2023-09-30 02:44:29
For most Americans, Social Security income is, to varying degrees, an absolute necessity. In 22 years of annual surveys conducted by the national pollster Gallup, no less than 80% of retired respondents have stated that they rely on their Social Security check as a “major” or “minor” source of income.
Considering how vital America’s main retirement program has been since the first benefit check was distributed in January 1940, it’s important for future retirees to get as much as they can from Social Security. However, a popular age for claiming benefits (62, the youngest age at which retired workers can receive benefits) may be working against them.
Before delving into the details of the average Social Security benefit at age 62, as well as the pros and cons of an early claim, it’s important to first understand how your Social Security benefit is calculated.
Four factors are used to calculate your monthly Social Security check
When boiled down to the basics, there are four factors that directly affect payments for retired workers:
Work history Earnings history Full retirement age Claim age
The first two components, your work history and your income history, are linked. When the Social Security Administration (SSA) calculates your monthly retired worker benefit, it does so taking into account your 35 inflation-adjusted years of work with higher earnings. Not only will you want to earn as much as possible, up to the maximum taxable income limit, each year, but you will also want to work for a minimum of 35 years if you have any hope of maximizing what you will receive from the program.
The third factor, your full retirement age, is determined by your year of birth. Represents the age at which you are eligible to receive 100% of your retired worker benefit. All people born in 1960 or later have full retirement age of 67.
Some groups will see increases in their benefits they receive from the Social Security Administration by 2024 and others will not
What is the average Social Security benefit at age 62?
With a better understanding of how certain factors can affect what you’ll receive from Social Security, let’s take a closer look at what early filers (those who file at age 62) can expect.
As you can see in the table above, future retirees who receive their benefit at age 62 accept a permanent reduction of 30% each month. In turn, they gain access to their monthly payments years earlier than future retirees who chose to wait and allow their monthly benefit to grow. In 2022, almost a quarter of new applications from retired workers were filed at age 62.
According to SSA data, the 565,887 retired workers who were 62 years old and receiving a Social Security benefit in December 2022 took home $1,274.87 a month, or about $15,298 on an annualized basis.
Typically, there are two reasons why workers choose to get paid as soon as possible. The most logical of these reasons is your personal health. Since the goal should be to generate as much lifetime income as possible through Social Security, people with one or more chronic health conditions that have the potential to shorten life expectancy may benefit from receiving their payment early. Admittedly, this is a bit of a guess, as none of us know the final date of our demise. However, personal health tends to play a key role in a number of early claims.
#Heres #average #Social #Security #benefit #age