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In retrospect, I'd say take SS at 66 or so. While the total outlay/income lines cross each other at age 80, as we age we tend to need more money, not less. Bills, medical stuff, stray cats to feed, you name it.
That's my two cents, and worth every penny I can assure you!
the lines only cross at 80 if you additional factors , like no spousal adders to the lower earners check while delaying , spending down invested assets or money that could be invested if you delay , medicare premiums are uncapped while delaying , .
those factors can add quite a few more years , like 4 to 5 more years pushing it to 84-85.
And that's an important issue that many or some here refuse to recognize. It's not about taking SS at 62 so you can have fun as someone accused me of wanting to do. It's about not being able to physically do your job anymore because your job is a physically demanding one unless you want to retire a broken person with permanent injuries at 65, 67 or 70. I planned to take SS at 62 knowing full well I wasn't going to travel or buy an expensive new car. I won't be having fun with that money. I'll be able to live a relatively normal life with that money.
part of a retirement plan should be to morph as you age in to other segments of your industry that allow you to work smarter and not harder .
many electricians i know who were wire and pipe slinger's morphed in to drives and plc programming or data and networking . some branched out in to sales doing what i did working for an electrical distributor .
a plan should assume if your job is physical that one day you can't do it .
i hated being an hvac tech , everything was physical and heavy... no way could i have done that bull work very long so i morphed out early on in to less physical demanding segments .
And that's an important issue that many or some here refuse to recognize. It's not about taking SS at 62 so you can have fun as someone accused me of wanting to do. It's about not being able to physically do your job anymore because your job is a physically demanding one unless you want to retire a broken person with permanent injuries at 65, 67 or 70. I planned to take SS at 62 knowing full well I wasn't going to travel or buy an expensive new car. I won't be having fun with that money. I'll be able to live a relatively normal life with that money.
When I was on my way home from work yesterday I stopped at the dollar store to pick up some cat litter. While I was doing this I overheard two women talking and both I estimate were in early 80s but were surprisingly pretty young looking. They were talking about the upcoming SS COLA and how the increase would have very little impact on improving their lives. One woman went on to tell the other that she has been a widow now for nearly 20 years and out of the workforce for about the same time, and she never imagined as the years progressed how difficult it would be for her to make ends meet and this was the reason she was in the dollar store putting in an application to get some part time work. This woman was not seeking employment in her early 80s to buy a new car or travel, that money was needed for basic needs so she could continue to live a "normal life."
I understand your job is physically demanding which is prompting you to retire so your health will not be impacted by continuing to do this type of work, but before you throw in the towel do consider what would be more difficult working a few more years in your current job or having to try to return to the work force in your 70s or 80s because you need that additional income to make ends meet. "And that's an important issue that many or some here refuse to recognize."
When I was on my way home from work yesterday I stopped at the dollar store to pick up some cat litter. While I was doing this I overheard two women talking and both I estimate were in early 80s but were surprisingly pretty young looking. They were talking about the upcoming SS COLA and how the increase would have very little impact on improving their lives. One woman went on to tell the other that she has been a widow now for nearly 20 years and out of the workforce for about the same time, and she never imagined as the years progressed how difficult it would be for her to make ends meet and this was the reason she was in the dollar store putting in an application to get some part time work. This woman was not seeking employment in her early 80s to buy a new car or travel, that money was needed for basic needs so she could continue to live a "normal life."
I understand your job is physically demanding which is prompting you to retire so your health will not be impacted by continuing to do this type of work, but before you throw in the towel do consider what would be more difficult working a few more years in your current job or having to try to return to the work force in your 70s or 80s because you need that additional income to make ends meet. "And that's an important issue that many or some here refuse to recognize."
I am thankful for this forum as I now realize I am going to work until at least FRA to get more dollars from social security and save more money for retirement. When I retire, if I go back to work part-time it will be out of wanting to not needing to.
