It doesn’t matter if your salary is among the highest in the United States. Social Security retirement is something that everyone who has worked at least 10 years can apply for. If you have worked for many years you are sure to have paid a good amount of taxes. These taxes mean that in the future you may be eligible for a higher Social Security benefit. It is not illogical to think of this income as the main income for our retired life.
In this sense, after working so many years it is normal to claim Social Security. As the salary and the years worked have a direct influence on the monthly amount of the benefit, if we have earned a high salary we will have a high benefit. This is the case as long as we have worked all 35 years. Each year not worked under 35 years will add 0 to the Social Security average, which will cause it to drop considerably.
The best Social Security timing for High-Earning Seniors
It is true that there is no exact time to claim Social Security. The ideal time, for the sake of maximizing the benefit, is to apply for the retirement benefit at age 67. That way you’ll get the maximum, although there are other ways to stretch your retirement payout. If you can wait until age 67, you can apply for Full Retirement Age, which will give you a 30% higher benefit than if you apply at age 62.
But since you have to take all the details into account, you may prefer to retire earlier. If you apply for your Social Security benefit at age 62, you will not receive 100%, although if you have savings you should not mind this detail. With a good salary as a worker you have had the opportunity to save for retirement, so stopping working at 62 may be the best option.
What happens if I don’t apply for retirement?
Many people think that not applying for retirement is the best option in their lives. For some people, it’s mandatory because they have very low Social Security. But for other people, especially those who earn a high salary as a worker, not filing for retirement makes no sense. Every year after 70 without filing for retirement is a lost benefit year.
There is no advantage to claiming Social Security after age 70, so make sure you do your calculations right and work only the mandatory and necessary amount of time. If you apply for retirement at age 62, you can also continue to work a certain number of hours. The most important thing is to apply for retirement as soon as possible in order to make the most of your money and rest.