62 Or 70? When To Start Collecting Social Security Benefits.

We will definitely wait until 70 as we don't need SS now and we are still working part time at age 68 as we love our working fields. We also have good health in our backgrounds. This video helps seal our decision.

I'm 61 and I wanted to wait until I am eligible for Medicare, which is 65. My breakeven point would then be higher than 79 and my family has a history of living into their 80's on average. It seems like a reasonable time for me, but it does depend on the job, etc. Thank you.

What happens when you retire and you still have debts on taxes?

Hear 's the deal. The decision as to when to take your Social Security is a personal one. There is no right answer for everyone. Do you take the smaller monthly payment at 62 and draw the money for a longer period of time. Or, do you delay taking it hoping to live long enough for the higher payment to catch up. In just raw dollars the only way to know for sure which decision will net the most money you will need to know the exact date of your death. Without that, you are just guessing. Just remember more per month does not mean more total, just like less per month does not mean less total. For me, I took the bird in the hand approach. It's my money and I want it back as soon as I can get it. My family history didn't favor living a whole lot of years past 80 which means I'm not likely to gain by waiting. So 7 year ago I retire at age 62 and started taking back my Social Security right away. I have zero regrets about that decision. Truth be told, I hope I live long enough to get to the point where I would have started getting more money by waiting. In the mean while I'm enjoying retirement. 7 years in and we are yet to tap into our personal savings. The RV we purchased new when I retired is 6 1/2 years old now and I'm looking to up grade to a Class A Motorhome. We might have to dip into our savings to pull that off, but that decision can wait until spring. The bottom line is life is short and the older you get the shorter it gets so enjoy yourself and don't worry about how much money your are going to leave behind for your relatives to fight over.

The best explanation on you tube thank you

To me it's pretty simple, if you are working at 62 and NEED that job to survive then you take SSI at 66 or 67, or 70. If you don't need to work at 62 I would take it. NOBODY knows how long you will live

These are all bullshit what am I gonna do with the money when I’m age 70 almost ready to die I won’t probably even make it to 70 bullshit if you want to fool somebody don’t fall ass

3% COLA doesnt cover the devaluation of the dollar. Taking it early, you can invest, pay off debt. Might not be able to enjoy it later.

If you accumulate your social security benefits from the age of 62 to 70 years, that's a considerable amount. I'll take social security benefits at the age of 62. Take into consideration a life span. You'll never when you'll pass away.

62 start enjoying being old as soon as possible. Average age death is 78 for a male... nuff said.

I like my job, plan to keep working till 70, at which point I might as well tap into SS because it's not going to grow beyond that point.
But I saw a Dave Ramsey video where he argues for drawing SS at 62 and investing it in mutual funds, and that will grow faster than delaying SS. I don't see the math there; if my SS is growing 8% for each year I delay past 62, I don't see mutual funds or CDs keep up with that.
And if I keep working till 70, I can delay not just SS but also Medicare because I'd be on my employer's insurance. And I can keep contributing to my health savings account -- would need to stop that at age 69 years and 8 months to play it safe and avoid the Medicare HSA penalty.
The biggest factor: I'd be working till 70 and getting paid, which means I can afford to delay drawing SS. As for how long I will live: who knows?

Will be taking mine at age 70 as I draw on my 401k and savings. My glass is half full and not focused on dying early.

I am probably getting married again at age 65. My wife is not a US citizen. Just wondering if she would be eligible for benefits after I have passed on? Wondering what the set of rules is for that.
Thank you

I am 60 years old and I keep investing without having to worry about my retirement benefit because my future is secured. I have a guaranteed lifetime income on top of my SS that generates a steady stream of retirement income. At an early stage When I was investing by myself, I had great losses. For every stock that I bought, I was out of luck because I bought them when they were expensive. I feel I missed out on all the stock opportunities so far for the tech stocks until I met my financial advisor who helped me with a new investment plan. I started with a modest portfolio of $70,000, and within just a few months, it has skyrocketed to over $645,000! I have made an excessive return in the past years. Thanks to my financial advisor Jacqueline Kobinski. I will forever be grateful to her. Now I have a staggering amount in my portfolio. All I have to do now is live, travel, and enjoy the rest of my life.

I claimed at 62 because you cannot leave social security to your heirs. But what I would have spent without taking social security could be left to my heirs. I have never heard this aspect being considered. Thanks for all your guidance.

Hello Sir, thank you for sharing your expertise. Perhaps, you could make a video on my situation.
I took early retirement @ 62, because I married a younger lady, and we had a child when I was 58. So now I have a dependent, that my wife cares for. Therefor my child and my wife both get half of my full retirement amount. I am self employed, and filing jointly, so our earning limit is $34k or so after expenses, which works fine for us.
Question: My wife has taken a job, so would it be beneficial for us to file separate now, to raise our earnings amount to $2140.00 each? Or does the job even effect her SS benefits? Thank you for your time.

What happens if I weigh to age 70 and I die at age 69 and 11 months?

Why wait till 70 is that guarantee 🤔🤔

I read somewhere that if you collect before your FRA that your COLA will be reduced going forward as well, is that correct?

the system is set up so you die first and save the system money, they dont want you to collect!

It is not just the money. You receive your mental health as a bonus.

Easy to apply ? 😢 drive 3 hrs & Hope you'll get Interviewed . On line ? Shuffled thru Sponsored Sites & disconnects. Phone , 😢 .

