Page 20 avvya yavvy eniiooravvy S iorn or v y io iori by Jim Miller Can You Stop and Restart Social Security Benefits? Dear Savvy Senior, Can I stop my Social Security retirement benefi ts and restart them later to get a bigger payment? I recently got a nice unexpected inheritance, so don’t need the money from Social Security right now. If possible, I would like to suspend my benefi ts and restart them at age 70. Do-over Dan Dear Dan, Yes, there are actually two diff erent strategies that allow Social Security benefi ciaries to undo their claiming decision. But to be eligible, there are certain conditions you’ll have to meet. Here’s what you should know. Withdrawal Benefi ts If you are in your fi rst year of collecting retirement benefi ts, you can apply to Social Security for a “withdrawal of benefi ts.” Social Security will let you withdraw your original application for retirement benefi ts, but it must be within 12 months of the date you fi rst claimed your benefi ts. If you opt for a withdrawal, Social Security will treat it as if you never applied for benefi ts in the fi rst place. But there’s a catch. You’ll have to repay every dollar you’ve received, including those of any family members who have been collecting benefi ts on your earnings record, such as a spouse or minor child, along with any money that was withheld from your Social Security payments – for example, to pay your Medicare premiums. You can only withdraw your application for Social Security benefi ts once, but you can apply for benefi ts again later when the monthly amount would be larger. To withdrawal your benefi ts, fi ll out Social Security form SSA-521 (see ssa.gov/forms/ssa-521.pdf) and send the completed form to your local Social Security offi ce. If you change your mind, you have 60 days from the date Social Security approves your withdrawal to cancel the request. Suspend Benefi ts If, however, you miss the 12-month window, or if repaying your Social Security benefi ts is not fi nancially feasible, there is another do-over option, but you’ll need to be full retirement age or older to be eligible. Full retirement age is 66 and 6 months for those born in 1957, but it rises in two-month increments every birth year to age 67 for those born in 1960 and later. You can fi nd your full retirement age at SSA.gov/benefi ts/retirement/planner/ageincrease.html. At that point, you can “suspend” your Social Security benefi t and the good news is you don’t have to repay anything. But the bad news is your monthly Social Security benefi ts stop and so do those of any dependent family members (except a divorced spouse). During the suspension, you will also accrue delayed retirement credits, which will increase your monthly retirement benefi t by two-thirds of 1 percent for each suspended month (or 8 percent for each suspended year) up until age 70. Suspended benefi ts would automatically resume at 70, or you could choose to resume Social Security benefi ts earlier, but you’d only receive delayed retirement credits for the period when benefi ts were suspended. You can request a Social Security suspension over the phone (800-722-1213), in writing or in person at your local Social Security offi ce. The suspension would begin the month after you make the request. Also note that if you’re enrolled in Medicare, there’s another consequence of withdrawing or suspending your benefi ts. Normally, Medicare Part B premiums ($174.70 per month in 2024 for most benefi ciaries) are deducted directly from monthly Social Security payments. If you withdrawal or suspend your benefi ts and you’re enrolled in Medicare Part B, you’ll start receiving a quarterly bill from Medicare. You’ll have the option of paying electronically or by mail. Or you can sign up for Medicare’s Easy Pay, which automatically deducts your premium payments from your savings or checking account each month. Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book. THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, June 21, 2024 MUSINGS | FROM PAGE 6 his contributions to the world and his Malden upbringing. First, I’d like to start with these poignant words Ed wrote some years ago. Ed was born in 1918 and passed in 1992 – those 74 years fi lled with spirited adventure, professional accomplishments and exotic world travel but always with a deep-seated love of Malden. Ed was an actor appearing in the original (1968) Hawaii Five-0, 1980’s Magnum, P.I. with Tom Selleck, and the acclaimed 1960 film “Twelve Hours to Kill” with Barbara Eden, Gavin MacLeod and Nico Minardos. He was also an author (“Days of ’41: Pearl Harbor Remembered”), worked as a “ship fi tter” at the Pearl Harbor Shipyard in World War