Delaying Social Security until age 75 while still working - financial pros and cons?

There's absolutely NO benefit to waiting past 70 to claim Social Security retirement benefits. Delayed retirement credits (DRCs) stop accumulating at age 70, meaning your benefit amount won't increase beyond that point except for annual cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs). Your advisor is 100% correct, and your neighbor's tax guy is giving incorrect information. By not filing at 70, you're essentially leaving money on the table that you'll never get back. What you SHOULD know is that you can still work while collecting Social Security with no reduction in benefits once you reach full retirement age (FRA). At 68, you're already past FRA, so there's no earnings test to worry about. File at 70 and enjoy both your consulting income AND your maximized Social Security benefit!

my brother decided to wait till 72 to claim and realized later he just lost 2 years of payments he could have collected!! dont make that mistake seriously

Maybe your neighbor's tax guy was talking about something else? Like maybe Roth conversions or something? Because there's definitely no SS advantage to waiting past 70.

I turned 70 last year and had the same question because i also still work. The social security office told me i should absolutely file right at 70 because the increases stop. I've been working AND collecting for 8 months now and its been great honestly. No reduction in my check and the extra income has let me finally fix up my house.

To directly answer your question about calculations - the benefit formula already accounts for your highest 35 years of earnings. If you're 68 and still working, any new high-earning years may replace lower-earning years in your calculation. However, this happens whether you've filed for benefits or not. If you file at 70 while continuing to work, the SSA will still recalculate your benefit amount annually if your new earnings replace a lower year in your top 35. They'll automatically adjust your benefit amount if warranted. The only potential downside to claiming at 70 while earning substantial income is that more of your Social Security might be subject to income tax. Up to 85% of your benefits can be taxable if your combined income (adjusted gross income + nontaxable interest + ½ of Social Security benefits) exceeds certain thresholds. But even with the tax consideration, you'd still come out ahead by claiming at 70 rather than waiting longer.

If you've been trying to reach the Social Security office to discuss this and having trouble getting through, I recently used this service called Claimyr that got me connected to a real person at SSA in about 15 minutes instead of waiting on hold for hours. They have a video showing how it works at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU. I was skeptical but it worked perfectly when I needed to ask about my wife's spousal benefits. Might save you some frustration when you're ready to file.

I waited till 71 to file cause I didn't know any better. Don't be like me lol

Thanks everyone for the advice! I've decided to file when I turn 70 in a few months. I'll make sure to set aside enough for taxes since I'll be dealing with both work income and SS benefits. Really appreciate all the insights!

Just want to echo what others have said here - there's definitely no financial advantage to waiting past 70! I made this mistake myself and didn't file until I was 71 because I thought there might be some additional benefit for high earners who continue working. Nope! I basically threw away a year of payments that I can never recover. The good news is that once you do file at 70, you can absolutely continue working without any penalty. I've been collecting for 3 years now while still running my small business, and the SSA automatically recalculates my benefit each year if my current earnings are higher than one of my previous 35 years. It's actually pretty seamless. One thing to consider for tax planning - you might want to talk to a CPA about quarterly estimated payments once you start receiving both SS and business income. The tax withholding can get tricky when you have multiple income sources, but it's definitely manageable. Don't let tax concerns keep you from claiming what you've earned!