I am a nurse working full time as of sept I will have 40 years @ uva medical center and I will be 67 in oct . can I collect my social security and is this a wise thing to do I am single.

Hi,

Yes, it sounds like you could start drawing your benefits now regardless of how much you are earning. However, it may be better for you to wait until age 70 in order to earn additional delayed retirement credits (DRC). DRCs increase your benefit rate by 2/3rds of 1% for each month that you don't draw your benefits between full retirement age and age 70 (https://www.ssa.gov/planners/retire/delayret.html).

So, if you wait until age 70 to start drawing your retirement benefits, your monthly rate will be 24% higher than if you start drawing at age 67. Waiting until age 70 may be the wiser choice because it would assure you of a higher monthly rate for as long as you live, which will hopefully be a very long time.

You may want to seriously consider using the maximization software available on this website in order to compare your options and decide which you feel is best.

Best, Jerry