3 Social Security Mistakes You May Not Even Realize You're Making
Social Security is not a retirement plan itself, but it's a crucial part of one for most seniors. The government ultimately decides how much you get per check, but you can do a lot to influence that amount, for better or worse. Avoid the following mistakes if you want the largest benefit possible.
Your Social Security earnings record lists your taxable income for each year that you worked. This is what the Social Security Administration bases your benefits on, and higher annual earnings during your working years correspond to larger checks in retirement.
Most of the time, earnings records are accurate because they come from the IRS, but errors can happen. You or your employer might transpose some digits in your Social Security number when submitting tax paperwork, or you might forget to notify your employer after you've changed your name. This could result in you showing less income for the year than you actually earned -- or worse, no income at all.
Source Fool.com
