[Leaning Right]

It will take 12 years (or 15 if you want to count from 62) before the normal benefits catches up to the extra 3 years.

How does inflation fit into those calculations? I'm told that social security is inflation-adjusted, but the government's inflation figures are usually artificially low.

So wouldn't inflation make it even longer to catch up?

[TennesseeProfessor]

You are correct that the government appears to be systematically under reporting inflation which makes any money you get early even more valuable.

I had not paid too much attention to the changing retirement age — obviously that makes it take correspondingly longer to catch up to the early cashout.