Social security is complicated. It's easy to make choices that don't maximize your benefits.

Have you had an in-person appointment at a SS office? There, they should be able to explain the specifics of the choices you have. Some of the techniques are not obvious and arise because of odd complexities in the rules.

I agree. I seem to recall reading where there are 88 different combinations for married couples to consider on when and how to draw SS.

I saw one and I ask about drawing SS at 62 or waiting until I was 65. It seems she couldn't say much about that, but she did say "do the math". I did and it would have taken me 10 years to get back the money I would have lost if I had waited. I did not regret making that choice.

Talked to another SS person ,heard the same . No.

Not giving up yet.

Wonder if vanguard would help me.

See linked article that explains how to do what you're suggesting, esp. Strategy #2. This isn't the whole story. The SS people won't tell you what to choose, but they should lay out all the options so that choice isn't hard to make. Some of the decision, too, is whether you need the money at the earlier choice points.

On the decision of taking less sooner or more later (as per what Emma was saying) , there's just one factor to consider - how long do you expect to live? I forget the exact number, but the break-even point is somewhere in the 75-79 age range. If you die sooner than that, it would have been better to start receiving SS at the earliest possible age. If you live to that point, it doesn't matter. If you live much longer (into your 80s-90s), waiting until 70 results in the largest benefit. But the differences aren't huge.

SS Strategies from Fidelity

Snidely, "But the differences aren't huge." Do you mean if one lives into 80s-90s, it does not make much difference between getting SS early vs waiting until 70? If my assumption is wrong, could you please expand more? Thank you.

Take a look at the article, it has a few good examples.

The thing to understand is that the alternatives are intended to be mostly actuarial equivalents, factoring in statistically expected lifetimes and the time value of money. If your facts "beat" the underlying assumptions (ie, you live longer), you get more. If less, you get less.

Just to spice up the conversation, if you took benefits early and invested wisely (but didn't spend) the amounts, you'd likely come out ahead vs delaying benefits to a later age. Because the rate of return numbers in the SS calcs are pretty low - so that's another way to "beat" the assumptions.

It's not supposed to be like a roulette wheel where you have to guess the outcome to win. Though, in a sense, that's how it works.

You'll see one example shows a $70K increase in lifetime benefits by following a certain strategy. Keep in mind that that difference arises over a > 20 year period. If you add a present value calculation to the difference, the difference is really much, much less. I do understand that for some, anything more can be important, even if it's not a whole lot more.

If he's not drawing benefits, you need to be full retirement age to draw on his benefits

This is a copy/paste from the Social Security Administration we site FAQs:

"Your spouse may be able to get benefits if he or she is at least age 62 and you are getting, or are eligible for, retirement or disability benefits. We also will pay benefits to your spouse at any age if there is a child in his or her care. The child must be under age 16 or disabled before age 22, and entitled to benefits. Your spouse also can qualify for Medicare at age 65."

Therefore, since Josephene is at least age 62, she can collect benefits based on her husband's SS as long as he is at least 62.

We are struggling also on when to start our ss too. I did just read that the higher earner should begin theirs later than the lower earner. There is just so much to it; at the moment we're kinda leaning along the lines of Emma. Both my DH parents passed early in their lives, I think the survivor only lived till 63. We also looked at what monies could be passed to heirs and hope to spend that later in life. However, thankfully, I'm scheduled to meet with a financial planner next week. The whole thing is so confusing.

The people at the Social Security office aren't permitted to give you advice, which is why the comment "do the math". As I said in the earlier post, the precise best decision requires you to know when you will die. Without the information, which of course no one has, your decision becomes a guess no matter what. There's no reason to struggle or agonize over it, it's a question you can't answer, so make a choice and move on.

See link attached for a well regarded social security calculator. You need to make some assumptions, but it will explain a strategy for your underlying circumstances.

Social Security Calculator

Thanks everyone.

My mother was 53 when she died, and my father died a month later at age 56. The only person who benefits from their social security is my younger sister, who is disabled. She is entitled to benefits based on our father's earnings.

As Snidely says, "do the math." Let's say you are about to turn 63, and your SS statement shows that if you start drawing benefits at age 63 you'll receive $1,969 per month, but if you wait until age 66 you will receive $2,505 per month. When should you start receiving benefits? Well, the difference between the two amounts is $536. A decent amount of money, right? If you start drawing benefits at age 63 you will have received $70,884 during the 36 months it will take for you to reach age 66. But if you wait until age 66 to start receiving benefits, you will need to be more than 77 years old before you will have received enough from social security to make up what you would have gotten if you had started receiving benefits at age 63. Are you going to live to age 77 or beyond? I certainly don't know.