The 3 Best Reasons to Take Social Security at (or After) Full Retirement Age
There's probably no decision more important for senior citizens than when to take their Social Security payout. Even though Social Security is only designed to replace about 40% of the average worker's wages in retirement, statistics show that more than three out of five retirees today lean on the program for at least half of their monthly income. That makes your Social Security claiming decision all the more important.
As you may already know, Social Security dangles a pretty big carrot in front of eligible retirees if they're willing to be patient. For every year a worker holds off on taking their payout, their benefit can grow by up to 8%, beginning at age 62 and ending at age 70. However, statistics show that a majority of people (about 60%) claim their benefit before age 65, thereby accepting a permanent reduction to their monthly payout. In other words, with the full retirement age -- i.e., the age at which a worker is eligible to receive 100% of their monthly benefit, as determined by birth year -- being age 66, 67, or some figure in between, for most Americans, very few are receiving at least 100% of their monthly benefit.
However, receiving 100% of your monthly benefit may not actually be the best thing about waiting until (or after) your full retirement age to begin taking your Social Security payout. Rather, the following three reasons provide even greater motivation to wait before taking your benefit.
Source Fool.com
