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What age is best to start taking Social Security?

21 Share This Story!Let friends in your social network know what you are reading about What age is best to start taking Social Security?If the level of income you get is important, your best bet is to wait. Post to FacebookPosted!A link has been posted to your Facebook feed. Sent!A link has been sent to your friend's email address. John Waggoner, USA TODAY 12:13 p.m. EDT October 23, 2013 Social security card with dollar bill face(Photo: Thinkstock)Story HighlightsIf the level of income you get is important, your best bet is to waitYou can begin to take Social Security at age 62 but benefits are reducedYou receive your maximum benefit if you begin taking Social Security at age 70USA TODAY personal finance reporter John Waggoner answers a different reader question every week on retirement. To submit a question, e-mail John at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..Q: I was born in 1951. What's the best age to start taking Social Security?A: You're 62, so you could start taking your Social Security benefits now.But you'd be better off waiting. If you retire now, a $1,000 monthly benefit would be cut to $750, according to the Social Security Administration. You won't be able to collect your full benefit until you hit age 66.NEW: USA TODAY Retirement Section[1]You receive your maximum benefit at age 70, and you won't get a larger benefit if you wait until after 70 to collect. By and large, you'll get about the same amount of money from Social Security whether you retire early or not.If you retire now, you'll get smaller payments over a longer time. But if the level of income you get is important, your best bet is to wait.SOCIAL SECURITY: What you don't know about it can hurt you[2] USA NOW Deadly dog treats investigated by FDA | USA NOW videoOct…
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Stock futures mostly flat as oil flirts with $100

7 Share This Story!Let friends in your social network know what you are reading about Stock futures mostly flat as oil flirts with $100Investors on Wall Street looking to start the trading week on a bright note Monday. Post to FacebookPosted!A link has been posted to your Facebook feed. Sent!A link has been sent to your friend's email address. Kim Hjelmgaard, USA TODAY 7:40 a.m. EDT October 21, 2013 The facade of the New York Stock Exchange.(Photo: Mark Lennihan, AP)Story HighlightsU.S. markets surged FridayOil futures edge downStrong gains in AsiaInvestors on Wall Street were looking to start the trading week on a bright note Monday as stock futures were mostly flat.Oil prices were in focus.Benchmark crude oil for November delivery declined 83 cents to $99.98 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract added 14 cents on Friday to close at $100.81. The move below $100 is the first for several months.Ahead of the market open, Dow Jones industrial average index futures and Standard & Poor's 500 index futures were mostly flat and Nasdaq index futures were up 0.2%.Stocks climbed on Friday. The S&P 500 rose 0.7% to close at an all-time high of 1,744.50. The Dow gained 0.2% to 15,399.65 and the Nasdaq surged 1.3% to 3,914.28.At the tail end of last week investors appeared to put behind them concern over the U.S. budget deal and China released an economic report that showed that growth there accelerated to 7.8%.FRIDAY: S&P 500 closes at new all-time record[1]In Asia, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 index rose 0.9% and China's benchmark Shanghai composite index added 1.4%.European shares moved in different directions. Benchmarks in France, Germany and Spain declined, but the United Kingdom's FTSE 100 index added nearly 1%.Contributing: Associated Press USA NOW Ancient rock destroyed by giddy trioOct 18, 2013References^ http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/markets/2013/10/18/stocks-friday/3007027/…
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J.C. Penney to open at 8 p.m. on Thanksgiving

Hadley Malcolm, USA TODAY 12:33 p.m. EDT October 18, 2013 J.C. Penney plans to open at 8 p.m. on Thanksgiving this year(Photo: Justin Sullivan, Getty Images)Story HighlightsFirst time the retailer will be open on ThanksgivingPreviously, J.C. Penney opened at 6 a.m. on Black FridayMove puts J.C. Penney in line with other major retailersJ.C. Penney is now in line with competitors trying to lure shoppers on Thanksgiving night – it's opening its doors for the first time on the holiday as it attempts to present a strong showing during the holiday season after a year of disappointing sales.The Plano, Texas-based chain will open most of its 1,100 stores at 8 p.m. on the holiday and will be open 25 hours straight, closing at 9 p.m. the following day.Last year Penney didn't open until 6 a.m. Friday. That made the retailer one of the laggards for the unofficial kickoff to the season. Other retailers have already been opening Thanksgiving night for the past two years. Toys R Us, Target, Sears, Walmart, and Kmart have all started opening at 8 or 9 p.m. Thanksgiving night. Macy's announced earlier this week[1] it would open stores for the first time on Thanksgiving this year, with most stores opening at 8 p.m.SHOPPING: Most Macy's stores will open at 8 p.m. on Thanksgiving[2]"Obviously, we were one of the last to open (last year)," said Tony Bartlett, Penney's executive vice president of stores. But he noted this year, "We're all in."He promised that Penney's deals will be at least as good as two years ago and will be much better than last year, when Penney gave away buttons tied to a prize giveaway. Penney is also bringing back a tradition it ditched last year: It will give away nearly 2 million holiday snow globes starting at 4 a.m.…
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Ask Matt: Where should you invest $15,000?

