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Filing for Social Security Retirement Benefits

It’s tempting to begin claiming Social Security benefits at the earliest opportunity — age 62 — and many Americans do just that. But is it wise? 

author
Shelly Gigante
Filing for Social Security Retirement Benefits
SOCIAL SECURITY

It’s tempting to begin claiming Social Security benefits at the earliest opportunity — age 62 — and many Americans do just that. But is it wise? 

Taking benefits before you reach your full retirement age can have a negative impact on you, your spouse, and on survivors benefits later on because it permanently reduces the size of your monthly benefit.

Yet, if your savings account is lacking or your health status is vulnerable, it might make sense to start taking benefits as soon as possible.

Indeed, determining when to begin claiming Social Security all depends on your unique financial picture.

“It is hard to make ‘one-rule fits all’ generalizations about taking your Social Security benefits,” said David Freitag, a financial planning consultant for MassMutual. ”Because we are all different, each Social Security decision could and should be custom made, like a fine suit or custom dress.”

To make an informed decision, he said, it’s important to understand how Social Security benefits work.

It’s also important to plan ahead so you don’t outlive your savings. If you hope to delay claiming benefits, for example, you will need sufficient assets and a safe withdrawal strategy from resources such as your IRA, taxable brokerage accounts, pensions, and annuities to cover your living expenses until Social Security kicks in. (Calculator: How much should I save for retirement?

Know your ‘full retirement age’

You can start by determining your full retirement age, the age at which you are entitled to receive full (or unreduced) Social Security retirement benefits if you have earned enough credits during your working years. Your full retirement age is based on the year you were born.

If you begin collecting Social Security before your full retirement age, your benefit amount will be reduced by a percentage that reflects the number of months until your full retirement age. That can seriously undermine one of your most significant sources of guaranteed retirement income.

Source: Social Security Administration

For example, if you were born in 1960, your full retirement age is 67. You can opt to begin collecting Social Security benefits at age 62, but your monthly benefit will be reduced by 30 percent because you might be collecting benefits for an additional five years. If you start collecting at age 65, your benefit will be reduced by 13.3 percent.1

Conversely, your benefit will increase by a fixed percentage for each year you delay claiming Social Security beyond your full retirement age.

For example, if you were born in 1943 or later, your benefit would increase by 8 percent per year for each year you delay claiming benefits beyond your full retirement age until you turn 70, when the benefit of delaying any further disappears.

Delaying Social Security, if you can afford to wait, is one of the most effective ways to boost your guaranteed retirement income, which is especially important if you have undersaved.

It can also potentially benefit your spouse, especially if he or she earned less than you (or nothing at all) in the workplace. How? Your spouse is entitled to spousal Social Security benefits while you are alive based on either his or her own earnings history or 50 percent of your Social Security benefit — whichever is greater. By waiting to claim benefits until beyond your full retirement age, you help to increase the size of the Social Security check your spouse may one day receive.

Such a strategy also protects the surviving spouse in the event of death. By waiting to start benefits beyond your full retirement age, you can potentially position your spouse to receive a bigger survivors benefit than he or she would have received had you filed earlier.

Longevity is a wild card

Yet, there are certain scenarios in which it might make sense to claim benefits early.

For example, retirees who lost their job or experience a financial catastrophe may be forced to collect benefits at the earliest opportunity. Financial advisors typically recommend that older adults work a few extra years to increase their savings and delay claiming Social Security benefits, but that isn’t always possible.

Those who are otherwise financially secure, said Freitag, may also wish to take benefits early to divert that income into legacy giving programs for children, grandchildren, or charities. “There are powerful ways to leverage Social Security income to create new capital,” he said. “This new capital can then be used to really change the quality of life for those in need.”

Indeed, the most important point about filing for benefits is to be deliberate.

“Wise Social Security drawing strategies can make a big difference,” said Mark Wilson, a financial advisor with MILE Wealth Management in Irvine, California, in an email interview. “Most folks are simply claiming as soon as they can and this might cost them tens of thousands of dollars over their lifetimes. Unfortunately, these strategies are not straightforward and usually involve ‘running the numbers.’”

The other big variable where Social Security claiming strategies are concerned is longevity. Although it’s impossible to predict for sure how long you will live, your current health and family history can provide general guidance. So, too, can government data.

According to the Social Security Administration:

  • A man reaching age 65 today can expect to live, on average, until age 84.3. A woman turning age 65 today can expect to live, on average, until age 86.6.
  • And those are just averages. About one out of every four 65 year-olds today will live past age 90, and one out of 10 will live past age 95.3

The Social Security Administration life expectancy calculator provides estimates based on age and gender assumptions. Just remember those estimates reflect “averages.” Your own lifespan may be longer or shorter than average.

Those with a medical condition that may shorten their life expectancy may collect more in Social Security if they claim benefits before their full retirement age.

Life expectancy

For perspective and perhaps inspiration, it helps to calculate your break-even point, which is effectively the age at which you will have collected more in Social Security by delaying benefits than you would have collected had you started claiming early. The AARP’s Social Security Benefits Calculator can help.

Remember, however, that such calculations are imperfect. More important, they fail to account for the time value of money. If you don’t need your Social Security checks to live on, you could potentially invest those dollars and generate earnings.

Social Security provides one of the only sources of inflation-protected retirement income for retirees. As such, it is too important for guesswork.

“Social Security is the foundation of retirement security, offering protection against longevity risk and inflation risk,” said Marguerita Cheng, a financial advisor with Blue Ocean Global Wealth in Potomac, Maryland.

As you plan ahead, take the time to set up your own “My Social Security” page on www.socialsecurity.gov. This is an easy and secure way to view your estimated benefits and earnings history. The Social Security Administration will use this information when it calculates your benefit, so be sure that it accurately reflects your work history.

The age at which you first file for Social Security has a big impact on the size of your future benefit for yourself and your household.

To determine a strategy that’s right for you, carefully consider your personal savings, spouse’s retirement income needs, health, and family medical history. And, as always, talk with a financial professional who can help you make the right decision.

Shelly Gigante specializes in personal finance issues. Her work has appeared in a variety of publications and news websites. This article originally appeared on the MassMutual Blog.


1 Social Security Administration, “Benefits Planner: Retirement.”

Date posted: Apr 30, 2019
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retirement money social security
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Every article I have ever read has been clear about the consequences of signing up for SS if you are not FRA when you do this.

Whoever is in the office of the white house has absolutely no bearing on whether or not you get screwed. If you get screwed it is probably because instead of doing your homework you took someone's word for it. Someone that could not care less if the information given is correct or not. I know the suppression law that used to be helpful to some was made obsolete but, if anyone files for SS and is not an FRA then they can only expect to get less, not more.

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In response to above comment, I think there's a misunderstanding. There was an earlier law (now obsoleted) that you could start collecting at 62, then PAY BACK to Social Security what you had collected to date. At that point, you could then claim your bigger soc sec check, at age 65, as if you were starting fresh. There was never a time you could start collecting at 62, and then automatically collect more at 65.

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My understanding is that your SS benefit is based on you highest 35 earning years. If you are at a point in your life where you are not surpassing any of those years, then it seems unlikely that your benefit will increase by the 8% suggested in this article. In this case collecting at age 62, may not be such a bad idea.

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Don't sign up until you are 65 or older because I had to file before I was 65 and I got the royal screw. When Obama was in office. I got froze at what I was getting at 62 and couldn't get my full benefit when it was time for me to get my full pay. So if they tell you that you can come back and get full benefits they are nothing but big liars. And they won't give you the full benefits. BIG LIARS