Why should gay couples get married?
Did you know that 71% of LGBT people fear not having enough money to have a happy retirement? For many, survivor and spousal benefits are reasons why gay couples should marry.
A million more reasons why gay couples should get married
It’s scary to think that as we get older we might run out of money. What can you do to be better prepared? What can you do for a better LGBT retirement? If you find out, you and your queer partner will now want to get married.
Find out more about this Queer money:
The why why gay couples should get married now
On this week Queer Money™, we are in David Friday from MassMutual. David has alerted us to a government grant that you are already paying for that may be the The most important reason why you should get married. . . And quickly. Changes due to marriage equality have opened the door to benefits that we as unmarried LGBT couples previously did not have access to.
3 Social Security Benefits
- disability – If we become disabled, we can receive payments from the government based on the amount we paid into Social Security through FICA taxes.
- Pension-like retirement – We receive payments as soon as we reach retirement age.
- Life insurance – Our beneficiaries, under certain circumstances, will receive payments after we pass away based on the amount we contributed to Social Security through FICA taxes.
As couples who couldn’t get married because we were same-sex, we only had access to disability and pension benefits, not life insurance benefits. With marriage equality, we now have access to full Social Security benefits.
Why spousal pensions are so important for same-sex couples
We pay FICA taxes, often more than we can contribute to 401k or other plans. We must learn to make the most of these benefits so we can have a more comfortable retirement.
When it comes to spousal benefits, there are two important Components:
- The spousal pension allows you or your spouse to receive the greater of 50% of an employee’s pension (depending on who worked or who earned the most), although you both must have been married for 12 months to be eligible for this benefit .
- With the survivor’s pension, the surviving spouse receives 100% of the social security contributions or those of the deceased spouse, provided you have been married for at least nine months.
Answered questions about why gay couples should get married as soon as possible
- Where can I find out what my Social Security payment will be at this point?
- How much money would my spouse or I receive in retirement if one of us dies?
- Does marriage have a financial advantage?
- Have I contributed enough to receive full Social Security benefits?