{"id":43009,"date":"2025-06-15T09:33:05","date_gmt":"2025-06-15T09:33:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/isafespend.com\/?p=43009"},"modified":"2025-06-15T09:33:22","modified_gmt":"2025-06-15T09:33:22","slug":"should-i-start-taking-social-security-as-early-as-i-can","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/isafespend.com\/?p=43009","title":{"rendered":"Should I Start Taking Social Security As Early As I Can?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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As an American citizen who has earned wages, you\u2019re eligible to begin receiving Social Security benefits as early as age 62. However, if you delay your first payment, your monthly benefit will increase, reaching its maximum at age 70. Somewhere between 62 and 70 you\u2019ll reach your Full Retirement Age<\/em>, which is based on your birth year. FRA is important because the Social Security Administration typically bases your reported benefit amount based on that age. This is what the SSA calls Primary Insurance Amount<\/em>, or PIA. The PIA also determines the benefit your spouse could receive before or after your death.<\/p>\n

How Taking Social Security Early Or Late Affects Your Spouse<\/h3>\n

When considering taking Social Security early, you may want to think about how it might affect your spouse. A spouse may be eligible to receive up to 50% of your PIA, but only if they claim at their own FRA. If either of you claims early, the spousal benefit will be reduced accordingly. Also, spousal benefits are based on your PIA and do not include any delayed retirement credits you earn by waiting past your FRA.<\/p>\n

Survivor benefits work differently. If you claim early and pass away, your surviving spouse generally receives the reduced amount you were receiving. But if you delay benefits beyond your FRA, your survivor may receive up to 100% of your higher, delayed benefit \u2014 including any delayed retirement credits \u2014 subject to SSA rules pertaining to the surviving spouse.<\/p>\n

Longevity Is The Key Factor<\/h3>\n

A key consideration is longevity\u2014how long you expect to live. If you don\u2019t live long after claiming benefits you might receive less over your lifetime. Conversely, starting too early and living a long life could lock you into reduced payments for decades. So, what\u2019s the right move?<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s consider those born on September 1963, turn 62 this year after September 1st. Their FRA is 67. Starting benefits at 62 and one month\u2014the earliest allowed\u2014results in a 30% reduction from PIA. Waiting until 70 yields a 24% increase (8% per year). SSA\u2019s full table is here.<\/p>\n

If they claim at 62 and live to 78, they\u2019ll receive 16 years of benefits at 70% of PIA\u2014totaling 11.2 years\u2019 worth. Claiming at 67 yields 11 years at 100%, or 11 total. Waiting until age 70 gives eight years at 124%, or 9.9 total. In this case, starting at age 62 or 67 gives nearly the same outcome, while waiting until 70 means missing more than a full year of PIA.<\/p>\n

If they live to age 80, the differences narrow even more:<\/p>\n