The decision about when to start receiving Social Security benefits is, for many people, the single biggest factor in determining financial security in retirement.
Alicia Munnell and her team at the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College have produced a document that does a nice job of outlining the benefits and consequences of starting Social Security at 62 vs. waiting for full retirement age or even age 70 to maximize retirement income.
Social Security Claiming Guide (PDF) This link takes you to an interactive PDF file. It’s a large file. It will take several seconds to load. Where you see magnifying glasses on each page, hover over the icon with your cursor to zoom in on more details.
