Living With Social Security: Small Dreams and Safety Nets -NYT Series

[Rose Siding]

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Barbara Amberg used her Social Security checks to fly to New York and see Christo's "Gates" in Central Park. Shirley Malone lives on hers in subsidized public housing, sometimes washing her clothes in dish detergent to save money.

For Joseph Cohen, a businessman who lost his business, Social Security is the safety net he never thought he would need. "We're talking about a fortunate guy who had assets to put away," Mr. Cohen said. "But without Social Security I would be in bad shape."
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Americans appear to overestimate how much money they will be able to put aside for retirement. A New York Times/CBS News Poll found that only 20 percent of Americans who are not yet retired expect Social Security to be their major source of income when they stop working. But 39 percent of retirees in the same survey said that Social Security was their major source of income.

Nearly all Americans over 65 collect benefits. The Social Security Administration says that about a third depend on Social Security for more than 90 percent of their income; another third get half to 90 percent of their money from the program; and a third rely on it for less than half. About 13 million would fall below the poverty line without Social Security unless they found other sources.

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http://www.nytimes.com/2005/06/19/national/19retire.html