This book, by my friend and colleague Emily Guy Birken, is a great book for gaining a better understanding of Social Security benefits. I recommend Making Social Security Work for You to anyone looking for answers about Social Security benefits. Birken is also the author of The Five Years Before You Retire, another excellent retirement planning tome.
Birken’s style of writing is easy-to-follow. She has a subtle sense of humor that comes out in her writing. This makes the material enjoyable to read, even for a dry subject like Social Security.
Making Social Security Work for You
I especially like the way author Birken presents the material. Having written a book on the subject, I know full well the challenge she faced when putting this information together. It is difficult to make such a technical subject understandable and engaging. Birken presents the material in a cohesive manner, with a review (Takeaways) at the end of each chapter.
Birken also does an excellent job of explaining the various benefits, timing strategies, and options available to an individual in all sorts of circumstances. There are explanations for the single filer, married couples, and divorced individuals. The information presented includes all of the changes to the rules that came into effect with the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015. Grandfathered rules are covered as well.
Birken presents excellent examples throughout the text, which help the reader to understand the principles. These are real-world situations that are easily adapted to your own situation as you see fit.
The book rounds out with a list of the Pitfalls and Problems for you to be aware of as you plan your Social Security benefit filing. These are important to know about so that you don’t make mistakes in your filing process.
All in all – I highly recommend Making Social Security Work for You for your education process as you determine the best filing methods for yourself and your family. Emily Guy Birken has done an excellent job with this book, you can learn a lot from it.
Sterling Raskie, MSFS, CFP®, ChFC®
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