Social Security tells us that more than 70% of those claiming their benefits today are claiming them before their full retirement age. For some, claiming early is the right thing to do, but for others, it ends up being a huge mistake. There is no one-size-fits-all solution to claiming your Social Security benefits. From a practical standpoint, you will claim your Social Security benefits one time. As with any decision you make only once, you don’t have the luxury of practice. Therefore, the decision should be informed with all your questions answered before you file and elect your benefits.
The most important question is the one you should ask yourself: Do I have a retirement planning resource equipped to help me make the right decision with my Social Security benefits? If so, that resource should be able to advise you on when you should draw benefits in light of an overall retirement income plan. Which claiming strategy is right for me? Can I leverage a customized claiming strategy to generate greater lifetime benefits for me and my spouse, should my spouse survive me? Counterintuitively, will I receive more in lifetime benefits if I delay my decision past my full retirement date?