More Women Than Men Make This Choice That Reduces Monthly Social Security Checks

Social Security checks can be started as soon as age 62, but this is considered early claiming. Under Social Security rules, all retirees have a full retirement age (FRA) based their birth year. It's between 66 and 67. If you claim earlier, you'll face a benefits reduction; if you wait to claim after it, benefits gradually increase until age 70. 

Starting benefits early results in a permanent reduction of your monthly checks, which could be a problem if you're heavily reliant on them in retirement. Still, it's popular to begin benefits before FRA, and most retirees claim well before age 70, when their checks would max out.

Not all retirees are equally likely to claim early, though. According to the Center for Retirement Research (CRR) at Boston College, women are more likely than men to start their benefits ahead of their FRA. And while there's sometimes a good reason for this, it often means they're forced to struggle with meager checks. 

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Source Fool.com