One parent gone at 55; their parents, 69 and 73. Other parent is 84 and still kicking……well, slower than a few years ago; their parents, 84 and 94. Middle brother gone at 48; eldest still working at 63. When is my expiration date? No clue. So, at 62, I will take it a month at a time to see if the body can still hold up and, if not, then file. We worked hard and house is paid off, only one modest vehicle payment and CC paid off every month, live modest (yet for us, enjoyable) lifestyle, still adding to 401k and money market each month, so we feel we are financially in a good place. Social Security will be roughly 32-35% of our currently calculated monthly retirement cash flows.

Each dollar I take from social security is a dollar I don't have to withdraw from my retirement account, which can continue earning market returns. In my calculations, that stretches my break-even age to around 83; and 21 years of lower stress?

wish they would stop giving any SS funds to people with over $5 million dollars in total weath- also give a set SS monthly funds to everyone of $1,500-- this would help those on the bottom and rich don't need it-- also no government employees can retire before 70-

If you taking care of young dependents. Take it early

What is your opinion of the media talking of the SS Fund becoming insolvent in 2033 without a significant reduction in SS benefits?

Thank you Lane for many informative shows on SS money subject. I just watched the Wall Street Journal online live Q&A show about retirement today 8/15/23, when so many questions and worries about this subject came up. I am inclined to chime in to recommend your shows and website.
You are so sensible to state many times that SS is only a small part of financial planning for retirement. Moreover, IMHO retirement is about more than just money, and living well is even more important a subject for reflection than retirement and money. Hopefully this perspective would but SS worry in its proper small corner.

If you really want to determine if 62 or 70 is better you need to analyze all the data points not just the break even point. Survivor benefit for spouse if you are married, ACA credits if you are pre Medicare when you retire or if you are planning RTH conversions are just some of the other things that need to be considered. If you take the money and run at 62 it may be smart or it may be leaving hundreds of thousands on the table.

Which do you recommend?

Not waiting until FRA. Going to turn on at 65 with Medicare activation. My break even point is just around 81 years old by claiming 2 years early. Going to get it and spend it. If I live into my late 80s or longer, will I need or even be able to use the "extra" money I would get by waiting? That's a big NO.

First it was 55 then 62 then 67 and now talking 70 next 75 is it even going to be there?

Always take it at 62. You don’t know if you will make it to 70

I guess it’s how the video is cut.

You skip a step or two of small details that really matter. Why? Okay, next lesson. And there you go. You keep me going in circles. 😅

PS: The Social Security Report is a must! Sign-up and have it done, eye-opening.

Wonderful and informative video, as always!

You plan to touch on it in the future.
But, for a married couple, there are strong incentives for the high earner to delay well past 62. A split strategy should be considered where the low earner starts early and the high earner later depending on the couples income goals.

The highest check lives as long as any one member of the couple is alive. In other words the low earning spouse gets the high check if they outlive their partner.
This is most impactful when the low earner is also younger and healthy and female. Females substantially outlive males, and at least historically female members of a couple were younger and lower earning. That magnifies this strategy even more.

We are retired, wife took at 63, I’m waiting most likely to 70 for a $4000 payment. We have a reasonably sized portfolio and no debt.

Both sets of our parents took at 62, with limited portfolios. Part of it was circumstance, part poor decision. Widows still alive at 86, getting $1900 to $2100 per month. That is quite marginal income for a single person with no other resources. If the husbands had figured out a way to wait even a couple years to claim, they wouldn’t have signed up for 25 plus years of poverty.

Us kids have gladly helped them out, but I never figured when younger that “money to help mom pay the mortgage” would be a line item in my retirement budget!

I have read recently that only about 9% of people wait until 70 to start claiming SS. If we all knew how many years we are going to live, it might make the decision on when to claim easier.

My browsers are not allowing me to open your Social Security Analysis link. Says the website is harmful.

After running numerous scenarios until my head was spinning - If anyone has been debating if they should take SS at 62 or 70, I say just take it at your FRA. I've been running around trying to find what is best for me with spreadsheets and online tools, there is no clear answer. I'm taking the middle ground. I would be at my FRA on Jan. 2024 and stating SS then.

Question: 67 is my full retirement age. At age 64, If I retire 4 months into the year & my salary for those 4 months exceeds the earnings limit, can I still begin collecting SS starting in May or June, or do I have to wait until January of the following year to start collecting SS?

Great information…Thanks a million !!!

Great video! But what about the tax implications? Social security benefits are taxable if you make enough money, right? I'm sure mine will be taxable. I don't plan to make almost no money, just so I can keep my Social Security benefit.

I cant get SS until im 67. should i wait

Thank you exelaint video explaining the differences early retirement and full retirement

Thank You Lane!
You really helped me pinpoint a very crucial time factor by specifying the “break even point”.
Being 63 and feeling stress free is more important at this stage in my life, because I can enjoy retirement benefits now, travel with my current energy level and health, then doing so at the tired age of “79”.
The pivotal question that remains is what to do until I qualify for medicare insurance?

Very impactful, informative, and awesome graphics.

PIA actually means Pain in The Arse…..which is figuring this out. Financial advisors are all over the board on this. Some say collect as early as you can for a longer time versus waiting to get maximum benefits but collecting for a shorter period of time. If it all comes down to longevity, then we all need a crystal ball because no one knows how long they’ll live.