I claimed social security before 70 partly due to my lack of faith in our lawmakers to address this issue until absolutely forced to at the end when all the options are more painful. I also looked at what happened to Medicare part B premiums in 2007 when they became income based (IRMAA), followed by part D premiums in 2011. They talk about the “break-even” point for claiming social security at 62 versus 70 being between ages 80 to 82 such that, if you live beyond that age, you’re generally better off if you wait. But what if, as part of the solution for a shortfall in revenue to support the program, your projected benefits are decreased if your retirement income exceeds some threshold? According to an AI search, if social security benefits were decreased by 20% at age 70 due to being a higher-income beneficiary, the breakeven point for waiting becomes age 89. Two years ago, I spent a couple of days entering different scenarios into an Excel spreadsheet and got a similar number for the breakeven point, so I decided to claim earlier than I had planned.
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I claimed social security before 70 partly due to my lack of faith in our lawmakers to address this issue until absolutely forced to at the end when all the options are more painful. I also looked at what happened to Medicare part B premiums in 2007 when they became income based (IRMAA), followed by part D premiums in 2011. They talk about the “break-even” point for claiming social security at 62 versus 70 being between ages 80 to 82 such that, if you live beyond that age, you’re generally better off if you wait. But what if, as part of the solution for a shortfall in revenue to support the program, your projected benefits are decreased if your retirement income exceeds some threshold? According to an AI search, if social security benefits were decreased by 20% at age 70 due to being a higher-income beneficiary, the breakeven point for waiting becomes age 89. Two years ago, I spent a couple of days entering different scenarios into an Excel spreadsheet and got a similar number for the breakeven point, so I decided to claim earlier than I had planned.
Post: Americans are rushing to collect Social Security. The reason is disturbing
Link to comment from September 13, 2026