Maximize your Social Security: When to choose survivor or retirement benefits

Americans who have met the minimum requirements can begin claiming retirement benefits when they’ve reached age 62. However, claiming before you reach full retirement age comes with the cost of permanently lower monthly amounts.

Full retirement age, which is currently 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later, is when you can claim 100% of the benefits you have coming to you from your years of contributions to the program. Although if you wait even longer to claim benefits, the Social Security will reward you with an 8% boost per year up to age 70.

But that is only when you are claiming on your own benefit record, and not if you are claiming spousal benefits or survivor benefits. Here’s a look.

Maximize your Social Security

Dr. Ed Weir, a former Social Security manager, shares advice and tips on social media based on the knowledge that he acquired over the years from his job at the SSA. In a recent post he covered when you want to claim survivor benefits over retirement benefits.

This isn’t a one-size-fits-all situation, but you definitely do not want to wait until you reach 70 to claim survivor benefits based on your spouse’s Social Security account. This is because their benefits will not increase for you after you reach full retirement. The same happens with spousal benefits.

Dr. Weir says that you should contact the SSA to find out exactly what the numbers are, specifically the Primary Insurance Amount (PIA) and the Monthly Benefit Amount (MBA) for your account and your deceased spouse to see which would be better for you to claim.

It may be more advantageous for you to claim survivor benefits and then switch over to your own benefits when you reach 70. “It depends on the options and whether you need the money,” he says. “Collect survivor benefits and then don’t touch yours. And then hopefully some time in the future… Your benefits will be higher on your own record.”

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