Tyler Foster
Latest Articles by Tyler Foster
A surviving spouse inherits the larger of two Social Security checks, not both
When one spouse dies, a couple that had been receiving two Social Security checks does not keep both. The survivor moves to the larger of...
A survivor benefit can begin at 60, or 50 for a disabled widow or widower
A surviving spouse does not have to wait until full retirement age to draw a Social Security survivor benefit. It can begin as early as...
Social Security is paid the month after it’s due, and your birthday sets the deposit date
New retirees are often thrown by their first Social Security deposit twice over. It arrives a month later than expected, and it lands on a...
Social Security’s disability rules count fewer work credits for people who become disabled young
Many workers assume that Social Security disability, like retirement, demands 40 work credits earned over roughly a decade. That assumption shuts younger people out of...
Disabled veterans pay no funding fee on a VA home loan and can buy with nothing down
On a typical first VA loan with nothing down, the government’s funding fee runs 2.15 percent of the amount borrowed — about $6,450 on a...
Medicare covers yearly depression screening and outpatient mental-health care
Medicare pays for one depression screening every year at no cost, and covers ongoing therapy and counseling that many older adults assume they must pay...
A health savings account can pay Medicare premiums tax-free once you turn 65
Turning 65 unlocks a rarely used feature of a health savings account: after that birthday, its funds can pay Medicare premiums with no tax and...
Social Security’s Ticket to Work lets disability recipients test a job without losing benefits
Fear of losing a disability check keeps many recipients from ever testing whether they can work again. Social Security’s Ticket to Work program is built...
A courier scam talks seniors into handing cash or gold bars to a fake investigator
The knock at the door is the last step in a scam that can cost a retiree a lifetime of savings. A supposed federal agent,...
Thieves are “washing” checks stolen from mailboxes, so pay bills online or at the counter
A stolen check rarely stays the amount it was written for. Mail thieves lift envelopes from home mailboxes and the blue collection boxes on the...
A flat $80 with no proof is on the table for people caught in the Lucent Health data breach
About 37,000 people notified in the Lucent Health Solutions data breach can now claim a flat $80 with no documentation required, part of a $1.95...
A \”brushing\” scam sends an unordered package to use your stolen personal data
An unordered package arriving on a doorstep can look like a harmless mistake or an unexpected gift, but investigators treat it as a warning light....
Banks may refuse to refund a Zelle payment you were tricked into sending yourself
A payment sent through Zelle can be nearly impossible to claw back, and federal rules draw a sharp line that surprises many people who assume...
Medicare covers a one-time Welcome to Medicare visit free in your first year of Part B
Medicare hands every new enrollee a free medical appointment in the first year of Part B, and most let it expire unused. The one-time Welcome...
Medicare’s 2027 out-of-pocket drug cap holds near $2,400, after which covered prescriptions cost nothing
A cornerstone of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act carries into 2027: a firm ceiling on what a Medicare drug plan member pays out of pocket...
Medicare’s income surcharge is set by your tax return from two years earlier
The premium a Medicare enrollee pays this year is often decided by a tax return that is already two years old. The income-related monthly adjustment...
