Ask Larry

Our Social Security experts have answered more than 10,000 questions about Social Security over many years. Search for your questions and answers here.

Miscellaneous

May 24, 2023

Will My Social Security Benefit Be Affected By The Sale Of My Home?

May 17, 2023

What Will I Need To Bring With Me When I Apply For Divorced Spousal Benefits?

May 7, 2023

Can I Get A Personal Loan While I Wait For My Back Pay?

May 6, 2023

Can My Mother Stop Getting Her Survivor Benefits In Order To Qualify For State Assistance?

May 6, 2023

Will Selling My House Affect My SS Survivor Benefits?

May 6, 2023

How Can I Found Out If My Husband Is Alive Or Deceased?

April 27, 2023

Can I Still Work Part-Time Without Losing My Benefits?

April 27, 2023

Will I Get Social Security If I Move Back To India?

April 25, 2023

Can Anything Be Done About My Losing Out On A Lot Of Money Because The People At SS Didn't Give Me The Right Answer?

April 24, 2023

Must I Withdraw Funds From My Retirement Account?

April 23, 2023

What Recourse Can I Take To Get An Audit Of My Account?

April 19, 2023

How Would I Be Able To Apply For Social Security Benefits While I'm Outside Of The U.S. With No Valid ID?

April 19, 2023

Will The Lump Sum Workers Compensation Payment I Received On My Wife's Behalf Affect My Survivor Or SSDI Benefits?

April 19, 2023

Is There Anything I Can Do To Reverse Social Security's Policies?

April 16, 2023

When Do I Get My Check?

April 15, 2023

Will I Lose Part Of My Social Security Because I'm Selling My House?

April 11, 2023

When Will We Know The Substantial Earnings Amount Required For 2024?

April 9, 2023

Will I Be Able To Collect Both My Social Security And My Husband's CalPERS Pension?

March 31, 2023

Will I Be Taxed On My Severance Package?

March 31, 2023

What Political Party Came Up With The Bill Allowing A Wife To Collect On Her Husband's Social Security At Age 62 But Delay Collecting Hers Until 67-70?

March 26, 2023

How Will The Profit From Selling Our Home Affect Our Social Security Benefits And Medicare Premiums?

March 22, 2023

Can I Send A Copy Of My ID When Asking For A Replacement Social Security Card?

March 20, 2023

When Can I Stop Filing Tax Returns?

March 21, 2023

How Can We Get My Wife's Spousal Benefit Reactivated?

March 20, 2023

Will I Lose My Monthly Stipend Now That My Nephew Receives Social Security?

March 20, 2023

What Would Happen To My Husband's Social Security If He Wins His Lawsuit Against His Former Employer?

March 19, 2023

Can My Wife Become Eligible For At Least A Minimal Benefit By Earning Two More Quarters?

March 14, 2023

What's The Age And Full Retirement Payment?

March 7, 2023

How Can I Receive My Payments If I Don't Have A Bank Account?

March 6, 2023

Can You Help Me Set Up A 'My Social Security Account'?

March 4, 2023

Will My Oldest Child's Check Come Back To The Family When He Graduates?

February 27, 2023

Which Of Social Security's Explanations Is Correct In My Case?

February 22, 2023

Can I Sue The Social Secuirty Office For Holding Back A Month Of My Widow's Benefits?

February 6, 2023

How Will My Social Security Be Affected If I Sell My House?

February 20, 2023

How Is It That My Survivor Benefit Was Completely Offset Due To The Recent 8.7% Civil Service Retirement COLA?

February 18, 2023

Do I Need To Notify SSA That I Don't Plan To Start Drawing Benefits At Full Retirement Age?

February 15, 2023

Will My Benefit Payment Be Doubled Next Month Because I Didn't Receive My Current Month's Direct Deposit?

February 14, 2023

How Can I Help My Daughter To Get Her SSI Payment Amount Increased?

February 11, 2023

What Will Happen To My Benefits If I Win Money On A Televised Game Show?

February 11, 2023

Can Social Security See How Much I Earned In Any Given Month In The Past?

February 7, 2023

Is The Flex Card Legit?

February 6, 2023

Can MetLife Reduce My LTD Payments If I Claim Social Security Widow's Benefits?

February 4, 2023

Are There Advantages Or Disadvantages To Converting Our IRA/401K Buckets?

February 1, 2023

Will Our Canadian Pensions Affect My Wife's Spousal Benefits?

January 31, 2023

Is There Any Way That I Can Get More Than Six Months Of Retroactive Benefits?

January 30, 2023

Can My Children And I Move To Mexico And Still Receive Survivor Benefits?

January 26, 2023

Why Didn't Social Security Deposit My Disability Check?

January 26, 2023

Can I Walk Into My Social Security Office To Drop Off Forms?

January 24, 2023

Can I Get My Husband's Social Security Since He's In Prison?

January 21, 2023

How Can I Get Social Security To Retrieve My Deceased Brother's Last Check?

January 19, 2023

Why Do You Still Have To Pay Social Security And Medicare Taxes On Your Earnings At Age 71?

January 16, 2023

Does My Wife Need To Notify Social Security If I Die Before I Claim Benefits?

