Understanding Your Social Security Benefit Options

Learn important rules that affect the amount of retirement benefits you collect, as well as strategies for coordinating Social Security with other sources of retirement income.

• How to properly file for Social Security Benefits
• Maximize the amount you are eligible to receive
• How to avoid the most common mistakes when claiming benefits
• Positioning assets to minimize or avoid paying taxes on Social Security
• How to claim a spousal benefit, even if divorced
• How working while receiving Social Security affects benefits
• How Social Security is taxes
• How to determine which claiming strategy is best for you
• What is the future of Social Security and what it means to you
• How cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) impact benefits
• When it makes sense to delay benefits and when it does not
• What to do if you have other income from Pensions or IRAs

About the presenter:

Patrick May, CFP, CFF, began his career in financial services in 2006. He started out in a national call center, quickly building a strong knowledge base of all things investments & financial markets. He then worked in a branch office in Dallas, TX as an investment consultant where he was able to provide a personal touch & impact the lives of clients in his community. Later he was promoted to a role in a national firm's corporate headquarters back in St. Louis. In 2018 he deepened his ability to help individuals & families by becoming a holistic planner. Pat gave clients the confidence to retire the way they wanted by helping with taxes, investments, insurance, income & estate planning. In early 2023 he joined Vantage Point to continue his work.

This class is offered through the non-profit organization, American Financial Education Alliance (AFEA). AFEA's mission is to inform and empower Americans to take control of their finances by providing comprehensive financial education in communities nationwide.