Entering Social Security Benefits in WealthTrace

When entering Social Security income in WealthTrace, enter your estimated benefit in today's dollars.

This is the amount currently shown on your Social Security benefit estimate.

Why Social Security Is Entered in Today's Dollars

The Social Security Administration generally presents estimated future retirement benefits in today's dollars.

That means the estimate reflects the purchasing power of the benefit today rather than the larger nominal dollar amount you may actually receive in the future.

Because of this, you should enter the Social Security benefit estimate exactly as it is currently shown rather than increasing it for future inflation yourself.

WealthTrace will apply cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) beginning with the current year and project the benefit forward appropriately.

Example

Suppose your Social Security estimate currently shows:

$3,000 per month at age 67

Enter:

Monthly Social Security Benefit: $3,000

Even if you will not begin Social Security for many years, you should not inflate the $3,000 amount yourself before entering it.

WealthTrace will account for future Social Security COLAs in the projection.

Important Difference From Pension Income

Social Security and pension income are entered differently in WealthTrace:

• Social Security: Enter the estimated benefit in today's dollars.
• Pension: Enter the expected benefit in future dollars at the time the pension begins.

The distinction exists because Social Security estimates are generally stated in today's dollars, while pension benefit estimates are generally quoted as the future payment amount.