Social Security at 62?

[Browns fan]

Group,

Looking for opinions, pitfalls, Issues that you may or may not had with pulling the pin at 62 thanks all

 

[Grayfox]

I actually retired at 60. Went on SS at 62. No problems and no regrets.
Those that hang on to get a slightly bigger monthly payout never think about all the money they missed while waiting.

 

[DWalt]

Payments are reduced for anyone retiring earlier than full retirement age, Also if you are making any other earned income over a certain limit that also reduces your SS payment greatly.
It is easy enough to go to the SS website. They provide detailed information about every question there.

 

[mrchick]

I turn 62 this month and have the same questions. I’m going to lurk here and see what is said. Thanks for posting this.

 

[bdGreen]

I 'got' retired at 63.

Went on the gov. teat immediately.

Didn't 'need' the money. Just thought "why wait", it's my money.

Really. I would do it again. Great comfort in seeing that stipend every month.

Just do it and plan your life around it now. Not later.

bdGreen

 

[riverrat38]

"Didn't 'need' the money. Just thought "why wait", it's my money."

The only reason for waiting, if you are not working, is to get a higher amount later. About 30% more at 67 YO then 62 YO. About 6% for each year before full SS age. Some people who don't need the money take it early anyhow, thinking they can do better investing it. You really need to know how long you will live to do the calculations!

73,
Rick

 

[madmikeb]

I said I'd had enough of my job at 63. I did take a hit of somewhere in the neighborhood of $400 a month by taking it early, but I don't have any regrets whatsoever. I have a little money put away, I own my house and have no debt so I couldn't see spending two more years at a job that I didn't much care for.

This also freed me up for my move to Arizona which i have been planning for almost 20 years.

The worse thing is I can't get medicare until 65 so I do have to buy insurance.

 

[DWalt]

Much of the decision depends on how long you think you will live. The longer you wait to file, the higher the payment. But you may not live to collect it for very long. It helps the decision about when to file for SS if you already have adequate savings and/or other sources of unearned income, such as from a retirement plan and investment dividends, interest, and capital gains to pay the bills for the next 20 years. If you do not have such other income sources, it might be best to file as early as possible. If you do, then filing later might be the best approach. And then there is Medicare to consider from several angles. In my case, it was the right decision to wait until I reached the full SS retirement age to file. My wife decided to file somewhat before that because she was sick of her job and wanted to get out. Her job also had very good retirement benefits and that also helped her decision to retire early.

 

[Golddollar]

There is more than just the money in deciding whether or not to take early retirement, and that's your health. I retired at 63 1/2. I was commuting 90 miles round trip a day, and part of it was on the Baltimore Beltway. And it turned out I was developing coronary artery issues.

According to my brother, before I retired I was a wreck. The nurse practitioner who took over my case right before I retired later told me that when she met me she wasn't sure I was going to make it.

I received what I called an "unfavorable reassignment" at work, and that gave me the mental kick in the pants to consider retirement. I determined that I was killing myself for all of an extra $20 a month and filed the application for Social Security. I'm convinced taking early retirement saved my life.

 

[TX-Dennis]

Another consideration, if you are married, is the age of your wife and her lifelong earnings relative to yours. In many (if not most) couples the man has higher lifetime earnings than does the woman. This results in his ss payment being higher than hers. Upon the death of a married person, his or her spouse gets to collect the higher payment for the rest of her life.

So, if your wife is younger than you are, you'd be doing her a favor by waiting at least until full retirement age unless her check will likely be equal to or higher than yours. That's why I'm trying to hang on until 67.

There are also some like a coworker who is 69. I asked him if he was thinking of retiring soon. He said he can't because he has to pay child support for his 10 year old for another 8 years.

 

[DWalt]

Another consideration, if you are married, is the age of your wife and her lifelong earnings relative to yours. In many (if not most) couples the man has higher lifetime earnings than does the woman. This results in his ss payment being higher than hers. Upon the death of a married person, his or her spouse gets to collect the higher payment for the rest of her life.

So, if your wife is younger than you are, you'd be doing her a favor by waiting at least until full retirement age unless her check will likely be equal to or higher than yours. That's why I'm trying to hang on until 67.

There are also some like a coworker who is 69. I asked him if he was thinking of retiring soon. He said he can't because he has to pay child support for his 10 year old for another 8 years.

Your co-worker could collect additional SS benefits for his minor child until age 18. He may not know that. I have a retired friend who married a much younger woman and had kids relatively late in life and has two minor children (10 and 14) that he collects SS payments on. He continues to work, but through a fairly complicated arrangement, he is not collecting a paycheck, which if he did would reduce his SS payment. Basically, his pay goes into a sub-S corporate name, not his. Perfectly legal, he is an attorney and spent some time in working it out,

 

[Onomea]

Depends on how badly you need the money, in my opinion, and your health.

For me, full retirement was 66. But I also have a pension.

