Social Security claiming strategies can be fraught with the many decisions one must make.
Do you claim your benefits early and suffer a lower lifetime payout, or do you wait in order to increase your monthly payout? Social Security claiming strategies matter!
Calling the Social Security office for guidance can prove to be a mistake as the employees are not trained to offer you advice based upon your unique situation. They will give you just general guidelines. You should visit the website (www.ssa.gov) so that you can review what benefits you are entitled to.
Social Security is one of the few sources of retirement income that is afforded a cost-of-living increase. What other sources of income comes with such a wonderful way to keep pace with inflation?
When do people claim Social Security?
The earliest a person can claim Social Security (other than disability) is age 62. However there will be a lifetime “haircut” of those benefits. Statistics indicate that only 10% of non-retired people are willing to wait until age 70 to receive the maximum benefits.
Forty percent of eligible Americans plan to take their benefits between the ages of 62 and 65, leaving them short of qualifying for their full retirement benefits at age 70.
Interestingly, a large percentage of Americans eligible for Social Security are aware that the longer one waits to claim, the more money she/he gets.
What are Americans fearful of?
Why don’t people wait to age 70 to claim their maximum benefit?
- 44% worried that Social Security may run out of money
- 36% said they needed the money immediately
- 34% said it is their money and they want their money now
- 13% said they were advised to take their money prior to age 70
Fear about the viability of Social Security has people walking away from money that could improve their quality of life. With less income coming from Social Security, Americans must close the gap with income sources of their own.
How will you provide for your retirement income?
How will Americans in retirement produce the income that they need in order to pay their bills? Aside from Social Security, they expect to use the following:
- Cash savings: 58%
- Workplace retirement plan: 53%
- Investment income outside of work: 40%
- Pension plans: 20%
- Rental income: 14%
- Annuities: 10%
- Cash value life insurance: 10%
- Reverse mortgage: 4%
The wrong decision can cost you a huge sum of money.
The claiming decisions regarding Social Security are not easy to understand and calculate. This is why at Retirement Solutions, we employ computer based programs to input your particular situation and let the program illustrate the numerous options available to you.
Choosing the most advantageous option could literally mean tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars more in income over the course of your life.
Should you wish to explore this subject, contact us and we can discuss your situation to determine whether we can assist you. You even have an option to start Social Security then stop it in order to increase your payout over your lifetime.
Retirement Solutions employs a software system that can offer you the most advantageous time and method of taking your Social Security benefits. If you would like to explore your Social Security options, click on the “Schedule a Consultation” tab in the upper right corner of this page. You talk, we listen.