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Trump's Budget: A Slow Boat to Ruin May. 25, 2017
Donald Trump's first budget proposal is a brazen mix of ideology and dishonesty, seasoned with irres... Read More
Social Security Options for Widows and Widowers to Consider May. 24, 2017
Q: My husband died in 2009. I continued working until I was 62 in 2013. I then started drawing widow... Read More
Government Pension Offset Law Not About to Change May. 17, 2017
Over the past 17 years that I have been doing this column, I have written about 50 columns dealing w... Read More
No Bonus for Vets May. 10, 2017
I'm guessing there's something floating around on the internet giving veterans false hope that they ... Read More
Tale of Two Women May. 03, 2017
In today's column, I present emails from two different women. They have two things in common. They a... Read More
All You Need Is Growth May. 02, 2017
As sure as the cuckoo clock chimes at midnight, the left is bloviating that Donald Trump's tax plan ... Read More
HSAs and Social Security Taxes Apr. 26, 2017
Dear Mr. Berko: My wife and I have two questions. One concerns health savings accounts, and the othe... Read More
My Apologies for Another Maximizing Column Apr. 26, 2017
Q: I am 68 years old and retired. My wife is 60 and still working. When I was 66, my financial plann... Read More
Social Security Mailbag Miscellany Apr. 19, 2017
Today's column won't focus on a single topic. Instead, I'll just reach into the mailbag (well, reall... Read More
Always Insist on Filing a Claim Apr. 12, 2017
I'd like to think that when people email me questions, I give them correct answers with good advice.... Read More
Government Makes the Poor Poorer Apr. 11, 2017
For all the obsessing in Washington over income inequality, why isn't there more outrage over govern... Read More
Divorced Couple Hits the Social Security Jackpot Apr. 05, 2017
Today's column illustrates yet another example of a situation I had never encountered in my 45-year ... Read More
Bucking the Trend -- Minimizing Our Social Security Mar. 29, 2017
Q: My wife and I are both 62. My wife hasn't worked outside the home in many years. I am still worki... Read More
Working Seniors Pay Taxes and May See Benefit Increase Mar. 22, 2017
Q: I just turned 71 years old. I have been getting Social Security since I was 66. I was having trou... Read More
Gold-Digging Wives and Social Security Mar. 15, 2017
After I published a recent column discussing possible Social Security reforms, lots of people wrote ... Read More
Retiree With a Child Makes Age 62 an Attractive Starting Date Mar. 08, 2017
Most people are correct to think that they will be ahead financially to wait until age 66, or maybe ... Read More
Social Security Retirement Benefits -- How They Are Figured Mar. 01, 2017
Q: I am about to turn age 64. I have been laid off and do not think I will be able to find another j... Read More
Two Widows Present Unusual Social Security Cases Feb. 22, 2017
I am constantly amazed! I have either worked for the Social Security Administration, or been writing... Read More
More Questions About the Earnings Penalty Feb. 15, 2017
In a recent column, I explained to readers who are under 66 and working how they could work with Soc... Read More
No Man Is Above the Law Feb. 11, 2017
Do you remember Zoe Baird? In 1993, President-elect Bill Clinton nominated Baird, a prominent lawyer... Read More
