One more year and I'll be a Free Man!

[brin]

I have been thinking this for some time now. Every single time you read or see an article on retirement -and they are all over the Internet and magazines and television - the advice is inevitably "don't retire at 62! You can collect more money per month by waiting until you are 65". This mantra is so pervasive, I've stopped watching or reading any article that talks about retirement. I'm sick of them. Why is getting a few extra dollars per month so much more important than mental health and enjoyment of your last few years here on earth? You look forward to your Golden Years for such a long time and at every turn there's someone advising you to wait, usually those who haven't been working as long as you have.

I need to get my brain and body restored to a healthier condition much more than I need a few extra dollars. 62 it is. 5 months and counting. I don't care what AARP recommends, I do not need to live high on the hog after I retire in fact, I would say that material things naturally become much less important at this stage of life, so the BMW goes and the Corolla stays because image is no longer a concern.

I totally agree with you and I think it is a propaganda campaign to try and convince folks to wait to retire so as not to put a strain on the Social Security System...maybe they figure enough of us will die waiting to get more money and then die before we get any...just a thought...

Take what you can now and enjoy yourself while you can...

 

[jonyyuma]

I totally agree with you and I think it is a propaganda campaign to try and convince folks to wait to retire so as not to put a strain on the Social Security System...maybe they figure enough of us will die waiting to get more money and then die before we get any...just a thought...

Take what you can now and enjoy yourself while you can...

Okay, now this has crossed my mind. It is not fun to come in to work much any more. We are being replaced by the youngers here now..I feel like it is still to my advantage to wait to 65.. My Bh is 3 years my junior, it just gives us more time and money to build another better home that is energy effecient. If my health breaks then all bets are off.. But most my folks live to be at least 75?

 

[300UGUY]

Okay, now this has crossed my mind. It is not fun to come in to work much any more. We are being replaced by the youngers here now..I feel like it is still to my advantage to wait to 65.. My Bh is 3 years my junior, it just gives us more time and money to build another better home that is energy effecient. If my health breaks then all bets are off.. But most my folks live to be at least 75?

My next door neighbor was a electrician, never smoked or drank, was very careful of his health. His parents both lived into their 80's. He planned on retiring @62. At 61 he got cancer, went ahead and retired, went into remission, but it came back a year later @63. Another guy I know stroked out 56. I retired before my health got any worse. I sure didn'y want to wait until I couldn't work anymore. One guy I worked with worked until he was 75. He retired in May, died in July. Some retirement. You never know when your time is up.

 

[jonyyuma]

That is Exactly right,,You just never know, Cancer killed my Mother at 57, my father enjoyed smoking and drinking and lived until 75. Life would be ruined if you knew how many days you had left, but I never want to be a burden on my children. So we will have money past 90 if SS keeps its word?

 

[JDgreen227]

Food for thought. Many people retire and draw their Social Security checks at 62. Often this is a mistake, because for every year you delay, your benefits increase about 8% plus an inflation adjustment to the pay on which your benefits are calculated. But if you take the SS right away, raises are just the cost of living increase, which has been zero the last 2 years, but is more typically around 2-3%. So would you prefer an 8% raise for a few years or a 2-3% raise?

So for people who can get by without drawing SS at 62 and have no reason to suspect they will croak at an early age, it's generally better to delay.

Respectfully disagree about collecting SS at age 62. According to the info SS has been sending me for last ten years, if I begin drawing at age 62, my benefit per month will be about $1272 per month. If I wait until my full retirement age of 66, my benefit will be $1687 per month. By collecting at age 62, I will be able to draw $61056 in benefits over four years. The difference between $1687 and $1272 is $415 per month. Divide $61056 by $415, and you realize it will take me ONE HUNDRED FORTY SEVEN MONTHS, or over TWELVE YEARS, to recoup what benefits I would lose by waiting four years. I would be 78 years old by the time I broke even by waiting until age 66.

Sorry, but EVERYONE I know currently is, or plans to begin drawing SS at age 62. NOBODY plans to wait any longer than they have to.

 

[JDgreen227]

I totally agree with you and I think it is a propaganda campaign to try and convince folks to wait to retire so as not to put a strain on the Social Security System...maybe they figure enough of us will die waiting to get more money and then die before we get any...just a thought...

Take what you can now and enjoy yourself while you can...

AGREE 100%....!!!! :thumbsup:

 

[GPintheMitten]

As long as we have moved to the ss discussion, I'll weigh in. I personnally think everyone has to consider their own situation. For some people it will make sense to wait and for others, not.

And remember, retirement and drawing ss, doesn't always coincide.

I was fortunate enough to retire early @ 55. I'll start drawing ss next year when I'm 62. It will be a nice "raise", as I haven't had one in 6 years.

My sisters won't have medical coverage if they retire early so they are going to work until 65 so they can get Medicare.

To each their own.

 

[CJBOTA]

When I started this thread I really hadn't decided about when I would start collecting SS. Your responses have made me stop and think seriously about this decision. I will probably start collecting at 62-1/2. Although I am in fairly decent health now, most of the men in my family have died before 70. I feel like I have slowed down alot more in the past couple years then the previous 10 years. I feel lucky because I have a few options. Besides my farm I might even work a part time job in the winter months. (as long as it is low stress) Plus, I have put together a decent nest egg.
Again, I want to thank everyone for your sincere support. I really didn't expect this much response. You TBN'ers are a special bunch. Yep, 62-1/2 sounds good to me!
cj

 

[MotorSeven]

Wow, I retired at 49.....wouldn't change a thing!

 

[phiferpharm]

I did retirement #1 in September 2010. It was from the military and since I had a total of 39 years in the Active and National Guard, I get 50% pay, which is pretty nice. I did that a year + later than 60- they asked me to wait until my replacement was trained and promoted.

I could have retired from the school board in June, but I agreed to stay on to finish a project my brother had been doing for them. Sadly, he got very ill in the beginning of last year and passed away July 5th. I hope to finish the project by the end of Christmas break, but in approximately 50 days, 11 hours, and 55 minutes, while the rest of the County "Races to the Top", I'll be racing to the exit for the last time no matter what.

I'll wait until I turn 63 in June to get SS, but don't see any reason to wait beyond then. Keeping busy won't be the problem. Hiding from Grandma may be more of an issue :thumbsup: