Tip #6: Evaluate Your Health and Family Longevity History
Numbers, spreadsheets, and financial calculations only tell half the story when it comes to determining your ideal claiming age. You must take an honest, highly objective look at your personal health profile and your family’s distinct history of longevity. Your body often dictates the most practical timeline for stepping away from the intense demands of full-time employment.
If you face ongoing chronic conditions, experience rapidly declining energy levels, or have a family history of shorter lifespans, claiming early provides the immediate resources you need to enjoy your most active years. You entirely deserve to use your hard-earned benefits to fund memorable vacations, engaging hobbies, and joyful family gatherings while you still have the physical stamina to participate fully.
Ignoring obvious health realities in the rigid pursuit of a larger future payout often leads to deeply regrettable missed opportunities. Your golden years should be defined by the quality of your experiences, not just the quantity of dollars in your bank account.
On the other hand, if your parents and grandparents lived vibrantly into their nineties, you face a significant, legitimate risk of outliving your personal investment portfolio. A long, active life requires a highly robust, inflation-protected income stream. In this scenario, delaying your claim acts as the ultimate longevity insurance—you essentially buy an annuity that pays out indefinitely, safeguarding your lifestyle against the financial drain of an extended, beautifully long retirement.
As a CPA for over 30 years, I have had numerous clients where we had to make this decision. The ONLY situations where the client was better off delaying taking the payment was where they were continuing working.
You read that correctly.
Because of the government’s policy of reducing the Social Security benefit, Under no other scenario did it turn out better to delay taking their Social Security benefits.
Why?
Tax rates rarely went down. Between investments, part time work, and other factors (like inflation and state rate hikes), taxes actually increased during the retirement.
As the article itself says, the breakeven point after investing the excess funds (a total of $84,000+) is between 78-82. The combined number for men and women just hit 79. If all of the benefits begin at the same time as the average person dies, it makes no sense to delay taking your Social Security. You should note that the Chart showing the breakeven point does not accurately reflect those facts.
Do I take social security next year in June when I turn 67. I am retired and not working?
I retired at 64 to take care of my wife that had just had neck fusions front and back. I knew I would make less than at full retirement age, but weighed the difference and decided that 64 was right for me. I was already a retired Marine and had just retired as a County Deputy. I’ve been retired 9 years now and am extremely happy I retired early. What I would have lost by not retiring until 70, would have taken decades to get back, IF I would have lived long enough.
ABSOLUTELY!@@
Good information
My husband retired at 65 due to being ill should we had signed up for ssi disability?
I do turn 67 in June. Thankfully my health has been improving due to some good and forced choices. The plan is to start receiving my money back from social security on my birthday and pay off all my high interest loans through a debt avalanche. That will take a year. Then pay down our house another 4 years plus invest so we have approximately 100,000 in the bank with all debt paid.