Tom Margenau

A housewife getting social security benefits is a good thought, but it isn't practical.

As I've pointed out over and over again in this column, there are thousands of myths about Social Security benefits.

These rants are almost always wrong and based on a misunderstanding of Social Security rules or misinformation they picked up.

There are thousands of myths about Social Security benefits. Those myths are usually started online, but then they get picked up by and spread from one nattering novice to another.

Sometimes I’ll include something in a column about a broader topic that I think is just a small, almost insignificant piece of the puzzle. But then that nugget ends up

One of the first issues to take care of is what to do with the final Social Security check for the deceased.

What you need to know about the cost-of-living adjustment that Social Security beneficiaries will get in 2025.

In mid-October every year, the Bureau of Labor Statistics releases its much-anticipated report on changes (usually increases) to the Consumer Price Index over the past 12 months. Why is this little esoteric government report — actually called the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers — so popular? Because for the past 50 years, it's the report that determines the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) that Social Security beneficiaries will get the following year.

All 68 million Social Security beneficiaries’ checks are going up 2.5% in 2025.

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