If you are 62 years old and you are in any of these cases, you should apply for Social Security
Here’s who should apply for Social Security if they’re 62-years-old.
Claiming Social Security at 62 is a highly popular strategy across the States as it allows those who qualify to receive the highest number of payments allowed.
However, this decision comes with a trade-off—monthly benefits are reduced by as much as 30%.
Despite this, if you’re 62, there are three key types of people who certainly should be filling out the forms...
If you cannot afford not to delay benefit payments
If you delay claiming Social Security, your retired-worker benefits will increase each month, beyond your full retirement age until you’re 70-years-old. It’s at this point that you qualify for your maximum benefit.
Waiting that long can indeed boost payments by up to 32% compared to claiming at your retirement age but it does requires postponing benefits for eight years, meaning it’s highly beneficial for those who can afford it. Others who lack financial support may have no choice but to claim Social Security early.
Elon Musk suggests he wants to cut “500 billion dollars” from programs like Social Security and Medicare, calling them “entitlements” pic.twitter.com/ZfcTajz4Zz
— FactPost (@factpostnews) February 20, 2025
People who have a short life expectancy
People with shorter life expectancies that delaying their Social Security are simply wasting the opportunity given to them by the State. While delaying benefits results in a larger lifetime benefit, it’s ultimately pointless if you don’t have long left to go on planet Earth.
If you have a terminal illness or a poor health history, it’s recommended that you apply before you retire or as early as 62. That will allow you to receive as many checks as possible while you can.
Here's the link to the SSA site with full information about which people at which ages are actually receiving Social Security benefits. DOGE "supergeniuses" apparently can't find public government websites. Edit the URL to see 20 years of data, to 2005. 5/https://t.co/of5IgiMTZA pic.twitter.com/LMzbM95W3k
— capitolhunters (@capitolhunters) February 18, 2025
You are the lower earning spouse
Working tactically, it can actually be beneficial for the lower-earning spouse in a couple to take their Social Security money when they turn 62, as it provides them with benefits they can use to supplement their income while the higher earner waits to become eligible for larger checks.
Once it’s time for the higher earner to get their money, the lower earner can then switch to a spousal benefit if it’s worth more than what they were previously receiving. What’s interesting is that the spousal benefit can be worth one-half of what the higher-earning partner qualifies for upon reaching retirement age.
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