Six things to know about your 2018 Social Security benefits

As we move into the New Year, you likely want to know about your 2018 Social Security benefits. The Consumer Price Index is up 2 percent, which means that your Social Security benefits are up 2 percent as well, an average of $27 a month. But, because your Medicare premium may be increasing, you may not see an increase in your monthly Social Security check. Here are six things to know about Social Security in 2018.

• The average Social Security benefit in 2018 is $1,404 for individuals (up from $1,377 in 2017) and $2,340 for families (up from $2,294 in 2017).
• If you have been paying a Medicare Part B monthly premium of $109, your additional Social Security income will go in whole or in part to cover your 2018 Medicare Part B monthly premium. Your Medicare Part B monthly premium may increase as much as $35 to $134.
• If you are among the 10 percent of Americans who paid the maximum amount into Social Security over the last 35 years and took Social Security at your full retirement age, your Social Security annual benefit may increase more than $1,000 in 2018. You will receive $2,788 a month, an additional $101 from 2017.
• The cap on Social Security contributions is rising by $1,200 to $128,400. Most people contribute 6.2 percent of their earnings to Social Security up to that cap, with their employers matching that contribution with another 6.2 percent.
• If you were born in 1956, you can take Social Security in 2018, at age 62, before your full Social Security retirement age. Your maximum monthly benefit at 62 will be $2,159. If you wait to get your full Social Security retirement benefits, your monthly benefit will be significantly higher. (Read this Just Care post to learn when to claim Social Security benefits.) Your full retirement benefits will not kick in until you are 66 and four months, two months longer than people born in 1955. And, if you are still working, Social Security may hold back some of your earned benefits.
• Depending upon where you live and your total income, you may pay a tax on your Social Security benefits. Thirteen states tax Social Security retirement benefits: Colorado, Connecticut, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont and West Virginia.

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