Posted on 04/05/2024 11:20:27 PM PDT by Libloather
The Social Security Administration (SSA) is capping clawbacks of benefit overpayments at 10% of benefits checks instead of 100% after being criticized for draconian repayment plans that left some beneficiaries destitute.
Social Security Commissioner Martin O'Malley said in a statement that the agency would cease "the heavy-handed practice of intercepting 100% of an overpaid beneficiary's monthly Social Security benefit" if they failed to respond to a demand for repayment. Additionally, the Social Security Administration will extend repayment plans to 60 months, up from its limit of 36 months, giving recipients an additional two years to repay the money.
The changes come after reports at the end of 2023 indicated that some Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients had seen their benefits suspended or were assessed overpayments due to COVID-19 stimulus checks, worth up to $3,200 per individual or $6,400 per married couple. However, these payments, made between April 2020 and July 2021, were supposed to be independent of Social Security benefits.
"For 88 years, the hard-working employees of the Social Security Administration have strived to pay the right amount, to the right person, at the right time," O'Malley said. "And the agency has done this with a high degree of accuracy over a massive scale of beneficiaries. But despite our best efforts, we sometimes get it wrong and pay beneficiaries more than they are due, creating an overpayment.
"When that happens, Congress requires that we make every effort to recover those overpaid benefits," O'Malley continued. "But doing so without regard to the larger purpose of the program can result in grave injustices to individuals, as we see from the stories of people losing their homes or being put in dire financial straits when they suddenly see their benefits cut off to recover a decades-old overpayment...
(Excerpt) Read more at foxbusiness.com ...
Take it at 62.
Of course you can take it at 62 regardless of income.
The SSA deducts $1 for every $2 you earn over the $19,560 limit
https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10069.pdf
IMO Best to retire then file SS. Then live off your assets in this order - Govt and structured annuities first, market investments last. The market tracks to inflation much better than govt plans so you assets will rise faster than your receivables.
Thanks! I was perusing that doc last night!
Not planning on SS being available in its current form anyways so invest accordingly.
I have an aunt on assistance. She was paying her rent and power and water bills and saving what was left over.
Then two years later they said they overpaid her because she had too much money in the bank.
Ridiculous. Just because she was thrifty.
She has only rough money to bury her (maybe) when she passes.
Meanwhile illegal aliens get thousands in federal assistance far more than she gets. And they are not even law abiding citizens.
The problem with the market for retirees is that if a crash hits at the wrong time they may get hurt very badly.
Young people have the luxury of being long term investors.
The trap for them is that a market crash often happens when the economy is in tough shape which increases their likelihood of being laid off—in many cases they have no choice but to dip into their investments to survive which makes all the previous “financial analysis” worthless.
Agreed! Timing, age, risk aversion, and just plain luck, all play into it.
If it were easy, everyone would be doing it, lol!
Back in the heydays of compound interest, you could just leave money in the bank, and do fair. Now, you’re losing 15%. Inflation...the invisible tax.
SSI or SS?
I took it at 62. Retired from teaching at 61, so I starting collecting on my pension in July, and SS in November. No guarantee on your live expectancy. I could afford less SS because my my pension.
I believe it is SSI.
Cash and asset limit on SSI.
I don’t promote illegality, but I would just keep cash around the house and a minimum of money in any bank account. Hide the cash from the gov in other words. Ask the Lord for forgiveness.
SSI ain’t much, at all. God bless her.
I’m confused about the overpayment.
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