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There are good reasons to start Social Security at 62 or at age 70 or anywhere in between. One is that the money is needed as income. Another is to assure the maximum possible monthly income later in life, including survivor income. Both are valid based on individual needs. Less than 10% of America will wait until age 70 – generally out of necessity.
But when I read on Open Social Security:
“Recommended Strategy:
The strategy that maximizes the total dollars you can be expected to receive over your lifetime is as follows:”
I cringe.
Can anyone explain why being concerned with maximizing the total lifetime benefits received from Social Security matters in the slightest way?
How does anything other than maximizing your income when you feel you need it most matter?
I wonder how many people follow the Open Social Security advice without understanding what objective it is based on?
Pretty sure I stated this months ago on this topic:
Nobody, “A PRIORI”, can make a right or wrong decision, unless a) they have a crystal ball which tells them in advance how long they are going to live, or b) they have a known terminal illness at the first decision point, which is at age 62.
FWIW; For all of you chest thumpers who are so proud that you waited, or will wait until age 70 to claim, how would you feel, in retrospect, from the great beyond, if you kicked the bucket at age 72 ?
Mark, I believe age 70 was the best choice for me because I wanted to be certain my wife would have the highest possible survivor benefit should I croak first. My waiting until 70 also made it possible for my wife to retire and begin her SS at 64.
If I should outlive Chrissy, I guess I’ll be stuck with my maximum benefit for the rest of my life.
If we both get run over by the same bus tomorrow, I would have no regrets.
Having said all that, my waiting until 70 did not require me to burn through any assets. If it had, my choice may have been different.
For me, even without the benefit of a crystal ball, I made the right decision.
I’m absolutely fine with my decisions. Not only with my SS decisions but with my delayed retirement. I did cut it a bit close. I was given at best a 15% chance of survival in 2023, yet here I am. I say “decisions” because I decided to work longer, save more and travel more.
I decided that it would only be a “wrong” decision if I or my spouse were to run out of funds while in retirement. Being imperfect I expected to leave money on the table. I’m fine with that because I’ve done just about everything I wanted to do in life. I realized a few years ago that I’ll never make it to Mars.
Of course, there is always more to do and things to see, if I’m inclined to do so. There have been benefits. My spouse is on the other side of the country visiting her ailing parent, attending a school reunion, and getting some medical care. I’m glad we have the funds so she can do these things.
No regrets at all. Goal was to get best COLA benefit for my wife and I. My benefit is substantially larger than hers, so if I kick the bucket at 72, she will live on with my larger benefit. Generally the odds are good that one person in a marriage will live into 90s if alive at FRA with good health. If we both die in our 70s- well I guess we won’t be around to fret over it…