II and was a renowned radio personality later in life in Honolulu. If you are Malden, these words go straight from the Ed’s heart to yours. They jump off the page and grab you much like Elliot Paul and his culturally relevant volume, “Linden on the Saugus Branch.” Where you can see, hear, and smell our beloved Malden of yesteryear: “There is a part of me that will always be Malden. Our family was wealthy in everything but money. My father was a sheet metal worker and my mother, a nurse... moved to Malden ...thinking it a nicer place to raise a family. They were right. Our clothes were always clean - our stomachs full. I left high school after the fi rst year to go to work. After that I got my education at the Malden Public Library. I went to Pearl Harbor in 1940 - where it was always summer - I have always been happy. But I need only to shut my eyes to bring back the faces and places of Malden - its streets of brilliant autumn, moist spring, and silent snow. Summer sassafras and lilac, fresh bread, crisp apples - the slap of a screen door and my mother’s voice summoning me to supper. In my memory there is a Malden that will never change. I am grateful to it - I wish it could have happened to everybody.” In 1984 this appeared in our beloved, late great (David Brickman published) Malden Evening News. I thought it apropos on many levels to include this week: “Malden’s Ed Sheehan wins noted travel writing award Israel honors Ed Sheehan by David Brickman “Malden and the State of Israel have something new in common. Malden native Ed Sheehan, he of the facile pen, and fl owing prose, who makes his home in Honolulu part of the year and during the warmer months in London, where he presently is sojourning with his wife, Sally, has won the 1984 Benjamin of Tudela Award, the Israel Government’s prize for excellence in travel writing on Israel, it was announced last week in New York City. “Sheehan visited Israel in the fall of 1983, to attend the convention of the Society of American Travel Writers (SATW) meeting held in Jerusalem. His winning article appeared in the Honolulu Sunday Star-Bulletin and Advertiser, the Toronto Star, and in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “Those who know Sheehan and recall his earlier years before World War II in Malden, are not surprised at this new honor. His travel writings published in four continents over the decades, have won many accolades before this one. “The Tudela Ward is named for the medieval Spanish Jewish writer whose visit to the Holy Land in the twelfth century was the basis of a book, ‘The Itinerary of Benjamin Tudela,’ published in 1953 in Constantinople.” More on Ed in the future. As Peter Falk’s iconic TV character Columbo would say, “Just one more thing, sir” – suff erin’ succotash! Time for another “Corrections & Amplifi cations.” Seems my “1985” article struck a raw nerve or two with a couple of readers. Some thought the portrayal of My Honey Fitz was a bit harsh, that it lacked a balanced representation. Point taken. I had written that the Fitz was known for “brawls, good, stiff drinks and partying until you dropped or heaved.” That’s only partially true – I kid. I spoke to a half dozen or so former patrons and asked for thoughts on the former Malden Square hotspot. To a person, they mentioned what a fun joint it was, that some of the best times of their lives were played out between those four walls. Marty Gately noted how his political acumen was greatly enhanced at the Fitz when the powers that be gathered for cocktails after council meetings – networking, old-school style. Many mentioned Thursday nights at the Fitz as some of the best times of their lives as well as, of course, Saint Patrick’s Day. My time at the Fitz was usually after a hard workout at Y with my bud Greg Phaneuf sitting at the bar with his uncle drinking expertly poured pints of Guinness. Don’t get me wrong, the crowd was loud at times, overindulging a bit (at times) and on (rare?) occasions spilling out onto Pleasant Street. But my experiences were always a pleasure and were in line with the sentiment of those I spoke to. Customers also spoke of very large doormen that had them feeling comfy and cozy – most of the time (LOL). In retrospect, my intention wasn’t to place the Fitz in a harsh light, just to poke a little fun at the memory of the cherished old bucket of blood. Tell you the truth, wish we had more joints in Malden today like the Fitz (Hello, Patrick’s!). —Peter is a longtime Malden resident and a regular contributor to The Malden Advocate and can be reached at PeteL39@aol.com for comments, compliments or criticisms.
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