Ask an Advisor: What Do I Need to Know About Social Security?
Transcript
Jake: 00:08
Hi, I’m Jake Sturgill, with Puckett & Sturgill Financial Group, and our Ask An Advisor series. Today, I’m going to be asking Paul Sorenson about Social Security, and the things that our clients need to know about Social Security.
Paul: 00:24
Social Security, Jake, as you know, is one of the first things that many clients ask us about, is, “I know I have a decision to make at some point in the future, whether it’s now, or 20 years from now, or next year, or I already made a decision.” It’s something that we get asked about a lot.
Paul: 00:41
The bottom line is, everybody’s circumstance is different when it comes to Social Security. So the planning surrounding Social Security is very specific, and there’s a lot of complexity involved with that decision. It’s something we talk about regularly. And as a part of that, people ask us, “When should I start thinking about it?” With our clients, we start thinking about it, no matter their age, we at least add it as a part of the plan. Because we do approach things from a holistic standpoint. So it’s always top of mind as a part of our planning, as a baseline, a foundational piece of the planning that we do for a client.
Jake: 01:12
Right, and so if we’re starting and incorporating it into the planning process, really as soon as possible, when should people start to think about actually taking it or claiming Social Security?
Paul: 02:28
Right. Just because you can start at 62 doesn’t mean you should do it as early as possible.
Paul: 02:33
Yeah, yeah. You may have a whole pool of assets that help you delay that decision, or help change that decision for you. It’s a very individual decision.
Jake: 02:41
It’s such an important decision, because pensions are, as I’m sure you’ve seen with your clients, largely going away. Maybe fewer and fewer people have them. So Social Security is becoming such a foundation and core component of a retirement income plan. Taking all these factors into consideration, there’s a lot that goes into that process, and it’s unique to everybody.
Jake: 03:06
If you have any questions about Social Security or your retirement income plan, please contact us. Visit our website, email us, give us a call at the office. We’re always just a phone call or an email away.