Remember you are only taxed on half of SS income. The half that is not taxed serves as a reasonable proxy for basis. Regards. You may think you can earn a higher rate of return than what you get with SS, and you probably can if you pay the max (leaving out the 2.9% medicare tax, which goes on forever), but most think that, and most do not, because they don't know how to invest, or are scammed. It also entails taking more risk of course, from the equity market. But that is another topic.
Please explain. I have done projections on my retirement income and it is 100% taxable. Hence I'm am being taxed twice. SS should have the same treatment as a Roth IRA.
You may think you can earn a higher rate of return than what you get with SS
I think the SS earns a little more than 1% (the rate on one government fund borrowing from another) Even insurance companies pay a higher return than this. Treasury bills have averaged 4 to 5 % over the last few decades. No savvy investment acumen is required for these investments.