The oldest baby boomers will turn 58 next year, and they are more likely to sing along with elevator music than with the new rock bands on MTV. In just a few short years, around 2008, the first wave of these baby boomers will become eligible for Social Security retirement benefits. So here is a short guide to Social Security for those “baby boomers” who are soon to be “senior boomers.” First, your full retirement age is going up; the age at which a person can begin collecting full Social Security benefits is on its way up to 67. It is going up in gradual steps. People born in 1938 must be age 65 and 2 months to collect full Social Security benefits. Those born in 1939 must be 65 and 4 months. The two-month-per-year increase continues until it reaches 66 for people born in 1943. The retirement age levels off at age 66 for many baby boomers – those born from 1943 through 1954 – then rises again in two-month increments until it reaches 67 for people born in 1960 and later. Second, the early retirement age is still 62. But the reduction in your benefit for taking retirement at age 62 is gradually increasing from 20 percent to 30 percent over the next 20 years. Third, boomer women will be the first generation of women who are more likely to get higher benefits on their own Social Security record than on a spouse’s record. Boomer women are also more likely than earlier generations to have been divorced. And boomer women who are married are likely to outlive their husbands. Boomer women should check out the gender-specific information at www.socialsecurity.gov/women/. Social Security delivers on-line government services. Anyone can use our on-line retirement planners and calculators to figure out how future Social Security benefits will fit into overall financial plans, www.socialsecurity.gov/planners. They can file for benefits on-line as well. It all starts with www.socialsecurity.gov.
