Social Security Strategies: Do 'Housewife Years' Count?
Q: My ex-husband and I were married 15 years, and I was a housewife for 10 of those years. Can I claim the 10 years of earnings of my ex in addition to the 40 quarters of much lower earnings I made on my own? I have remarried, am 64 and began taking my own benefits at 62.
A: The following is a response from my Right Financial Plan co-author Tiya Lim, who wrote the Social Security section of our book.
Unfortunately, "housewife" earnings (and what we should get paid to do that job) aren't included in earnings history for Social Security purposes. As an ex-spouse, being married for more than 10 years would automatically qualify you for an ex-spouse benefit. Even if he won't reveal his benefits, the Social Security office can provide that data to you. If your ex-husband's spouse benefit was greater than your own worker benefit, you would be able to get some additional benefits each month.
However, because you remarried, you're no longer entitled to an ex-spouse benefit. You now only qualify for a current spouse benefit based off of your current husband's work record. To see what you are entitled to as a married spouse, please read the post, "Understanding the Spousal Benefit."
Photo courtesy of Webb Zahn on Flickr.
For further reading on Social Security, see the following posts:
- File and Suspend
- Double Dipping
- Former Spouses
- How Are My Benefits Calculated?
- Single Filers
- Understanding the Spousal Benefit
- Government Pensions: Offset Provision and Windfall Elimination Provision
- The Issues with Taking Benefits Early and Investing Them
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- Read my latest book The Quest for Alpha.
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