Matt Krantz, USA TODAY 9:26 p.m. EDT October 15, 2013 Getting started investing is an important first step.(Photo: Thinkstock)Story HighlightsDeciding how much to invest is an important first stepOnline brokerages offer a family of low-cost ETFs that are get for new investorsUnderstanding the risk you can stomach is keyUSA TODAY markets reporter Matt Krantz answers a different reader question every weekday. To submit a question, e-mail Matt at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..Q: Where should a 50-year old invest $15,000?A: With thousands of stocks, mutual funds, bond and other investments to choose from, investors often throw up their hands and do nothing.But, by being very clear in how much you have to invest, you've already made one of the hardest decisions that stymies many beginning investors. Next, though, you need to understand how much risk you can tolerate. Your threshold for risk will be the biggest determinant of how you should invest.TRACK YOUR STOCKS: Get real-time quotes with our free Portfolio Tracker[1]Based on your full question e-mailed to me, you're looking for a simple way to invest money with a brokerage that you don't have to micromanage. For most people looking for a simple way to invest and not worry about it, a blend of a couple exchange-traded funds is usually a blunt but relatively good instrument to use.One simple strategy would be to put $7,500 of your money in a Standard & Poor's 500 ETF, such as the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF, which trades by the symbol VOO. You could pair that by putting the other $7,500 into the Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF (symbol: BND). Be sure to check with your broker, since it might offer comparable ETFs that come with lower trading commissions.You can certainly get fancier as you build your savings and add to your portfolio. But for just starting…
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On the Job: Maternity leave can be good for mom, firm

Anita Bruzzese, Gannett 12:57 p.m. EDT October 13, 2013 No matter how many pregnancies might be in your office, remember they can provide a department with a chance to be flexible, try new things.(Photo: Getty Images)Story HighlightsHiding your pregnancy is not the answerFigure out what you'd like and what others have done in your companyPitch your solution as a way to solve a problem, try something newHaving a baby is always an adjustment for new parents, but one strategic communications company found it was going to go through some adjustments of its own when three key employees on its 16-member staff turned up pregnant at nearly the same time.After seven months of "adjusting, juggling and stretching" to accommodate three maternity leaves, "the truth is it wasn't bad after all," writes Jon Newman, co-founder of The Hodges Partnership, in a blog post titled OOOhhh Baby…(Our three-peat feat)[1].STORY: Yahoo CEO ignites maternity debateCOLUMN: Moms fret about work, pregnancy[2][3]"In fact, it was an extremely good thing, not only for the moms, but for all of us at Hodges," he wrote.The change in routine was good for the company because everyone pitched in, learned to stretch their capabilities and skills and be more flexible with their work, Newman says in the post.One of the moms who was pregnant and now has a 7-month-old baby is Stacey Brucia, an account manager. She says she was telecommuting from home when she heard about the second employee announcing her pregnancy."I'm glad no one could see my face because I knew then I was also pregnant," she says. "I knew then it was going to be a stretch (for the company) because it was going to be a revolving door of maternity leaves."However, Brucia says she wasn't overly concerned because Hodges already had been supportive when she was…
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Craft beer hops along its creative course

Head brewer Charlie Buettner adds fresh hops to a tank of Two Hemispheres IPA at Mad Fox Brewing in Falls Church, Va.(Photo: H. Darr Beiser, USA TODAY)Story HighlightsMad Fox Brewing Co., in Virginia, is among 600-plus breweries at the Great American Beer FestivalOf more than 2,500 breweries in U.S., most are craft breweries and 1,600 more are in the worksCraft beer sales make up more than 6% of all beer sales, up from 5% in 2011FALLS CHURCH, Va. — The pungent grassy smell of bright green hop flowers fills the air at the Mad Fox Brewing Co.Freshly harvested and overnighted from the Yakima Valley in Washington state to the brewpub, located just west of Washington, D.C., these Citra hops are being stuffed into porous bags that will be added to an already fermented ale, made with Australian Galaxy hops.Like giant tea bags, the steeping second hop treatment will impart an added freshness and fruity punch of flavor to the brewery's Two Hemispheres India Pale Ale. This "wet hopping" process creates a relatively new style of ale that arose from beer drinkers' affinity for ever-increasing bitterness. "It's just a different way for people to get their hop fix," says Mad Fox head brewer Charlie Buettner.Timing is critical in creating such a beer because the hops must be harvested, shipped and added to beer before going stale within a few days. The process costs more than that for a typical ale, but many brewers embrace the chance to stretch their creative muscles. "We like looking for what new twists can be taken" with traditional beer styles, Buettner says.There's no bigger display of the ever-expanding varieties of beer than the 32nd annual Great American Beer Festival[1], conducted in Denver this week, by The Brewers Association[2]. Judging includes more than 3,100 beers from 624…
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