be single, married with wide age differences, married with narrow age differences, divorced, surviving spouses, eligible to file a Restricted Application, public employees, etc. Advisors, (YOU), must understand the issues and questions that related to every unique client. You are your clients’ trusted advisor and must understand Social Security. Advisors attending the National Social Security Advisor Certificate program change their mindset and become PROACTIVE. NSSA® Advisors do not wait for clients to bring up the topic Social Security. NSSA® Advisors are confident in their knowledge, and actually BEGIN THE DISCUSSION. Which type of advisor are you? Hesitant to discuss SS? Confident in your understanding of SS? Proactive?

In this installment of SITUATIONAL SOCIAL SECURITY, (SSS), we discuss the eligibility requirements to receive Social Security retirement benefits.

There are only two requirements to become eligible for Social Security retirement benefits;

1) Forty credits – you can earn a maximum of four, (4), credits per year. Thus, you need 10 years of part time work to earn 40 credits. Social Security Administration used to refer to this requirement as “quarters” but changed this to “credits”. How is a credit earned? By working in every quarter? No. A credit is earned based on earned income (wages and net s/e income). In 2020, one credit is earned when you have earned income of $1,410. If you earn $5,640 in 2020, you will receive four credits. It does not matter when the $5,640 is earned. If it takes all twelve months to earn $5,640 or you earn this amount in January alone, you will earn four credits. Many advisors believe that clients must work in every quarter. This is not the case. Clients earn credits just by having earned income. If you earn $1,410 you will receive one credit. If you earn $2,820 you will receive two credit. Pretty simple!

Your clients, Tom and Cindy, come into your office to discuss their Social Security benefits. You review their Social Security benefit statements and see that Tom is eligible for retirement benefits as he has earned more than 40 credits. Cindy only has 36 credits. How can Cindy obtain four additional credits to qualify for her own SS retirement benefits? Qualifying for her own benefits might allow Tom to wait until his FRA or longer, (up to age 70) to claim his benefits resulting in increased benefits for himself along with an increased widow benefit to Cindy. If Cindy works in 2020 and earns $5,640, she will receive the additional four credits. Cindy can earn this amount in one month and not work another day the rest of the year. If Cindy only has 32 credits, she can work in 2020 and 2021 to obtain the additional eight credits. If Tom owns a business, Cindy can do some administrative work to earn compensation and receive the necessary credits to be eligible for her own benefits. As your clients’ trusted advisor please understand how credits are earned and how you can help your clients to obtain the necessary credits to be eligible for retirement benefits.

2) Must have attained age 62 for the entire month. Attained age 62? Whoa! What do we mean by “attained”? What is the difference between turning age 62 and attaining age 62? You turn age 62 on your birthday and your attain 62 the day before your birthday. Thus, if Albert turned age 62 on June 18th, then he actually attained age 62 on June 17th. Your clients must have attained age 62 for the entire month to be eligible for SS retirement benefits. If Samantha turned age 62 on June 18th, she would not be eligible to begin Social Security retirement benefits until July. The only folks that can begin their retirement benefits in the birth month of turning age 62 are those that were born on the 1st or 2nd of the month. Everyone else is not eligible until the month after reaching age 62. I was born on February 13th, thus am not eligible to begin my benefits until March!

So your clients must have 40 credits and have attained age 62 for the entire month to qualify for SS retirement benefits. Now the question is when will SSA begin sending your clients SS benefits? Your clients must file for benefits. The Social Security Administration will not automatically send benefits upon reaching age 62. Furthermore, SSA will not automatically send benefits upon reaching age 70. Your clients MUST file!

To learn more about the National Social Security Advisor Certificate program, please visit www.premiernssa.com or contact Marc Kiner by phone 513.218.8505 or by e-mail mkiner@mypremierplan.com.