Total Financial Solutions President and CEO Arif Halaby believes that those planning for their retirement should never rely on social security by itself due to serious problems with the system.

In 2017, 62 million Americans received some sort of social security benefits, resulting in $955 billion in payouts, according to Halaby.

“Folks, that’s one out of five — about one out of five, one out of six Americans are receiving some sort of social security benefit, and it goes up every single year,” he said, noting it may dip again in 10 years but will inevitably go back up. “That means eventually, there might be one out of four Americans collecting some sort of social security.”

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The problem with this, Halaby noted, is that the social security system was built to have a surplus, so to speak, and was designed with the intention of having one person receive benefits for every 32 people who contribute — not one in four, five or six.

“So you have fewer people putting money in and a lot more taking out,” Halaby said. “I have told you before, and I will tell you again, there is a 100 percent chance they have to restructure social security.”

Despite these dramatic changes in numbers since the system was created, one out of four married couples and four out of 10 single individuals rely on social security for 90 percent or more of their income today, according to Halaby.

This means that if social security completely breaks down or undergoes a significant overhaul of the system, these retirees will have no other options but to accept whatever the government will give them — or not give them, Halaby continued.

“Seniors are in a position to be the ones that get hurt,” he said. “If you don’t prepare, and you are getting in your 40s and your 50s, or your 50s and your 60s, you can expect that social security will hurt you significantly, because that’s what you’re counting on.”

While getting general information form the Social Security Administration’s website and talking to a financial professional like Halaby about questions specific to your circumstances is important, Halaby believes planning other, more reliable sources of income for retirement is the most important, which Total Financial Solutions can also help with.

“Get to the place where you look and you say, ‘For me and my family, is it better for me to take social security earlier or later, it it better for me to take the spousal benefit, for both of us to turn it on, for one of us to turn it on?’” he said. “You may have questions like that, we might be able to help point you in the right direction. But most importantly, you are going to have to supplement your social security.”

Total Financial Solutions offers assistance with preparing for retirement in Santa Clarita and the surrounding valleys. Santa Clarita financial professional Arif Halaby, a Certified Estate Planner, and Total Financial Solutions staff work with people of all ages, helping them protect, grow and preserve their assets through an individualized approach. As a well-known financial professional, Arif Halaby is also the host of “Total Financial Solutions Safer Money Hour” on KHTS AM-1220. Launched in 2004, the show offers listeners retirement planning tips and guidance for dealing with today’s ever-changing financial needs.  

Total Financial Solutions, Inc.

24322 Main Street

Newhall, CA 91321

661-753-9683

800-990-7344

Total Financial Solutions – Newhall

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Arif Halaby, Total Financial Solutions, Financial Planning, Planning for Retirement, Retirement Planning