I took SS at 65 because I had just been diagnosed with terminal cancer, and thought I had only a couple of years at best. In the event, I survived. If I had known I was gonna be healthy, as I was, at 70, I would have waited until then to get max benefits.

A problem quite a lot of people have, if they are fortunate to live long enough, is they run low on, or out of, money. Assisted living and the like are very expensive. Something to bear in mind, I think.

 

[LVSteve]

There is more than just the money in deciding whether or not to take early retirement, and that's your health. I retired at 63 1/2. I was commuting 90 miles round trip a day, and part of it was on the Baltimore Beltway. And it turned out I was developing coronary artery issues.

According to my brother, before I retired I was a wreck. The nurse practitioner who took over my case right before I retired later told me that when she met me she wasn't sure I was going to make it.

I received what I called an "unfavorable reassignment" at work, and that gave me the mental kick in the pants to consider retirement. I determined that I was killing myself for all of an extra $20 a month and filed the application for Social Security. I'm convinced taking early retirement saved my life.

My father punched out of the UK Civil Service at 58 when the retirement age was 60. Six months later he ran into a coworker in the street, and the guy barely recognized him. "Wow, you look GREAT!". Dad just grinned and said, "Yeah, early retirement is the best thing I've ever done."

Sometimes you have to quit the job before the job has you quitting life.

 

[tops]

I quit work at 60 and started SS at 62. I figured I would need to live too 74 to break even and didn't expect too live that long. I'm 82 so I lost money. I spent the early SS money on an expensive shooting hobby that I really enjoyed but now I'm not physically able to do it so drawing my SS early was not good financially but I'm glad I did it. I'm now enjoying the memories more than I would the extra money. Larry

 

[Breakaway500]

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. I filed at 62 and kept working as I never plan on "retiring". Having that extra income paying my real estate taxes using "uncle Sams money" puts a smile on my face every day,

 

[jeffrefrig]

I turned 63 in March 2020 and April 1 was my first day of retirement. I've been in a union all my working life and I have two pensions, one of which pays health insurance for my part C, my wife, and my youngest daughter. I took SS when I retired, too. The way it works out between taking a lesser amount at 63 compared to full amount at 67 1/2. I think the difference was $4-500, and I won't actually be losing any money until I'm 78. Between 63 & 67 1/2, that would be 4 1/2 years of losing that 2 Gs a month, which really comes in handy. Luckily, both unions put money into annuity accounts. For some Tech School dummy like me it worked out real well. Everyone's situations are different, but to younger 20 somethings out there, I suggest planning retirement now. If it weren't for my union jobs, I would have nothing saved. ("Insane old guy" talking to young kids).
But for those planning retirement, get on the stick and grab a pencil & paper and do the goes-intas & goes-outtas and figure if you need SS now or if you can wait. Health and where you live have a factor on your lifespan. If you're able to wait for full SS, go for it. Most of us blue collar folks take it now; at least in my circles. I think that made a little sense. Good luck in your decision. Oh, yeah, if one can swing it, get a government job.

 

[biku324]

Best answer is, "It depends."

 

[326MOD10]

I haven't gotten to that point yet but am leaning toward taking it at 62. Have had a series of health issues, not to mention the genetics, that make me think I am not in it for the long haul.

Sad part is because of the Windfall Elimination Program I will lose up to 60% of my SS. This is a result of the LEO pension and not paying into SS full time for the years I worked at the PD. I did pay in for about 17 years before the PD and 14 or so working part time gigs while on PD, but that doesn't matter.

I plan to work at least part time while drawing because I can't sit still long enough to just do nothing. Tried it when I first retired and didn't care for it.

My life has been a series of bad financial moves and I have made it okay. Figure if I make another one I will adjust.

 

[NFrameFred]

Like bdGreen, I "got retired" at 61 & 1/2 from a company that bought out the outfit I eventually had worked for for 26 years - wasn't ready, but God provides. The 'joke' was on them as their already less than stellar reputation for professionalism and excellence suffered further when they "saved money" by shutting down my department. Took my SS at 62 and haven't looked back.


Seeing how one is not promised to live until lunch time, and in my family genetics seems to have decided the men in our clan don't make it to the eighties, I've never let it bother me; would have liked to work longer so the financial "plan" I had in place could have worked out better (wanna make God laugh ? Just tell Him your plans . . . ) but as I said, He didn't bring me this far to drop me by the side of the road so it's working out.



Only a fool wastes his substance, but a fool also fills his barns, sits back and says "now I'll take my ease, eat, drink and be merry" . . . then is surprised when he "wakes up" in the cemetery the next morning with a bunch of other surprised people . . .

 

[Pisgah]

When my friend and I were both 62, I opted to apply for my SS; he was adamant that waiting to 70 and your largest benefit was the way to go.

I have been collecting for 8 years and 8 months; he died one month after getting his first check...

Just sayin'.