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“It’s important to take an honest look at your plans for your retirement years. Many people lose out on income later by taking their Social Security as soon as they become eligible, at age 62."
Cherry Hill, NJ (PRWEB) January 23, 2014
Choosing the best time to file for one’s Social Security benefits can have long-lasting positive effects on seniors’ retirement, according to wealth planner Brent Meyer.
“It’s important to take an honest look at your plans for your retirement years,” Meyer reports. “Many people lose out on income later by taking their Social Security as soon as they become eligible, at age 62. But if you have the opportunity to wait until later to file for your Social Security, you’ll end up with a higher monthly income for the rest of your life.”
Based on calculations from the Social Security Administration, a 62-year-old single person earning $50,000 per year would receive an estimated $14,000 a year if he or she retired today. By waiting until after age 65, those earnings increase by 35 percent to $19,000. At age 70, Social Security benefits would be $25,000 a year, a 79 percent increase.
“Waiting isn’t right for everybody,” said Meyer, the founder of Safe Money Resource and safemoney.com, which offers tools for educating oneself on the best methods of planning for retirement. ”For people with serious health problems who don’t expect to have a long retirement, or for those dealing with the loss of a job, taking Social Security at 62 may be the right decision. But over all, the longer you can put it off, the more money you’ll earn.”
Meyer cites studies recently released by the University of California at Los Angeles and Duke University, which concluded that sub-optimal Social Security claims are often tied to misunderstandings about the fairness and risks of the Social Security system, and incorrect conclusions about longevity.
“Americans feel that Social Security is something they’ve earned and many are counting the days until they can take advantage of that income,” Meyer reported. “I like to think of Social Security as insurance that you’ll always have an income, no matter how long you live. This kind of thinking can help people understand that every year they wait to take their benefits will increase the amount of money they receive each month for the rest of their lives. Patience pays.”
The university studies looked at peoples’ mindsets and concluded that patient people are more willing to delay filing for their Social Security benefits. Also, people who expect to live longer tend to do a better job saving for retirement, by investing in the right annuities, which can be an important hedge against inflation and outliving their money.
“Education is the key to a comfortable retirement,” Meyer said. “I always recommend that people planning for retirement or currently retired avail themselves of all the information they can find before making decisions that could put their future income in jeopardy. That’s why I founded safemoney.com, as a free resource to help people make wise retirement-planning decisions from a non-biased perspective.”
Visit http://safemoney.com/hot-topics/maximize-my-social-security-benefits to receive your free Social Security Maximization Report, and find answers to the most-asked questions on claiming Social Security benefits from some of the top independent financial professionals in America.
ABOUT SAFE MONEY RESOURCE
Safe Money Resource is a much-needed resource for the Baby-Boomer generation of retirees and is comprised of independent agents who are defined by their integrity, knowledge and ethics. Safe Money Resource operates on the belief that education is empowerment.