I will be 66 on May 5th and am scheduled to receive my first benefit check on June 12th .I work as a project manager for a government contractor. I am married, but my wife doesn't work. We have custody of our grandson who is seven. I make $83,200/year gross. So how much should I have deducted from my social security benefit to avoid having to pay next year?

Hi,

I'm sorry, but I'm unable to answer your question. My expertise is limited to Social Security benefits, not income taxes. For more information about taxation of Social Security benefits, refer to this Social Security website: https://www.ssa.gov/planners/taxes.html.

You may also want to strongly consider using our software to make sure that you are choosing the best possible strategy with regard to claiming your Social Security benefits at age 66. Waiting until age 70 to start drawing, for example, may be a better choice since it would not only increase your benefit rate by 32%, but could also increase your wife's potential widow's rate by the same amount in the event that you die before her.

Best, Jerry