Gift of a good retirement
Social
Security
When the holidays come, the money goes — usually for
presents and parties,greeting cards and traveling to see family. Before you spend that last holiday
buck, make sure you set some cash aside for retirement as a gift to yourself.
If you haven’t started already, now is the time to begin saving for your
retirement — no matter what your age. If retirement is near, you’ll want to hop
on a fast sled right away. If you’re younger and retirement seems a lifetime
away, it’s still in your best interest to begin saving now — compound interest
will help your retirement fund to snowball.
Don’t take our word for it. You can check out the numbers yourself. A great
way to start figuring out how much you will need for retirement is to learn how
much you could expect from Social Security. You can do that in minutes with
Social Security’s online Retirement Estimator.
The Retirement Estimator offers an instant, personalized estimate of your
future retirement benefits based on your earnings record and a few variables you
enter. Try it out at www.socialsecurity.gov/estimator.
We encourage saving for retirement, but there are reasons to save for every
stage of life. A great place to go for help is www.mymoney.gov. MyMoney.gov is
the U.S. government's website dedicated to teaching Americans the basics about
financial planning. Whether you are planning to buy a home, balancing
your checkbook, or investing in your 401(k) plan, the resources at
www.MyMoney.gov can help you.
Be sure to give yourself a holiday gift you deserve. Not only should you set
aside some money for your retirement fund, but you should also spend some time
looking at these websites and picturing your future retirement. Spend a little
bit of holiday time at www.socialsecurity.gov.
SOCIAL SECURITY HELPS THE HOMELESS
More than half a million Americans experience homelessness on any given
night. Nearly 20-percent of them are “chronically homeless,” meaning they are
on the streets regularly.
Social Security has several programs that pay benefits to qualified
individuals, including those who are homeless. These programs include
retirement, disability, and survivors benefits, as well as Supplemental Security
Income (SSI), which is a needs-based program for people who are blind, disabled,
or age 65 or older. If you know someone who is homeless, and you want to learn
more about how Social Security might help, a good place to get information is at
www.socialsecurity.gov/homelessness.
That page includes a link to the Spotlight on Homelessness — a website
designed to help the homeless apply for SSI. It’s available at
www.socialsecurity.gov/ssi/spotlights/spot-homeless.htm.
The homelessness page also includes links to information on health care for
the homeless, institutionalization, advocacy groups, reports on homeless
outreach, and even links to other websites like the U.S. Interagency Council on
Homelessness and HUD.
You’ll find other information helpful to the homeless on
www.socialsecurity.gov . For example, there is a link to our Benefit Eligibility
Screening Tool, or BEST. Based on answers to various questions, this tool helps
determine the benefits someone might be eligible for and gives information about
how to qualify and apply. Go directly to www.socialsecurity.gov/best.
Tell anyone you know who is homeless or threatened with homelessness to use
the Benefit Eligibility Screening Tool and to check out the different types of
benefits and assistance they may be eligible to receive. Spread the word about
the help available to the homeless. Visit www.socialsecurity.gov/homelessness to
learn more.
