{"id":40843,"date":"2025-03-10T06:41:03","date_gmt":"2025-03-10T06:41:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/isafespend.com\/?p=40843"},"modified":"2025-03-10T06:41:04","modified_gmt":"2025-03-10T06:41:04","slug":"when-should-singles-file-for-social-security-thats-an-easy-one","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/isafespend.com\/?p=40843","title":{"rendered":"When Should Singles File For Social Security? That\u2019s An Easy One\u2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p>This article will focus on single individuals and when the best time is to file for Social Security benefits. Singles are defined as anyone who has never had a spouse, or someone who has had a spouse and was not married to that person for a least 10 years.<\/p>\n<p>Just about every article written about this topic centers around your age as the best time to file. Although age is important, it should only be one of the factors that you consider when determining when to file for Social Security benefits.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>\u201cFile early at 62, file later at full retirement age or wait until 70, which one is right for you?\u201d<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Every situation is different, so the right filing date is unique to you. What do you need to consider before filing for benefits? The considerations listed below will guide you in determining your filing date:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Cash Flow<\/strong> \u2013 Do you need the money now?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Working <\/strong>\u2013 Will you be working from age 62 to your full retirement age? If so, you will be subject to the annual earnings limitation of $23,400 in 2025.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Children<\/strong> \u2013 Do you have children from a previous marriage that are under 19?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Health<\/strong> \u2013 How is your current health and do you expect to live to 80?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Genes<\/strong> \u2013 Does longevity run in your family?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Taxes<\/strong> \u2013 Are you concerned about taxes and being pushed into a higher tax bracket?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Investments<\/strong> \u2013 How will your investment portfolio (investments in the stock market, IRAs, 401K) supplement your retirement cash flow and affect your claiming strategy?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Future<\/strong> \u2013 Even before the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiatives, the Social Security administration was expecting a 20-percent to 30-percent reduction in benefits between 2032 and 2034 if no changes are made to secure the necessary funding to continue benefits at current levels. Because of this, you should consider taking benefits earlier than you had projected.<\/p>\n<p>Singles have a different planning process as they do not have the added step of coordinating their Social Security benefits with a spouse. Also, to defer taking your benefit so your spouse will have a greater survivor benefit is not in the equation. For most singles, I\u2019ve always been a proponent of taking their benefit at their full retirement age, unless cash flow is needed sooner to support your existing lifestyle. The reason for waiting until full retirement age is that the annual earnings limitation goes away and the increase in lifetime benefits by waiting until 70 is only about 3-percent.<\/p>\n<p>The chart below shows your lifetime benefits using a life expectancy of 85 at different full retirement age levels. Bottom line, no matter what your full retirement age benefit is, waiting to collect benefits at 70 versus 67, will only produce an increase of lifetime benefits of approximately 3-percent.<\/p>\n<p>One final thought, if you file for benefits after your full retirement age you should consider requesting retroactive benefits. You may be able to receive up to six months of benefits up front.<\/p>\n<p>Determining your personal Social Security claiming strategy should consist of taking these variables into account. Remember, take the wrong benefit at the wrong time, it\u2019s always smaller and forever.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Read the full article <a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/tomhager\/2025\/03\/09\/when-should-singles-file-for-social-security-thats-an-easy-one\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" rel=\"nofollow\">here<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This article will focus on single individuals and when the best time is to file for Social Security benefits. Singles are defined as anyone who has never had a spouse, or someone who has had a spouse and was not married to that person for a least 10 years. Just about every article written about<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":40844,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[55],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-40843","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-retirement"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v20.12 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>When Should Singles File For Social Security? That\u2019s An Easy One\u2026 | iSafeSpend<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"This article will focus on single individuals and when the best time is to file for Social Security benefits. 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