36 Million Americans May Owe State Tax on Their Social Security Benefits
Each and every month, more than 61 million people receives a payout from the Social Security Administration, and more than two out of three recipients are retired workers. A majority of these elderly retirees leans quite heavily on Social Security to make ends meet, with 62% counting on the program for at least half of their monthly income and 34% relying on it for 90% or more of their income. Without this guaranteed monthly payout, it's fair to say we'd probably have an elderly poverty problem on our hands.
Yet, in spite of the critical role that Social Security currently plays for retirees, and is expected to play for baby boomers in the future, there's quite a bit the average American doesn't understand about it. A 2015 10-question, true-false survey conducted by MassMutual Financial Group on basic Social Security knowledge found that just 28% of the more than 1,500 people who took the quiz got a passing grade of seven correct answers or higher. Only one person aced the quiz.
Though it may sound a bit cliche, the reality is that what you don't know about Social Security can come back to bite you in the wallet during your golden years.
Source: Fool.com
