The United States Social Security trust funds are in trouble. The trustees claim that if nothing changes, the money earmarked for benefit checks will run out in 2035. This will result in Social Security being able to pay only 80% of total benefits starting in that year. Therefore, millennials may have serious problems with their retirement.
Despite not having 100% reliable data, since there is still a long time to go before that year arrives, there is not much hope. Congress and the United States Government must do something to reverse the situation. If they do nothing, Social Security funds will dry up and millennials retiring in 2035 will not be able to collect their retirement benefits.
Will millennials have Social Security?
The key question is whether or not millennials will have Social Security. There is no straightforward answer to this question. The year 2035 is still a long way off. The trust funds can be repaired in all those years with some government action. But it is not possible to know until we see the moves that will be made.
In any case, milliennials will indeed have Social Security, regardless of what happens. The problem is that they will receive 20% less than what is established if the situation continues this way. Although it is important to note that most millennials state that they do not have that source of income and that they intend not to depend on their Social Security, but on another economic source that will help them live from day to day.
How can trust funds be increased?
There are a number of changes that can be made to ensure that Social Security has funds in the future. Investment News comments that the payroll tax rate could be increased. In addition to that, the amount of payroll-related wages could also be raised. Another option would be to increase the Full Retirement Age from 67 to 69. There is still time for changes, but some of them could be made very soon.
No matter what happens in the end, what does matter is that we need to keep an eye on our benefits. And remember that there are ways to increase Social Security a bit, such as asking to retire later or working for 35 years at a good salary. Any move, no matter how small it may seem, is important to have a good retirement with enough money.
