COLA increase for 2025 confirmed This is how much retiree benefits will increase

this week has brought some news about the cost of living adjustment Cola as new estimates about the cola increase have been released but the slight increase appears to disappoint seniors in the United States the Social Security Administration SS a generally announces the new Cola increase in the last quarter of the year in October however the senior citizens league has revised its estimate for the Cola in 2025 setting it at 2.4% raising concerns about the monthly benefits since beneficiaries think this increase will not be enough to face inflation on everyday living expenses if the cost of living adjustment Cola increases are confirmed Social Security benefits Will Rise by 2.4% in January 2025 still the forecasts predict a slight increase because inflation has been relatively low in recent months the 2.4% cola increase for 2025 would be the lowest adjustment since 2017 which will increase the average monthly benefit only by $37 cost of living adjustment Cola every year Social Security benefits are adjusted for inflation using data from the Consumer Price Index for urban wage earners and clerical workers CPW the CPI tracks changes in the costs of a selection of products and services that are often purchased by clerical and urban wage earners about 70 million Social Security recipients including retired workers survivors and individuals with disabilities are impacted by the cost of living adjustment Cola for retired workers the average monthly Social Security payment is is approximately $1,543 Cola increase shows a declining Trend Social Security benefits for elderly people and people with disabilities increased by up to 8.7% in 2023 payments increased by a much smaller amount in 2024 by only 3.2% of cola for most recipients that meant an increase of about $50 Cola is a crucial factor for Social Security beneficiaries' Financial well-being but the Social Security ad Administration sa will need to seriously consider whether the future increase will offset the full cost of inflation otherwise this could have a great impact on beneficiaries who will lose purchasing power in the long run according to Alex Bean a financial literacy instructor for the state of Tennessee when you enter a grocery shop you can feel the frustration among seniors several of the items most hit by inflation have been regular purchases that people did not anticipate experiencing sharp price Rises on when they retired American seniors are frustrated many seniors particularly those who spend money on housing and Healthcare are dissatisfied with the rate at which inflation is increasing the prices of items they frequently buy the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that although housing costs increased by 5.7% annually Medical Services saw an increase of 1.1% according to a January Senior Citizens League study seniors reported that price increases were still occurring for almost all of the their household goods the majority of senior respondents 93% reported that their household expenses increased by more than $59 per month in 2023 while 43% reported an increase of more than $185 some seniors are concerned that the increase in Social Security benefits would not be sufficient to keep up with future inflation because of this in addition because benefit checks are increasing many people will pay more taxes as they move up the income tax rate additionally Based on data from the National Council on Aging almost 25 million Americans over 60 are living at or below 250% of the federal poverty line for the most part those same seniors living expenses are covered by Social Security this combined with the fact that most seniors resource income comes from Social Security benefits could lead to a big headache for them next year