I will reach FRA in August 2017. My wife will reach it in May 2019. I am working full time and plan to continue to do so well past age 70 if I am able (i have no reason to think I will be not be able). We have some credit card debt that we are unable to pay off and are only able to pay minimum payments on at the moment. If I were to take my SS payments in August 2017 and then suspend them after 12-14 months, how would that affect my benefit at age 70? Thanks!

Hi,

Delayed retirement credits (DRC) are added for each month that you defer receiving payments between full retirement age (FRA) and age 70. The DRC credit amount is 2/3rds of 1% per month, or 8% per year, so if you don't take any payments between age 66 and 70, your age 70 rate will be 32% higher than your full retirement age rate.

If you instead draw some of your benefits between FRA and 70, you'll lose the DRCs you would otherwise have earned for those months. If you draw 12 months of benefits, you'll lose 8%, etcetera.

You may have better options such as having your wife file for her benefits so that you can file just for spousal benefits while letting your own benefit rate grow until age 70. Or, vice versa. You may want to strongly consider running the maximization software available on this website in order to explore your options and determine your best strategy.

Best, Jerry