Hello, this is █████████████████████ with aarp. AARP is holding a nationwide telephone discussion right now to talk about Social Security decisions that can be costly. Join our free Teletown hall where Social Security experts will discuss common decisions that can reduce your Social Security payments. To join the conversation, you simply need to stay on the line. Our live Teletown hall will be recorded. To reach a live operator at AARP during business hours, call ██████████████. To reach AARP by mail, send correspondence to the program's department at ████████████████████████████████████████████. Please stay on the line and you will be connected to this toll free live conversation. Please hold while we connect you to the AARP event. This AARP event is currently in progress. Please note that this call may be monitored, recorded or rebroadcast. If you would like to listen in Spanish, press Star zero when you are connected to the live event that we will be taking your questions live. So to ask a question at any time, just press star three. And if you're joining us on Facebook or YouTube, you can post your question in the comments. This session is intended to be informational and educational. Please consult your financial advisor for any specific guidance according to your individual situation. We'll be sharing resources and phone numbers with you today, so you may want to grab a pen and paper to have handy now. If you're like most people, you don't like Leaving money on the table when it comes to Social Security, Many of us aren't even aware we are leaving money on the table. The system can be complex and it's important to understand how your decision can increase or decrease your Social Security payments. Decisions you make now can affect your income forever. We're going to explore how claiming Social Security too early could cost you a lot of money in the long run. Then we'll talk about how continuing to work while collecting Social Security could reduce your Social Security because of a rule known as the earnings limit. We'll also cover how the length of your marriage can impact your spousal payments and how claiming Social Security early can affect your spouse's survivor payments. We will conclude with discussing Social Security imposter scams. These scams are incredibly common and they can happen to anyone. AARP is here to help you understand and potentially avoid these costly Social Security decisions. So with us today is ██████████████████, a retired regional communications director for the Social Security Administration. For more than ██ years, he enjoyed helping people maximize their earned payments. He continues to break down the many rules of Social Security with an honest, straightforward approach. Thank you for being here, ██████. Thank you for having me. I'd also like to extend a warm welcome to ███████████, who is the Social Security program manager for aarp. His dedication to this issue is deeply personal and community focused. Witnessing his mother navigate the complexities of Social Security fueled his commitment to this work. His role at AARP is not just a job, it's a passion. We're glad to have you, █████. Glad to be here. We will also be joined later in the program by ██████████████████ with AARP programs who will help facilitate your calls today. As a reminder, throughout today's tele town hall, we are going to share your live questions with █████ and ██████. So to ask your question, press star three. If you're joining us on Facebook or YouTube, you can post your question in the comments. We have a lot to cover, so let's dive right in. ███████ let's start with our first costly decision, which is claiming Social Security.