I’m going to start this column by shamelessly promoting my little Social Security guidebook called “Social Security—Simple and Smart.” You can get it for less than $10 at Amazon.com and other booksellers. I am always referring readers who send me emails to that book because it will help them a whole lot more than a few lines I scribble into an emailed reply. And by far the most common section of the book that I refer people to is the chapter called “A Woman’s Guide to Social Security.” Most of what follows is an excerpt from that chapter.
Why does a woman need a special guide to Social Security? After all, almost all Social Security rules are asexual. For example, retirement benefits are figured the same way for men and women. Spousal benefits are also gender-neutral. In other words, a woman can possibly qualify for benefits as a wife or widow in the same way that a man might qualify for benefits as a husband or widower.
