UBCNews - Business - 62/70 Social Security Filing Strategy: How Married Couples Can Maximize Benefits

Episode Date: March 2, 2026

Welcome back, everyone. Today we're tackling a question I hear all the time from married couples: when should we actually file for Social Security? You've probably heard about the 62/70 strategy, but here's the kicker - the rules changed dramatically in 2015, and a lot of folks still don't realize it. Melia Advisory Group City: Tulsa Address: 5424 S Memorial Dr Website: https://www.meliagroup.com/

Welcome back, everyone. Today we're tackling a question I hear all the time from married couples. When should we actually file for Social Security? You've probably heard about the 62-70 strategy, but here's the kicker. The rules changed dramatically in 2015, and a lot of folks still don't realize it. Right, and that's a huge deal. The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 basically rewrote how married couples can coordinate their benefits. Strategies that worked beautifully before 2016 just aren't available anymore for most people. So let's start with the basics. What exactly is the 62-70 strategy? It's pretty straightforward conceptually. One spouse files at 62, the earliest age possible, while the other delays all the way to 70. This approach can be particularly beneficial when there's a significant earnings difference between spouses.

The lower earner claims early, getting some income flowing, while the higher earner lets their benefit grow. And those delayed benefits really add up, don't they? Absolutely. For every month, you delay between full retirement age and 70, your benefit increases. If your full retirement age is 67, waiting until 70 can boost your benefit to 124% of what you'd get at full retirement age. That's a significant jump. Okay, so here's where I think a lot of couples get tripped up. They remember hearing about strategies like file and suspend or claiming spousal benefits while letting their own grow.

What happened to those? Yeah, those were the strategies the 2015 law targeted. Let me break down the two big changes. First, there's what's called deemed filing. If you turn 62 on or after January 2nd, 2016, and you're eligible for both your own retirement benefit and a spousal benefit, you're automatically considered to be applying for both. You'll get whichever is higher, but you can't pick just one anymore.

So you can't say, I just want the spousal benefit now and I'll take mine later? Exactly. That option is gone for most people. The law extends deemed filing from age 62 all the way to full retirement age and beyond. I had a couple come in last year who'd been planning for years using advice from a book published in 2010. We had to completely rethink their approach, and they were pretty frustrated at first. Mm-hmm, I bet. And what about file and suspend? That's the second major change. Before April 30, 2016, you could file for your benefit at full retirement age,

immediately suspend it so it kept growing, and your spouse could still collect a spousal benefit on your record. It was a pretty clever workaround. But now? Now if you voluntarily suspend your benefits, any benefits payable on your record, like spousal benefits, are also suspended. The government basically said, if you're not collecting, nobody collecting on your record is collecting either. No more having your cake and eating it too, as they say.

That point about suspended benefits and the coordination challenge sets up our next piece the common mistakes couples make. But first, a quick word from our sponsor. Working through Social Security filing decisions can feel overwhelming, especially for married couples trying to maximize their lifetime benefits. Malia Advisory Group, serving Tulsa and the surrounding area, provides personalized social security analysis that evaluates claiming timing, spousal coordination, and how benefits integrate into your overall retirement income

plan. Their advisors analyze your earnings history, anticipated retirement age, and life expectancy to develop strategies specific to your situation. Learn more at meliagroup.com. Picking up on that coordination challenge, what are the biggest mistakes you see couples making? The number one mistake? Both spouses filing early without considering survivor benefits. This is critical. A surviving spouse who reaches full retirement age can receive up to 100% of what the deceased spouse was receiving. However, if the deceased spouse claimed early and locked in a reduced amount, the survivor benefit will reflect that reduction. So the decision affects not just your joint retirement, but potentially decades of widowhood. Exactly. That's why having the higher earner delay to 70 makes sense for many

couples. You're essentially maximizing the survivor benefit, in other words, protecting the surviving spouse down the road. Meanwhile, the lower earner might claim earlier, maybe even at full retirement age. If their own benefit is less than 50% of the higher earner's primary insurance amount, they could get a spousal top-up. Walk me through that spousal benefit calculation. Sure. Spousal benefits can be as much has 50% of the higher earning spouse's primary insurance amount if claimed at the claiming spouse's full retirement age. But, and this is important, if you claim spousal benefits before your full retirement age, that reduction is permanent, so timing really matters. Are there any exceptions to these deemed filing rules we talked about? Yes, three main ones.

Deemed filing doesn't apply to survivor benefits, disability benefits, or if you're receiving spousal benefits because you're caring for the retired worker's child. The survivor benefit exception is particularly valuable. It gives surviving spouse's flexibility to claim survivor benefits while letting their own retirement benefit grow until 70. I see. That's helpful. Definitely. Here's a practical example. A 62-year-old widow who's eligible for both her own retirement benefit and a survivor benefit based on her deceased husband's record can start the survivor benefit now and let her own benefit grow. At 70, she switches to her own increased benefit if it's higher. So to everyone listening, have you looked at your earnings history lately? Because that's going to be the foundation of any

strategy you build, right? Absolutely. You need to know what your projected benefits are at different claiming ages. The Social Security Administration makes this pretty easy. You can access your benefit statement through your personal My Social Security account. I always tell people, this is the starting point for any serious planning conversation. What about couples where one spouse never worked or had very low earnings? Great question. That non-working or lower earning spouse is still entitled to spousal benefits based on their partner's record. But remember the deemed filing rules we discussed, they can't strategically pick and choose anymore. If they're eligible for any benefit on their own record, they're deemed to file for both. The complexity

here is pretty intense. How do you even begin to figure out the optimal strategy for your specific situation? It requires researching your options thoroughly, honestly. The law changes mean that for most people, you cannot receive one type of benefit while delaying another to grow. You've got to look at your combined life expectancy, health status, other retirement income sources, and how you plan to cover expenses in early retirement if you're delaying benefits. Right, because delaying to 70 means finding eight years of income somewhere else if you retire at 62. Exactly. That's where complete retirement planning comes in. Social Security is just one piece, of the income puzzle alongside IRAs, 401Ks, pensions, and other assets. The goal is coordinating

everything to create sustainable lifetime income. Before we wrap up, any final advice for married couples approaching this decision? Three things. Start planning early. Understand that the old strategies you heard about probably don't apply anymore, and remember that this decision is deeply personal. What works for your neighbor might not work for you. The changes aim to ensure fairness, but they definitely made things more complicated. Professional guidance can help you avoid mistakes that could permanently reduce your household income. Well said. Thanks so much for breaking this down with us today. To everyone listening, take the time to understand your options.

Your future self will thank you.