# Social Security question
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security-question/427926
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [November 27, 2007, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security-question/427926 "2007-11-27T17:07:53Z")
**Posts on this page:** 13
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Buckwheat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buckwheat)
#### Post date: [November 27, 2007, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security-question/427926/1 "2007-11-27T17:07:53Z")
Can a working person who has paid in to Social Security all his working life, retire before the accepted SS retirement dates and postpone his SS benefits for a few years until he reaches that age?
---
### Author:  [@Gfactor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfactor)
#### Post date: [November 27, 2007, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security-question/427926/2 "2007-11-27T17:12:48Z")
> [@](#):
>
> You can get Social Security retirement benefits as early as age 62, but if you retire before your full retirement age, your benefits will be permanently reduced, based on your age. For example, if you retire at age 62, your benefit would be about 25 percent lower than what it would be if you waited until you reach full retirement age.
>
> Some people stop working before age 62. But if they do, the years with no earnings will probably mean a lower Social Security benefit when they retire.
[http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/10035.html#retirement](http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/10035.html#retirement)
---
### Author:  [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)
#### Post date: [November 27, 2007, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security-question/427926/3 "2007-11-27T17:13:35Z")
As far as I know, yes. You can choose to start Social Security payments at any time up to age 72. The longer you wait, the higher the payments will be when you start them.
---
### Author:  [@3acresandatruck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/3acresandatruck)
#### Post date: [November 27, 2007, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security-question/427926/4 "2007-11-27T17:57:23Z")
[QUOTE=Buckwheat]
Can a working person who has paid in to Social Security all his working life, retire before the accepted SS retirement dates and postpone his SS benefits for a few years until he reaches that age?
[/QUOTE]
Yes. I retired at 45. I’ll be eligible to receive Social Security at 62, with better benefits kicking in if I wait till 66 years 2 months, and even better if I wait till I’m 70. This comes from my January 2007 Social Security statement.
---
### Author:  [@Buckwheat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buckwheat)
#### Post date: [November 27, 2007, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security-question/427926/5 "2007-11-27T18:16:08Z")
Well, what I guess my point is, is will it in any way reduce my monthly benefits if say I quit working at age 60, but postpone my benefits until age 70?
In other words, can I go ten years without SS benefits after I quit working and still get the higher monthly amount if I wait until 70 or 72 before I start collecting them?
---
### Author:  [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)
#### Post date: [November 27, 2007, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security-question/427926/6 "2007-11-27T19:01:07Z")
[QUOTE=Buckwheat]
Well, what I guess my point is, is will it in any way reduce my monthly benefits if say I quit working at age 60, but postpone my benefits until age 70?
In other words, can I go ten years without SS benefits after I quit working and still get the higher monthly amount if I wait until 70 or 72 before I start collecting them?
[/QUOTE]
And the answer is yes. Social Security won’t force you to accept benefits. It would probably make sense to compute the return on the assets you would be using to support yourself until you choose Social Security, and compare that to the increased payment, remembering that the increase in benefits is forever and that you don’t get any of them if you die first. 🙂
---
### Author:  [@Buckwheat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buckwheat)
#### Post date: [November 27, 2007, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security-question/427926/7 "2007-11-27T20:07:25Z")
I SO suck at these sort of decisions!
It seems there is never an easy enough answer for my pea brain to understand!
Sheeesh!
But thank you all for trying to fight my ignorance, I really do appreciate it.
I love having the opportunity to run these things by you all.
---
### Author:  [@Doug\_Bowe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_Bowe)
#### Post date: [November 27, 2007, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security-question/427926/8 "2007-11-27T20:52:18Z")
[QUOTE=Buckwheat]
I SO suck at these sort of decisions!
It seems there is never an easy enough answer for my pea brain to understand!
Sheeesh!
But thank you all for trying to fight my ignorance, I really do appreciate it.
I love having the opportunity to run these things by you all.
[/QUOTE]
If it helps… the amount you get from SS is determined by your 35 best salaried years(up to $97,000).
If you had 35 years each over $97,000 then you’re maxed out on SS benefits.
---
### Author:  [@Buckwheat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buckwheat)
#### Post date: [November 27, 2007, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security-question/427926/9 "2007-11-27T21:24:24Z")
[QUOTE=Doug Bowe]
If it helps… the amount you get from SS is determined by your 35 best salaried years(up to $97,000).
If you had 35 years each over $97,000 then you’re maxed out on SS benefits.
[/QUOTE]
In my dreams!
---
### Author:  [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)
#### Post date: [November 27, 2007, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security-question/427926/10 "2007-11-27T22:43:14Z")
So the point is that they start paying when you file, not automatically at a given age or change in your employment status? So if you stop working (say, at 60), this doesn’t mean anything to the SSA–they just analyze your situation when you actually file (say, at 66)?
---
### Author:  [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)
#### Post date: [November 28, 2007, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security-question/427926/11 "2007-11-28T00:50:35Z")
[QUOTE=Doug Bowe]
If it helps… the amount you get from SS is determined by your 35 best salaried years(up to $97,000).
If you had 35 years each over $97,000 then you’re maxed out on SS benefits.
[/QUOTE]
So, if for those 35 years, I made $500k/yr, I STILL have to pay the SS taxes on the full amount, but I only get benefits for $97k?
Yeah, the rich get all of the breaks..
---
### Author:  [@Doug\_Bowe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doug_Bowe)
#### Post date: [November 28, 2007, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security-question/427926/12 "2007-11-28T01:02:22Z")
[QUOTE=jtgain]
So, if for those 35 years, I made $500k/yr, I STILL have to pay the SS taxes on the full amount, but I only get benefits for $97k?
Yeah, the rich get all of the breaks..
[/QUOTE]
Under current rules SS tax stops at $97,000. In other words, if you made $500k/yr you’d pay SS tax on the first $97,000 (the number used to be lower, it’s gone up through the years).
Everyone making more than $97,000 have one thing in common…they all pay the identical Social Security tax. And the ones that take it early at age 62 all get the maximum allowed–for those that take it at 62.
Those that wait until 70 will likewise all get identical SS checks.
IANaCPA but I host a 3 hour tax show on our PBS station every year with a bunch of CPA’s.
---
### Author:  [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)
#### Post date: [November 28, 2007, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/social-security-question/427926/13 "2007-11-28T01:41:16Z")
[QUOTE=Doug Bowe]
Under current rules SS tax stops at $97,000. In other words, if you made $500k/yr you’d pay SS tax on the first $97,000 (the number used to be lower, it’s gone up through the years).
Everyone making more than $97,000 have one thing in common…they all pay the identical Social Security tax. And the ones that take it early at age 62 all get the maximum allowed–for those that take it at 62.
Those that wait until 70 will likewise all get identical SS checks.
IANaCPA but I host a 3 hour tax show on our PBS station every year with a bunch of CPA’s.
[/QUOTE]
I was wrong. That’s good. If you don’t get the bennies from it, then you shouldn’t have to pay the extra taxes.