# retiring and ssa



## corvairbob (Dec 9, 2014)

can someone tell me this. i'm 63 and can retire anytime but what i need to find out is can i stop work now and live off my 401 until 70 then retire for the max benefit?  for the little bit i now about retiring and what friends have told me is to retire and freeze it then start collecting my 401 based off what my merrill lynch advisor tells me about the 401 money then when i get 79 unfreeze the ssa account and draw that at that time along with the rest of my monies i have in the 401 an irs's.

so has anyone did this and are they correct in this plan.


----------



## QuickSilver (Dec 9, 2014)

I'm not sure why you just wouldn't start collecting your SS now..  that's seven years of payments..  that you would be collecting even though a smaller amount than waiting until you are 70.    The thing is... it's a gamble..  A person waiting until they are 70 can die at 69...  or 71.... So a person would be better off starting their benefits earlier.  Unless of course one is sure one is going to live far beyond 70.    You say you can live off your retirement savings.. so why not start your SS benefits and sock it away?


----------



## ronaldj (Dec 10, 2014)

I think I would collect the money (SS) and bank it until needed.....that is what I am doing....I figured out my ss if I waited I would "break even" as they call it at 78.....sounds good but don't think I will see that


----------



## corvairbob (Dec 11, 2014)

one reason is i make more working that retiring if i start collecting now i just have to pay it all back so why bother? i figure i can keep working and in 2 years retire and start collecting some of my 401k then at 70 take the higher rate. then i can pay myself back.  and if i die before at least i have money to live on.  after 70 i need the most money to live on. most of the people i know retired at 62 and then they had to go back to work. so they were making what 12 to 15 per hour and now they are making what 7 to 10 per hour, i can keep working and make 26 per hour. so why shoot myself in the foot so early.


----------



## QuickSilver (Dec 11, 2014)

I'm working full time and collecting my SS too!!   Socking it away until I do decide to retire But I'm 66 and I don't have an earning limit...


----------



## rkunsaw (Dec 12, 2014)

The increased amount of social security you get by waiting until age 70 assumes you are going to keep working until age 70. Social security pay is based on your 30 highest years of income. For most people the later years income is much higher than the early years. If you quit working now you are changing 7 years of higher income for 7 years of lower income so your SS pay at 70 probably wouldn't be much different than now. If you are going to quit working I suggest taking SS now.


----------



## corvairbob (Dec 12, 2014)

the way i understand that is now they take the 10 highest years not the complete lifetime. it was the last ten years until a few years ago. that is what my finance guy told me. he said they don't add zeros anymore just the ten best years. so if that is true then the last 3 or 5 will not matter. i will go online to ssa and ask them maybe they will tell me the straight answer


----------



## QuickSilver (Dec 12, 2014)

rkunsaw said:


> The increased amount of social security you get by waiting until age 70 assumes you are going to keep working until age 70. Social security pay is based on your 30 highest years of income. For most people the later years income is much higher than the early years. If you quit working now you are changing 7 years of higher income for 7 years of lower income so your SS pay at 70 probably wouldn't be much different than now. If you are going to quit working I suggest
> taking SS now.



That was my rational for starting my benefits now.  I know for sure (health permitting) that I will be working 2 more years.  I have no way of knowing how many years I will live beyond 68..   Hopefully, a good  many... but there are no guarantees.  So I'm taking my SS checks and enjoying the added income to my full time employment... and perhaps stashing some of it away.  Two years of benefits may well outweigh the additional dollar amount I would get by waiting.


----------

