Why Should I Delay My Social Security Retirement Payments?

Delaying Social Security retirement payments can be advantageous for several reasons:

1. Increased monthly benefits: For each year that you delay taking Social Security payments beyond your full retirement age, your benefit amount increases by about 8%. This means that if you wait until age 70, your monthly payments could be as much as 24-32% higher than if you had started receiving them at age 62.

2. Longer period of receiving benefits: If you delay taking Social Security payments, you will receive them over a longer period of time, which can help to ensure that your benefits last throughout your retirement years.

3. Increased lifespan protection: Delaying Social Security payments provides a hedge against outliving your savings. The longer you wait, the higher your monthly payments will be, which can help to provide a more stable income stream in your later years.

4. Increased benefits for your spouse: If you are married, delaying Social Security payments can also increase the benefits that your spouse will receive upon your death. This can provide extra security and peace of mind for both you and your spouse.

5. Better matching with other sources of retirement income: Delaying Social Security payments may allow you to better match the timing of your Social Security benefits with other sources of retirement income, such as pensions, investment income, and personal savings. This can help you to maximize the amount of income you receive from these sources and reduce the impact of taxes and other expenses.

Overall, delaying Social Security payments can provide a number of benefits and can be an effective strategy for maximizing your retirement income and protecting yourself against the risk of outliving your savings.