You didn’t ask me but I’ll kick in a couple cents anyway. Same thing I tell everyone. Unless you really, really, REALLY need the money don’t start drawing your social security early. The benefit will nearly double if you wait until (I think now) 70. When you get medicare-eligible pay it out of pocket until you max out the social security benefit. If you expect to be a long-liver you will appreciate the extra bucks down stream.
The social security phone lady will give you the straight dope on what the difference would be.
re payout SS later vs earlier
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This strategy assumes that the monies will be there later, vs earlier.
When I was working for the fed gov’t mid 90s, the HR department implored me and other fellows to invest in the gov’t equivalent of a 401K, because SS would not be there for me when I retired.
Under current rules you'll get 124% of the max if you wait til 70.
But, consider this.... If you start SS at 62 and get the max, by the time you are 70 you will have accumulated approximately $250,000. If you wait until you are 70, at 124% of the max SS payment, it will take you 10 years to catch up. That's before interest.
If you invest your money wisely at a modest 5% you would accumulate over $328,000 by the time you're 70 and it would take almost 20 years to catch up....
You'd have to live until you're 90 to break even.
Taxes not included...