Dear Penny: My Social Security Isn’t Enough. Am I Doomed to Work Forever?
I had a good run in sales in my chosen field. Then in 1993, many companies started to outsource their workers… that is, employ cheap labor overseas and can USA-based workers. I was in that bunch.
I thought with two degrees and 15 years of success in my career a new job should be no sweat. What a surprise.
To make a long story short, it has been a struggle since 1993 to pay the bills. I made less and less in salary until I was down to making minimum wage in retail.
By 2011, I was burned out and quit. I took Social Security early at age 62.
I thought I’d earned enough to live on. What a surprise. Social Security doesn’t pay the bills. After trying it for one year I had to go back to work part time. I’ve been doing this ever since and really am tired of it all.
My question: Is there any REAL way to increase my benefit I took at age 62? My full retirement age was 67. I am now 70 years old.
I am on many blogs looking to make income. It is all BS to be quite blunt. They don’t really tell me anything new: invest in good dividend-paying stocks, start your own business.
Any help would be greatly appreciated. I really don’t want to work anymore. All I need is about $1,000 a month and I can quit my lousy part-time job in retail.
A.
Dear A.,
Most of the advice you’ll find about how to increase your Social Security benefits is essentially: Go back in time, work longer and for more money. Or go back in time and earn more money so you can invest it, and you won’t need to rely on your Social Security benefits.
It’s not bad advice for people who still have decades left until retirement. But it’s not useful for people like you, who are facing the brutal reality that Social Security isn’t enough to live on.
Unfortunately, I bear bad news: Based on what you’ve told me, it doesn’t sound like there’s a way for you to up your Social Security benefits.
Social Security has two main options for people who start collecting benefits and then change their minds: Withdraw your application within 12 months and repay all the benefits you’ve received. Or ask Social Security to suspend your benefits if you’re at least full retirement age but under 70.
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Either tactic results in higher monthly benefits once payments resume because the longer you delay Social Security, the higher your benefit. But obviously, neither is an option in your case.
So let’s accept that the $1,000 a month you need to quit your retail job isn’t going to come from your Social Security retirement benefits.
That said, you may qualify for assistance beyond your retirement income. You may be eligible for food assistance through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or subsidized housing, for example.
The National Council on Aging maintains a database of more than 2,500 assistance programs at benefitscheckup.org. You can search for resources by providing a few details like your ZIP code, date of birth and income.
If you own a home, one option to consider is a reverse mortgage. Basically, you give up your home equity in exchange for monthly payments, a lump sum, a line of credit or a combination of these. Yeah, it’s risky and comes with high fees, but it makes sense for many seniors dealing with a retirement shortfall.
But if none of this proves viable, the question is: Just how much do you hate that retail job? Enough to move somewhere with a lower cost of living? Enough to cut what I’d imagine is already a bare-bones budget even further, say, by going carless and/or taking on a housemate?
Or is there a way you could earn money that’s not as lousy than your part-time retail job? I get it: You’re 70 and exhausted from working. But if that’s truly your only option, consider some alternatives for making money. For example, could driving for Uber or doing a work-from-home customer service job be a little less taxing?
There are no easy solutions here. You do have options, though none of them are perfect. But with persistence, I think you can find some that will make your retirement a lot less stressful.
Robin Hartill is a senior editor at The Penny Hoarder and the voice behind Dear Penny. Send your questions about retirement to [email protected].