January 15, 2023

Can We Receive Our SS Benefits My Direct Deposit When We Return To Our Home Country?

January 16, 2023

Do The Forms I Received From Social Security Need To Be Certified By A Notary?

January 14, 2023

Do You Have Any Idea Why My Social Security Benefit Was $200 Lower This Month?

January 11, 2023

Do You Have Any Recommendations About Software To Help Us Develop A Roth Conversion Strategy?

January 5, 2023

How Much Can I Make Before Income Taxes Are Extreme?

January 5, 2023

Do I Need To File A Tax Return If My Only Income Is Social Security And I Sell My Home?

January 5, 2023

Am I Deemed By SSA To No Longer Be Disabled Once I Reach FRA?

December 29, 2022

Can You Explain What The 8% Yearly Growth Is?

December 29, 2022

Will Taking A Lump Sum Pension Payout Affect My Monthly Social Security And Medicare Amounts?

December 28, 2022

Can My Mother Decline The Extra Benefits She's Been Awarded From My Deceased Father's Account?

December 28, 2022

Is There Anything My Friend Can Due To Speed Up The Processing Of His Application For Benefits?

December 21, 2022

Can I Collect Social Security If I Move To Britain?

December 19, 2022

How Long Does It Usually Take To Be Approved And Start Receiving Benefits?

December 19, 2022

Can You Outlive Your Benefits If You Start Collecting Early?

December 14, 2022

How Do I Get In To Make An Appointment?

December 13, 2022

What Is Meant By "Real Estate Dealer"?

December 9, 2022

Do I Have To Report The Sale Of My Home?

December 9, 2022

Should I Stop My Benefits And Go Back To Work Full-Time?

December 6, 2022

Where Would All Of My Father's Retirement Have Gone?

December 1, 2022

How Will Gifting A Mobile Home To Her Grandaughter Affect My Mom's Social Security?

November 16, 2022

Can I Get Benefits From Japan Or Switzerland Based On My Ex-Husband's Earnings In Those Countries?

November 13, 2022

Can They Really Withhold My Deceased Husband's Disability Benefits For Child Support?

November 10, 2022

Does The My Social Security Calculator Include The 8.7% Increase In Benefits?

November 10, 2022

Does he My Social Security estimate calculator include or exclude the 8.7% increase in benefits?

November 5, 2022

Who Do You Contact If You Didn't Receive The 2022 COLA?

November 5, 2022

Are We Getting A Stimulus Payment?

October 31, 2022

What Do I Put On Form SSA-795?

October 28, 2022

What Happens If A Non U.S. Citizen Has All Of Their Work Credits But Moves To The UK?

October 28, 2022

Can You Clear Up For Me Why My Projected Benefits Never Go Up With COLAs?

October 27, 2022

Is It True That's There's No Limit On How Much Each Member Of A Couple Can Be Paid Based On Their Own Earnings History?

October 24, 2022

Can Someone Who Gets Ordained Online Legally Marry A Couple In Texas?

October 20, 2022

Can My Son's Auxiliary Benefits Be Used To Reduce My Child Support?

October 20, 2022

What Is The FRA For People Born In 1957?

October 19, 2022

What Should I Do Next?

October 14, 2022

How Do I Find Out My Ex-Husband's PIA?

October 12, 2022

Are Social Security Offices Open To The Public?

October 7, 2022

Will My Settlement Affect My Social Security Or Medicare In Any Way?

September 24, 2022

How Do I Find Out If My Husband Has Filed For Benefits?

September 21, 2022

What Month Will I Be Considered Full Retirement Age?

September 18, 2022

How Can A Person On SSDI Not Be Responsible To Repay A Debt?

September 12, 2022

What Would I Be Entitled To If I Remarry My Ex-Husband?

September 10, 2022

If I Renounce My U.S. Citizenship Will I Still Be Able To Receive Social Security While Living In Singapore?

August 31, 2022

How Can I Get Social Security To Honor My Court Order?

August 26, 2022

Can My Wife Draw My Social Security If I Die And Also Collect Her German Social Security?

August 20, 2022

Is There A Way To Check What My Own Benefit Will Be On The SS Website?

August 18, 2022

Is My Wife Entitled To Back Pay?

August 15, 2022

How Do We Cancel My Deceased Mother In Law's Social Security And Black Lung Benefits?

August 13, 2022

Will Social Security Reduce My Check Because I'm An Adult Foster Care Provider?

About the Author

Laurence J. Kotlikoff 

Laurence J. Kotlikoff is a William Fairfield Warren Professor and Professor of Economics at Boston University, a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, a Fellow of the Econometric Society, and a Research Associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research.
Professor Kotlikoff received his B.A. in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania in 1973 and his Ph.D. in Economics from Harvard University in 1977. Kotlikoff is the Director of the Fiscal Analysis Center.
A New York Times Bestselling author, he has written nineteen books and hundreds of professional articles and op-eds. He is a frequent television and radio guest. His columns have appeared in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, London Financial Times, the Boston Globe, Bloomberg, Forbes, Yahoo.com, Fortune, and other major publications. In 2014, The Economist named him one of the world's 25 most influential economists