It is easy to get caught up with wanting to get out of the workforce as soon as possible but not looking at the big picture and long-term. I am 57 and 10 more years seems like a long time to work but I have to stay focused and stay the course.
part of a retirement plan should be to morph as you age in to other segments of your industry that allow you to work smarter and not harder .
many electricians i know who were wire and pipe slinger's morphed in to drives and plc programming or data and networking . some branched out in to sales doing what i did working for an electrical distributor .
a plan should assume if your job is physical that one day you can't do it .
i hated being an hvac tech , everything was physical and heavy... no way could i have done that bull work very long so i morphed out early on in to less physical demanding segments .
^^^ This
Evolve and adapt. As you go through life, your world will change. You need to adapt to that change.
It's a very simple concept that I've taught my children. You need to be constantly improving your skills and be willing to move for better opportunities. If you want to keep working as you age you need to adapt your skills to be able to do a job that has few physical requirements.
part of a retirement plan should be to morph as you age in to other segments of your industry that allow you to work smarter and not harder .
many electricians i know who were wire and pipe slinger's morphed in to drives and plc programming or data and networking . some branched out in to sales doing what i did working for an electrical distributor .
a plan should assume if your job is physical that one day you can't do it .
i hated being an hvac tech , everything was physical and heavy... no way could i have done that bull work very long so i morphed out early on in to less physical demanding segments .
When I hit the 20 year mark of my now 40 year nursing career, I knew as many of my colleagues did that we could not do physically demanding ER work for another 20+ years. Most if not all of us to "morph" into a less physically demanding nursing job had to sacrifice time and $$ to get advanced degrees and certifications to qualify for those jobs.
To improve one's work life more often than not comes at a cost of time along with $$. I work with a boat load of CNAs who B & M till the cows come home about their physically demanding low wage jobs, and even with Uncle Sam who we work for willing to pay for most if not all the costs for them to go to college and get their R.N.s and provide them an R.N. job after they get their licenses they have every excuse in the book not to take advantage of this opportunity. Most will continue in their CNA jobs for the next 20 years and will retire if they are lucky with a $12,000/year FERS pension. But had they chosen to get their R.N.s their pension would be more like $30,000+ along with a FRA SS amount of the same or higher.
my dad used to say give him a lazy man any day . the lazy man will find the shortest most efficient way to do something .
well i always knew i needed to be successful but i spent a lifetime taking my basic skills and in the easiest way i could , leveraging them to where they could get the most bang and bank for the buck--i am that lazy guy.
i earned the name mr short cut at work . i would break all the rules for doing something in to the shortest most direct way . they thought i was just being efficient , but it was really being lazy
my dad used to say give him a lazy man any day . the lazy man will find the shortest most efficient way to do something .
well i always knew i needed to be successful but i spent a lifetime taking my basic skills and in the easiest way i could , leveraging them to where they could get the most bang and bank for the buck--i am that lazy guy.
i earned the name mr short cut at work . i would break all the rules for doing something in to the shortest most direct way . they thought i was just being efficient , but it was really being lazy
Then again I have come across some lazy people that didn't want to do anything much less the shortest most efficient way.
All those bits of advice stating that it's better to wait, is for people who are still working. For people who are not working or getting income from somewhere else, it is better to take it as early as possible, because you would have to use your own money for living expenses. Which means you'd lose that money, and the growth from it. When you get SS earlier, you save your retirement money, which can then grow and become worth more over time. SS does not increase some years, and when it does, it increases only COL factor. Your investments should grow more than that.
Also, when you are still working, you may have to pay taxes on some of your SS.
I started getting it this year at 64. I wanted to get it before then, since I was retired, but if I had, I would have had to pay full price for health insurance. So not getting SS two years earlier was more financially beneficial than getting SS two years earlier.
I think in real life people do morph into different jobs or careers. The argument that their bodies give out at 62 keeps popping up as a straw example. Maybe these guys just want to quit at 62.
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