Good day! I appreciate your knowledge of Social Security and helpful suggestions. I will be 62 and have filed for early Soc. Sec. My determined benefit rate is $955 a month at age 62. From 2004 to the present, I have 14 years with zero earnings. Rough going after 9/11 of 2001 terrorist attack, the 2nd Great Depression of 2008 to present, and the COVID-19 pandemic. I was born in 1960, my wife was born in 1964. We have no savings, no assets, no home as we rent, no property, no IRA, no annuity, no inheritance, and no 401K plan. I receive a military pension of $1,024 per month since the age of 60. Time of military service from 1978 to 2004 with 8 years being active duty and about 18 years as a reservist "aka weekend warrior". My wife is a preschool teacher or daycare provider and has roughly earned $30,000 in the last few years. Overall, she has worked more years than I with only a few years of zero earnings. My wife's social security benefits are unknown but expected to be slightly higher than mine. I do not know if she intends to file for early social security in 2026. Unfortunately, we are low-income individuals living from paycheck to paycheck. Since 2002, under New York State Managed Health Care Program and Family Health Plus giving thanks to former NY Governor Pataki, we have Fidelis Care via Medicaid for health insurance coverage for about 16 years for my family of 4. I have calculated the average male life expectancy in my family to be 77 based on both maternal and paternal heritage. I feel in my current health condition I may live to be 82 to 88. As for my wife, she could live from 78 to 92 but she does have high blood pressure for more than 16 years and is on prescribed medication. What I am asking is, was it in my best interest to have filed for early social security, or should I have waited until age 65? Financially, we have practically struggled most of our married life of 32 years with having maybe 4 or 5 years that we were not low income or near the poverty level. Thank you. I wish you and everyone the best in life. - Rich

Hi Rich. I can't give you a yes or no answer because no one can predict the future. What I can tell you for sure, though, is that if you start drawing your Social Security retirement benefits at age 62 you'll end up with your lowest possible monthly benefit rate. And, unless you subsequently become entitled to a higher survivor benefit, you'll be stuck with your own reduced benefit rate for life.

However, if you feel that it's financially imperative to start drawing your benefits now, then maybe you have no choice. But, if you do end up living well into your 80s you'll probably regret having started your benefits at age 62. You and your wife may want to consider using our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) to fully compare and analyze all of your various options so that you can determine the best overall strategy for maximizing your benefits.

Best, Jerry