Chia-Li Chien, PhD, CFP®, PMP®

Our thriving society causes us to feel entitled to certain levels of service and benefits. A recent presentation by Mr. Mark Edwards at NextGen Mentoring Forum pointed out how acting on feelings of entitlement rather than careful consideration in claiming Social Security benefits can profoundly affect our loved ones in the future. If you are married and love your spouse, consider claiming Social Security retirement benefits at a later age to maximize the benefits for the surviving spouse. In 2015, over 50% of males and over 60% of females claimed benefits before their full retirement age (FRA). An example demonstrates how a man who retired and claimed at age 62 took a 15% reduction in his monthly benefit by not waiting until FRA when he could have had a 39% increase by waiting until age 70 to claim. His wife was adversely affected because she did not have her own benefits and received only a portion of her husband’s benefits. If he predeceased her, her monthly benefit was considerably lower than it could have been had he claimed at age 70. Show your love of spouse by claiming Social Security retirement benefits later to maximize the benefits for the surviving spouse.

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Chia-Li Chien

Assistant Professor and Director of Financial Planning Program at California Lutheran University School of Management

Chia-Li Chien, Ph.D., CFP®, PMP, is a Succession Strategist of Value Growth Institute, dedicated to helping private business owners increase the equity value of their firms. Dr. Chien is also Assistant Professor and Director of the Financial Planning Program at California Lutheran University. She is the award-winning author of the books "Show Me the Money" and "Work Toward Reward." Dr. Chien can be reached at jolly@chialichien.com.

Latest posts by Chia-Li Chien (see all)

• Do-over Exit? - May 14, 2019
• The Future of Financial Advising - April 24, 2019
• Show Your Love in Social Security Claiming - April 23, 2019

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