But What Now?

In today’s Seattle Times, Investing columnist Scott Burns answered a question by a reader asking about what his benefits will be based on and if he will take a reduction in benefits due to early retirement.

The good news is that there is no reduction. Social security benefits are based on how many years worked along with earnings up to a maximum of 35 years. He reports that if you work less than 35 years, the “no-earning” years will be counted as zero. If you work more than 35 years, the calculation is based upon the highest earning years.

He includes a link to the Social Security website calculators: http://www.ssa.gov/planners/calculators.htm. I have also added it to the my links section on this site.