Social Security Benefits for Married Couples

I found this great article today on Yahoo Finance:
6 ways Couples can Maximize on Social Security Payouts
I've been unemployed for months now, and recently engaged. I have been pondering what happens with Social Security for married couples. It appears that in these amazing economic times, many people are joining forces.

"Spouses are entitled to a Social Security payout of up to 50 percent of the higher earner's check if that amount is higher than benefits based on his or her own working record. ...

Dual-earner couples who have reached their full retirement age can claim Social Security twice: first as a spouse and later using their own work record. A person may choose to sign up for only a spouse's benefits at their full retirement age and continue accruing delayed retirement credits on their own Social Security record. ...

Example:

1. A man planning to retire at age 70 could claim a spouse's benefit based on his wife's earnings at age 66
   
2. Then claim again based on his own working record when he exits the workforce at age 70.
   
3. High-income couples with relatively equal earnings gain the most using this strategy
4. A former spouse may be eligible for benefits if the marriage lasted at least 10 years. The divorced spouse must be age 62 or older and unmarried. The amount of benefits an ex-spouse claims has no effect on the benefits the worker and her or her current spouse can receive."

Simple Math:
I think this means that if the wife's social security benefits by age 66 are $1500/mo, then the husband can claim up to $750. This gives the couple $2250/mo in Social Security payouts.

At age 70 the husband then starts his Social Security claim which pays more than if he started it at age 62 or 66. earn a higher monthly amount. If he is entitled to $2500/mo by waiting until age 70:
$1500 + $750 + $2500 = $4750/mo in Social Security payouts for the couple after age 70.

For those of us whose mortgages are not paid off by the time we reach age 70, this is good news!

Please send in comments and clarifications on this blog post. Let's get a discussion going!