Social Security Timing Demo

Demonstration Summary

This walkthrough shows the core steps for creating a client case in Social Security Timing^®, entering Social Security information, reviewing claiming strategies, and using the results to help guide a client conversation.

Create or Select a Client

From Social Security Timing, begin by creating a new client or selecting an existing client from My Clients.

When creating a client, enter the basic client information, including marital status and name.

For married clients, you will also enter information for the spouse.

Enter Client Information

Complete the client and spouse information needed for the analysis, including:

• Name
• Date of birth
• Marital status
• Life expectancy assumptions
• Dependent information, when applicable

Once the client information has been entered, continue to the Social Security benefit information.

Enter Social Security Benefits

Enter the Social Security benefit information for each client.

You can enter the client's benefit amount and the corresponding benefit date or use available import options when appropriate.

For a married couple, Social Security Timing evaluates both spouses together so the analysis can account for the interaction between retirement and spousal benefits.

Add Other Income Information

The case can also include income the client expects to receive while claiming Social Security.

Enter the applicable income information, including the amount, timing and expected duration.

This is particularly important when a client plans to claim Social Security before full retirement age while continuing to work because earnings may affect the benefits they receive.

Review Income and Earnings Assumptions

Review the income assumptions entered for each client and make any necessary adjustments before generating the analysis.

Social Security Timing uses these assumptions along with the client's benefit information and claiming ages when evaluating available strategies.

Adjust Social Security Assumptions

The software allows you to adjust assumptions used in the Social Security analysis.

For example, advisors can model a potential future reduction in Social Security benefits by selecting the applicable inflation and benefit-cut assumptions.

These settings make it possible to evaluate claiming strategies under different Social Security scenarios rather than relying on a single set of assumptions.

Review the Suggested Strategy

After the client information and assumptions are complete, Social Security Timing® generates a suggested claiming strategy.

The results page brings several important pieces of the analysis together in one place.

What's at Stake

The What's at Stake section compares the suggested strategy with the client's current or alternative claiming strategy.

This helps illustrate the potential difference in lifetime Social Security benefits between the strategies being considered.

Rather than focusing only on a claiming age, advisors can use this comparison to help clients understand the financial impact of the decision.

Review Claim Instructions

The Claim Instructions section provides details about when each client should file for Social Security based on the selected strategy.

These instructions help translate the analysis into specific action steps for the client.

Evaluate Estimated Income

The estimated income chart shows how Social Security benefits may change throughout retirement.

For married clients, the illustration can also help explain how household Social Security income changes when one spouse dies and the household transitions to a survivor benefit.

This gives advisors another way to discuss the long-term implications of a claiming decision rather than evaluating only the client's initial monthly benefit.

Review the Break-Even Analysis

The Break Even chart compares the cumulative value of the strategies over time.

Break-even information can provide useful context, but it should be considered alongside factors such as:

• Longevity
• Survivor income
• Other retirement income
• Taxes
• Portfolio withdrawals
• The client's overall retirement income strategy

The goal is not simply to identify a break-even age. It is to understand the tradeoffs between the available claiming strategies.

Explore the Detailed Results

Advisors can also review the detailed results behind the analysis, including projected benefits by year and month.

These details provide additional information when a client has questions about how the suggested strategy was calculated or how benefits may change over time.

Compare Alternative Strategies

Social Security Timing allows advisors to compare the suggested strategy with alternative claiming approaches.

Changing a claiming assumption updates the analysis so you can see how the strategy affects:

• Lifetime benefits
• What's at Stake
• Estimated income
• Break-even results
• Survivor benefits

This makes it easier to evaluate different strategies with the client and demonstrate the consequences of changing a claiming decision.

Model Potential Social Security Benefit Cuts

You can also change the assumed Social Security benefit reduction and immediately see how it affects the analysis.

This can be useful when clients are concerned about the long-term financial condition of Social Security.

Instead of assuming that benefits will either remain unchanged or disappear entirely, advisors can model different benefit levels and evaluate whether the recommended claiming strategy changes.

Use the Results to Guide the Client Conversation

Social Security Timing is designed to do more than identify a claiming age.

The analysis gives advisors multiple ways to explain a Social Security decision, including lifetime benefits, income over time, survivor considerations, break-even analysis and alternative strategies.

Together, these views can help clients better understand what is at stake and how their Social Security decision fits into their broader retirement income plan.