Your Social Security decision is about more than choosing an age. It’s about building a retirement income strategy that works for you.

If you’ve spent years saving for retirement, you probably have a good idea of when you want to retire. But there’s another important question that can be much harder to answer.

When should you start taking Social Security?

You may have heard someone say, “Take it as soon as you can.” Someone else may tell you to wait until 70 before taking any Social Security. If you’ve watched enough financial commercials, you’ve probably heard both arguments. So which one is right?

The answer is simple: it depends.

There isn’t one universal age that makes sense for everyone. Your Social Security decision should be considered alongside your other sources of retirement income, your investments, your pension, your family’s situation, and your overall retirement goals.

Social Security Isn’t Just About “When” To Take It

Social Security can generally begin as early as age 62, but claiming before your full retirement age means accepting a reduced benefit. On the other hand, delaying benefits can increase the amount you receive, with benefits continuing to grow if you wait beyond full retirement age, up to age 70.

For some retirees, Social Security may represent a significant portion of their retirement income. For some people, Social Security may provide the majority of their retirement income. For others, it may represent a much smaller portion, depending on their pensions, retirement savings, investments, and other sources of income. These two retirees may have very different reasons for claiming benefits early or waiting to claim social security benefits.

Your Other Retirement Income Matters

Before deciding when to claim Social Security, consider what other income sources you have available.

Do you have:

• A pension?
• A 401(k) or other retirement accounts?
• Investment income?
• Other sources of guaranteed or recurring income?
• A spouse whose retirement benefits may be affected by your decision?

These pieces can work together to create a retirement income strategy.

For example, someone with substantial retirement savings may have more flexibility to delay Social Security while drawing from other assets. Someone with fewer resources outside of Social Security may have a very different set of options.

Sometimes, delaying Social Security can allow you to use other resources first. In other situations, claiming Social Security earlier may allow you to reduce withdrawals from your retirement accounts.

The goal isn’t simply to maximize your Social Security check. The goal is to create a retirement income strategy that works over the course of your retirement.

Don’t Forget Your Spouse

Social Security decisions can become even more complicated for married couples.

If one spouse spent years outside the workforce raising children or caring for the family, the timing of benefits may affect more than one person’s retirement income. That means Social Security shouldn’t necessarily be viewed as an individual decision. It can be a household decision.

Looking at both spouses’ benefits, other retirement income, life expectancy considerations, and available assets can help you determine how Social Security fits into the bigger picture.

What About Market Volatility?

Social Security isn’t the only retirement decision that requires a personalized strategy. Market volatility can create another challenge for people approaching or living in retirement.

Market corrections are a normal part of investing. The challenge is making sure a significant downturn doesn’t derail your retirement income plan. During volatile markets, it’s easy to feel like you should do something.

But making major financial decisions based on fear or short-term market movements can create problems of its own. Instead, it’s important of building portfolios with balance and considering investments that don’t all respond to market conditions in exactly the same way. The goal is to reduce the impact of extreme ups and downs rather than trying to eliminate market risk entirely.

And that’s an important distinction. You can’t control the market. But you can control how prepared your retirement plan is for market volatility.

Think of Retirement as a Puzzle

Social Security is one piece. Your investments are another. Your pension, taxes, spending, healthcare costs, estate plan and other sources of income may all be additional pieces of the puzzle.

The challenge is putting them together in a way that makes sense for your life. That’s why a Social Security decision shouldn’t happen in isolation.

Instead of asking:

“What age should everyone take Social Security?”

A better question is:

“When does it make the most sense for me to start Social Security based on my entire retirement plan?”

Built A Plan Around Your Life

Retirement planning isn’t about finding one magic number. It’s about understanding how your different financial decisions interact. Because retirement isn’t one decision. It’s a series of decisions that work together.

A retirement strategy should give you more than numbers on a statement. It should give you confidence in how you’re going to turn your savings into income and navigate the years ahead.

At McPherson Financial Group, we help clients create plan for retirement by including a social security analysis as a part of an overall retirement strategy.

If you’re wondering whether your retirement plan can truly support the lifestyle you’ve envisioned, we’d love to help you find out. Together, we can develop a personalized roadmap using our unique money method to help you evaluate your goals, resources, and potential strategies for the years ahead.

Schedule a complimentary consultation to discuss your retirement goals and discover whether your current plan is positioned for long-term success.

Phone: (321) 253-2016
Email: rachel@mcphersonfg.com

Securities offered through World Equity Group, Inc. member FINRA and SIPC, a Registered Investment Advisor. Investment advisory services offered through Prostatis Group, LLC a Registered Investment Advisor. McPherson Financial Group, LLC and Prostatis Group, LLC are separate entities and are not owned or controlled by World Equity Group, Inc. Insurance services offered through McPherson Financial Group, LLC.