When would Joe Friday take Social Security?
By
DennisMiller
Dennis Miller is the author of “Retirement Reboot," a book chronicling his own journey to save his retirement in a low yield, turbulent investing environment. He works with some of the country’s top investment managers, authors and analysts to tackle the financial challenges faced by today’s retirees. Prior to retiring in 2008 Dennis ran a successful consulting business and authored several books on sales management. He was also a regular contributor to the American Management Association and an active international lecturer for 40 years. Dennis is featured regularly on several retirement blogs and is a frequent guest on radio shows throughout the country. You can track his exploits at Miller on the Money and on Twitter @DMonthemoney, or contact him at milleronthemoney@gmail.com.
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“Just the facts, ma’am,” as Dragnet’s Sgt. Joe Friday used to say. But when it comes to retirement planning, instead of “just” the facts, we should ask for "all” the facts.
Many stories have been written about the merits of waiting until age 70 to take Social Security; some here on MarketWatch. But a recent Bankrate article on the subject really got my goat when it featured a graphic with the following statistic: “Two-thirds of Americans take Social Security at age 62, giving up $180,000 if single, $323,000 if married.”
With those statistics in mind, holding off until age 70 can seem like a no-brainer. Let's take a closer look, though, with "all the facts" in plain sight.