Hi Larry,

I am 64 years old. I was married for 13 years to a man who is about to turn 66. IF I choose to collect divorced spousal benefits in January 2018, will my benefits continue to grow? I understand that I would be leaving about 4% of the 50% of his benefit that I am eligible to receive. I am working and earn $25,000 per year and I understand the formula that would impact the benefit.

Hi,

If you file effective any time prior to your full retirement age (FRA), you can't file just for divorced spousal benefits only without also filing for your own retirement benefits. You would then only receive essentially the higher of the 2 rates and your benefit rate would be reduced for age.

Assuming that you were born prior to January 2 1954, your best strategy may be to wait until FRA to file for divorced spousal benefits only while allowing your own retirement rate to grow until age 70. You should strongly consider using the maximization software available on this website to be sure that you choose the best strategy.

Best, Jerry