183 Views   0 Comments   FINANCES

Pay Me Now? Or Pay Me Later? Making the Social Security Calculation

My instinct, whenever the government offers to send me a check, is to take it.  Immediately.  There is a suggestion, however, in the Social Security Statement sent to me that the more prudent person might wait until her full retirement age (currently 66) to begin collecting Social Security benefits.  It looks like she will receive an even larger check each month if she waits until she’s 70.  How are you to know what’s best for you? 

It turns out the Social Security Administration will make the calculations for you and, if you are married, for your spouse.  Simply log on to: http://www.sscalc.net/, provide your birth date and your spouse’s, and the monthly payments estimated in your latest Social Security Statements, should you begin receiving benefits at 62, 66, or 70.  The computer will then create charts specifically for you showing how much money (in both real and adjusted dollars) you might collect under each scenario up to age 100 (and all the points in between).

The gamble appears to be largely based on how long you can expect to live -- assuming you believe that Social Security benefits are sacrosanct and won’t be redistributed by a shift in public policy away from funding for the aged. 

What benefits will you choose, or have you chosen – and why?  Please share your calculations in the Comments below.