In the U.S., you can retire with benefits any time after 62, but you can’t reap 100% of you benefits unless you wait until 67.
But waiting isn’t the worst thing in the world. Not just because you’ll only get 70% of your benefits if you retire before 67, but because a few other factors I’ll reveal to you today.
The decision to retire is a unique question to YOU. So let’s go through some things that’ll help you decide if you’re really ready for retirement…
Listen, I’m not writing this to blindly tell you that you must work for more years than you thought.
I simply want to open your eyes to opportunities and aspects of your unique situation that you may not have considered.
You’ve probably heard your whole life that you should be working to get to retirement as soon as you can, but you may not want to follow that plan.
Consider these few questions…
Do you enjoy your job?
I don’t blame you if you feel like you must stop working once you hit retirement age.
Virtually everyone has been brainwashed into thinking that because that’s the way it’s always been.
But what if you like your job? What if you’re happy getting up and going to work?
The first thing I want to say is that you DON’T have to retire as soon as you hit 67.
Or maybe you’d like to keep working, but a little less.
Many employers will be happy to cut your hours and keep you on, especially as an experienced member of their team.
Do you enjoy the social aspects of your life now?
Something many aspiring retirees don’t realize is that it can be a lonely transition into the world of retirement.
Consider how much of your social life stems from your job or your daily life, and what will disappear once you retire.
Do you have enough money saved?
The obvious part of this discussion is whether you need to save more before retiring or not. That will clearly weigh heavily on your decision to stay in the workforce or not.
But again, consider a partial retirement where you only work half days or 3 days a week if you still need to save up more money into retirement.
Measuring your options for delaying retirement should take some time.
But remember, if you can at least wait until age 67, you can maximize your social security payments, which is a significant difference over the “normal” retirement age of 65.
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