65 is no longer the full retirement age

People are living longer than they used to in the past, thus the period collecting Social Security is also longer. As a consequence, the Social Security Administration has made certain changes regarding the retirement age so that people born after 1937 will be able to collect their full retirement benefits only after they turn 65.

More than that, retirement savings must consider “housing expenses, utilities, lifestyle and healthcare costs, which many Americans just aren’t prepared for financially by the time they reach their retirement age,” says Danielle Roberts, a Medicare expert and co-founder of Boomer Benefits.

You don’t want to miss out on any money

You are allowed to collect your Social Security benefits starting with age 62 but are you sure you want to receive less than your full retirement benefit amount? 30 percent less, to be exact. Permanently.

Instead of leaving money on the table, you can wait until you reach your full retirement age (65 or 67) and receive the full amount. File for Social Security at 70 and you’ll get an even higher retirement amount. Depending on the year you were born, it can be as high as 8 percent per year.