Posts Tagged When to Take Social Security

What if you don’t start taking Social Security benefits until after your full retirement age? As you would expect, you’ll be rewarded for this. For example, if your full retirement age is 66, you’ll receive 108 percent of your monthly benefit by waiting until age 67. Wait until the age of 70 and your monthly benefit rises to 132 percent. So, based purely on the numbers, you can see why many advisors recommend waiting. Your benefit is significantly reduced the earlier you start taking it and considerably higher the longer you wait. Now, many people will say, understandably, that they worked long and hard to earn their benefit and want to start enjoying it as soon as possible. There are also certain situations where taking your benefit early makes financial sense. An article on bankrate.com points out that if you are in poor health, with a lower than average life

Most advisors recommend waiting as long as possible to begin collecting Social Security benefits. Suze Orman, a contributor to AARP Magazine, makes a strong case for this approach. She argues that with people living longer than ever before, 70 is the new 65. What concerns her the most is not funding the first 10 to 15 years of retirement but rather the 10 to 15 years after that. You can read her entire article here. What do the numbers have to say? Of course, every situation is unique. The best time to take Social Security benefits is not the same for everyone. You must consider your particular financial needs, health, post-retirement plans and more in deciding when to take your benefit. Here are some statistics to help you make an informed decision. The first number you need to know is your full retirement age—the age at which you can collect