Taking SS early (62)

[North of 60]

Another thing to remember as well is health span and life span can be (and are often) two completely different things...point being what is the goal of having a little more more money in ones 80s (or possibly 90s) if you can't physically enjoy it?

 

[JayRoot]

52 right now. When i(if) hit 62 I'm all in. I'f you do the math, time collecting equals waiting for the " right time " by a minimum amount. Time to me is way more valuable then a few extra dollars that you may not be able to enjoy. Life is to short. I feel I've missed to much already.

 

[Oldrook]

We buried my 68 year old cousin last week. He got about 12 months of retirement before the cancer hit. Retire as early as you can. Nothing is guaranteed in this life except death.

 

[ScottH]

Regardless of when we decide to take SS, thank goodness the WEP and GPO were repealed for those affected by it (me included).

+1

 

[Unknown]

I had a stroke at 61, from afib. I had no idea I had it till the stroke. I got lucky and my speech and muscles are fine, all my issues are neurological. Definitely will shorten my life. Anyway I retired soon after with a pension and started to collect SS at 62. My wife still works and carried the benifits till I turned 65 and went on Medicare. I don’t regret it one bit. I can tell you from experience you never know when life is going to throw you a curve ball. You could be here today and gone tomorrow. I fish and hunt every chance I get.

 

[tracker12]

When I quit working at 64 I started SS. At the time I was being penalized since I was pulling a Federal Government pension. It was a no brainer for me. The benefits to waiting would not kick in till I was 72. The SS fairness act passed last year took away the penalty and I am finally being compensated for the 19 years I paid into SS

 

[North of 60]

For sure, the WEP/GPO repeal is wonderful for those of us affected by it, and it is amazing that it took 40 years to fix it in D.C.

 

[DLSJR]

I turn 67 in 4 months, still work and plan to at least until I’m 70. I’ve got a great job I enjoy, it’s lucrative and I get unlimited time off to go hunting and everything else I want to do. I’m planning to start taking Social Security as soon as I turn 67. My question, if anyone knows since I haven’t yet looked into this; is whether I’ll be penalized if I’m taking Social Security at full retirement age and still working. My employment income is substantially higher than Social Security will be, but my SS will be enough to matter so I don’t want to wait beyond 67 unless it makes no sense to take it then. Anybody know?

 

[49ereric]

I turn 67 in 4 months, still work and plan to at least until I’m 70. I’ve got a great job I enjoy, it’s lucrative and I get unlimited time off to go hunting and everything else I want to do. I’m planning to start taking Social Security as soon as I turn 67. My question, if anyone knows since I haven’t yet looked into this; is whether I’ll be penalized if I’m taking Social Security at full retirement age and still working. My employment income is substantially higher than Social Security will be, but my SS will be enough to matter so I don’t want to wait beyond 67 unless it makes no sense to take it then. Anybody know?

If you are 67 and have reached your full retirement age, there is no limit to how much money you can earn from working, and your Social Security benefits will not be reduced. However, if you are under 67 for any part of the year and start receiving benefits, you must be aware of the annual earnings limit, which reduces your benefits until you reach your full retirement age.

Waiting until 70 gets you @24% higher benefit and if social security reform doesn’t happen then expect @25% cut by 2033 or 34.

 

[pacoalcracker]

Even if you earn an income and collect SS before full retirement age, any penalty you pay for earning above the limit is returned to you once you do reach full retirement age. However, it is paid back to you monthly over about a 13 year period. If I was DLS and my health was good, I would wait until 70 to grab that extra 24% as that increase carries over as a higher percentage benefit and higher % COLA every year until death or the wifes death as a survivor. That can mean many extra thousands of dollars.

 

[Colorado Cowboy]

I retired at 58 and started drawing my SS at 62. There are reasons for my early retirement. I got cancer when I was 53 and I was told I had a 10% chance of making it 5 years. When I was 58 and my cancer dr told me it looked I was one of the 10%. I told my wife, lets get the hell out of here and retire to our place in Colorado. I am 84 now and enjoying life.

Having odds like I had makes your decision process very different. I thought I had better set it up so my wife could be setup financially if I didn't make it. I was planning on working until I was 65. I loved my job, was making lots of money and totally enjoying life.

I receive a great retirement from the company I worked for and I didn't contribute anything out of my pocket for it. I also get medical coverage in addition to Medicare. I also am 50% disabled from my military service with medical there too. No financial worries at all as we live on around $100k a year. If I had it to do over, I wouldn't change a thing.