·
(1) Retire before full social security retirement age,
with a reduced benefit.
·
(2) Retire with a full benefit at full social security
retirement age.
·
(3) Continue working past full social security retirement
age and earn additional benefits for each year of work until reaching age 70.
Although most people think of 65 as the “magic” age for
retirement—the age at which a worker can stop working and receive a full social
security benefit—this was true only if the worker reached age 65 before 2003.
If born in 1938 or later, a worker is not eligible to retire with full benefits
until he reaches the age indicated in the following table:
Full Social Security
Year of Birth Retirement Age
===========================================
1937 or earlier 65
1938 65 and 2 months
1939 65 and 4 months
1940 65 and 6 months
1941 65 and 8 months
1942 65 and 10 months
1943-1954 66
1955 66 and 2 months
1956 66 and 4 months
1957 66 and 6 months
1958 66 and 8 months
1959 66 and 10 months
1960 and after 67
Coordinating retirement
decisions with a spouse. The
decision of when to retire and start receiving social security benefits can be
more complicated for married couples. For example, a decision to retire and
take a reduced benefit at age 62 that may seem appropriate for a single
beneficiary may not be financially sound for a married beneficiary with
shortened life expectations, since this decision could serve as a cap on the
surviving spouse's payout.
When both spouses are eligible social security benefits,
financial advisors have suggested a variety of methods for maximize benefits
over their lifetimes, strategies that depend on their respective ages and
earnings records. For example, one strategy would be for a spouse with the
lower earnings record (usually the wife) to claim benefits at age 62 and for
the other spouse (usually the husband) to delay filing until almost 70. Another
strategy would be for the wife to file for her reduced benefit before age 66
and for the husband, at age 66, to file for just a spousal benefit based on his
wife's earnings. Then, at age 70, the husband files for full benefits (with the
delayed retirement credit) on his earnings history.
If you have any questions on this topic or would like to
discuss some planning strategies with me, please call. I look forward to hearing from you.
Click this link to view our YouTube video http://youtu.be/EYJdQtbPZAI
Amare
Berhie, Senior Tax Accountant
(651)
621-5777