@Colorado_mom - getting that book today!
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Worth every penny. I read it a couple of months before my dad died. I recommend it to everyone.
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I got my āgraduate degree by experienceā with skilled care and rehab during my work in last 4 1/2 years. Now to hopefully avoid both as patients for DH and myself in the future!
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Is anyone else having an awesome weekend trying to figure out this retirement thing? 
Can someone briefly remind me when itās advantageous for one spouse to take SS early? Whatās the thinking there?
You need a whole bottle of something good to go with thatā¦ 
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I think there are a lot of calculators etc online for comparison. But sometimes it is helpful to read about example scenarios. Hereās a few links to get you started -
https://www.fidelity.com/viewpoints/retirement/social-security-tips-for-couples
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Thank you! Iāll read those tonight.
my favorite is Open Social Security. Click the box on the upper middle to add additional info.
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I second Open Social Security. You plug in numbers (you & spouse should go to ssa.gov to get correct numbers), and the calculator gives you the optimal scenario.
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Thanks, yāall. I plugged in the numbers and seems as good a strategy as any ā¦ and means I wouldnāt have to deal with it for seven more years!
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H and I both started claiming our SS benefits when we retired this year (we are both 64). We went through this extensively with our financial advisor, so the advice was very specific to us.
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We actually were working on our retirement planning this weekend 
We made accounts with the SS Admin to check our estimated SS at ages 62 (early), 67 (on time), and 70 (delayed).
I had always vaguely thought weād delay since we have enough in other savings. But I started thinking, āWhat if I wait until 70 and die at age 71?ā Or even before 70? Then I would either get only 1 year or no years after paying into it all those years.
Maybe we should collect early or on time and either invest or spend it vs taking money out of our retirement and other accounts because then there are more in those accounts for my kids to inherit (they canāt inherit my SS).
Is my thinking at all logical?
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Iām right there with you. Iām certainly leaning towards taking SS at 62. I believe my break even point it 76/77 as to when taking it later would actually lead to more money in the long run. Obviously one can look at family history and make an educated guess and that should also play into these decisions. The reality though is any one of us could drop dead tomorrow, lifespan isnāt guaranteed.
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@RookieCollegeMom we always thought that we would delay too as we have plenty in savings/investments. Thatās why itās good to talk with an advisor who knows your entire financial picture.
@MarylandJOE - that occurred to us too. Also, if the laws change itās a lot harder to take away benefits someone is already receiving.
Again, this is different depending on everyoneās situation. One size does not fit all.
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Some financial advisors will advise to take SS as soon as you finish working if you have other investments all in place. Part of the reasoning is that you are draining retirement funds that can pass on to others, while dying w/o claiming the SS stream of income. It is a risk/reward scenario.
However I am taking SS at 65 starting on my birthday month ā I earned enough even with stopping out of paid employment for 18 years; the last 4 1/2 years brought me up to having enough earnings to supersede being on DHās, while we are delaying DHās SS to get close to his full retirement age, 66 and 4 months. He has extreme longevity in his family lines going back several generations - 4 or 5 recorded ā to live to age 87 in 1917 was a bit of a feat - the whole family survived small pox in a mud hut in the Dakotas; 4 great aunts born in early 1900ās lived to 101, 105, 106, and 107. Grandfather died at 96 (grandmother had rheumatic fever destroy heart valves and at the time valve replacement surgery was too rough as it was in early stages of surgical expertise and back then the heart/lung machine use due to length of surgical time); the other grandparents lived to 74 and 83. This is before the hyperlipidemia drugs, cardiac testing for stents and even bypass surgery. His parents lived to 92 w/o taking great care of themselves health wise between young adult and retirement, and then on correct medications but w/o proper exercise/activity. His mother and sisters (8 gals total) all had heart issues and still most all lived to be between 92 and 96 - one had a massive heart attack at age 79, and one died after a series of heart attacks at 89.
We have a spread of investment risks, so the gain after full SS is not a good move for us, but I donāt like the extra penalty of before full SS for DH (5/9 of 1% per month between age 62 and full SS) - it is too much of a yearly/lifetime loss.
One does have to consider the income stream and total picture. I like having a bit of income stream with my SS, and I think waiting as long as we can on making it to DHās full retirement (which for him is 66 and 4 months, like me, born in 1956).
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We have chosen to delay SS until 70. Itās our only guaranteed money (to the extent anything financial can ever be guaranteed ā¦ looking at you, megacorp that did a real job on the retirement program H and other long term employees thought they would have). If we live until weāre super old, itās going to be helpful. If we donāt, oh well. I would rather take the risk and be protected, just in case. However, we will revisit my SS between now (I turn 62 in a few months) and 70 ā¦ if things change and it makes sense to take mine early, weāll do that.
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My ex-H is one of my financial advisors (for my Roth account at highly regarded institution). Heās not my favorite person, but he has a handful of designations and seems to be good at his job. I had him on a Zoom call earlier this year with our son, an attorney whose undergrad majors were economics & math. Since I am single, Iām in a different boat than the married folks here would be. He has pretty much convinced me to utilize my other resources and let my Social Security sit until Iām 70 as he thinks there is nowhere else to park money and get a guaranteed growth of 8% after I reach FRA. S & D (and their spouses) are both making great money and will inherit from their dad & his mom. They donāt need anything from me. I said to him, what if I die before I draw after I have paid in all these years and his response was āyouāll be dead, you wonāt care.ā Iām pretty sure Iām going to follow his advice and pull resources from other buckets until age 70. He ran scenario of me drawing at FRA and me waiting and waiting was the better choice. Just sharing to say approach for a single person utilizes different logic.
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This. ^^ Iām 72 and DH is 70. We both waited until age 70 to start collecting. Guaranteed growth of 8% per year? Canāt beat it. In addition, when SS does its annual cost of living increase, itās X% on a higher amount than would otherwise be the case.
I too waited u tail 70, and Iām still working. I think my break even point is @82?
Iām single and will take mine at 62. SS doesnāt factor into my financial plans so Iād rather have a lesser amount than risk not collecting any at all. Iāve run the SSA calculator and it will still be a sizable amount with the penalty and early retirement (assuming SS is even still around).