Tag: full retirement age
The option to claim Social Security early was introduced over 60 years ago, when Congress set 62 as the program’s “Earliest Age of Eligibility.” To keep lifetime benefits constant, on average, those claiming at 62 receive 20 percent less in monthly benefits than if they had claimed at 65. The option to claim between 65…
Abstract Most Americans enter retirement as married couples, and one spouse, typically the wife, outlives the other. Many widows lack the income needed to maintain the standard of living they had when their husbands were alive. Widows would generally have more adequate incomes if their husbands, who are typically the higher earner in the couple,…
