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DECISION TIME:

Written by: on October 10th, 2012 in News
Rated: Last update: Oct 19th 2012
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TAKE SOCIAL SECURITY SOONER OR LATER ?

As retirement looms and you start to think about Social Security, you may wonder at what age you should begin collecting benefits.

social security

You can receive reduced benefits as early as age 62. Another option is to wait until your full retirement age (age 65 to 67, depending on when you were born) to receive benefits. Or you may want to reap rewards of waiting awhile beyond that. Payments can increase from 5.5 per cent to 8 per cent for every year beyond full retirement age, until age 70.

Social Security benefits are set up so that  people who take payment early will receive a permanently reduced monthly payment and those who wait until after the full retirement age will receive larger sums. The system is designed so that, on average , participants will receive  about the same total benefits over their lifetime no matter when they begin collecting payouts. If you are unsure about the best decision for you, consider asking some of these questions. Your choice could hinge on a number of factors pertaining to your individual situation.

What is your family history? If your relatives lived to enjoy the golden years for far longer then their average life expectancies, you may want to consider this in your decision. In case you need the extra money later in life, especially if you outlive pensions or annuities,  it may be wise to delay payments for a few years.

Are you still working? The Social Security Administration  may penalize people who work while taking Social Security payments before the full retirement age. Be sure to evaluate your financial situation to determine if it is absolutely necessary to take benefits early.

How healthy are you? For those who are in poor health, or hood ave a family history of health problems, it may be a good idea to take benefits early. Receiving payments as soon as they are available could be more important than getting a larger payout.

Beyond Uncle Sam

The Social Security Administration includes a “break-even age” calculator on its website at  www.socialsecurity.gov  and other tools to help you determine which path is right for you.

No matter what age you begin collecting benefits, Social Security is not likely to be enough to support a comfortable retirement. That’s why it’s important to contribute as much as possible to an individual retirement account. If you are age 50 or older,  you can make catch-up contributions to help your IRA account grow  faster.

2 Responses to “DECISION TIME:”

  1. Fyra says:

    We should rely on ourselves and not social security. There is no such thing a SECURITY.

  2. R Giese says:

    If you look at the percentage of federal spending and compare it with social security and medicare. It’s ridiculous.

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