Is 67 too old for Social Security FRA? Burned out after 45 years working with no PTO

I completely understand where you're coming from. Construction work is HARD on the body! I was in a similar situation last year - turned 65 and was just DONE physically. I ended up retiring at 65 and taking the reduced benefit. Here's what helped me decide: I calculated the breakeven point. If you take $2,450 now vs waiting for $3,050, it would take about 12 years of receiving the higher amount to make up for the 2 years of payments you missed. So if you don't think you'll live past 79, taking it early actually makes financial sense. Also, have you looked into spousal benefits? Since your wife has a higher benefit, you might be eligible for up to 50% of her FRA amount if that's more than your own benefit. Worth checking into!

Take it NOW!!! I waited till 66 and regret EVERY MINUTE. That's a year of freedom I'll never get back. Life's too short and the government keeps pushing the age back. When Social Security started the average lifespan was barely over 65 anyway. Now they expect us to work until we drop dead. With your wife's higher benefit you guys will be fine. Enjoy your life!!!

Have you considered partial retirement? You could reduce your hours even further, maybe just 1-2 days a week, and file for Social Security now. Since you're already at FRA for spousal benefits (which is still 66 for your birth year), you could potentially file for spousal benefits only now (restricted application) and let your own benefit continue to grow until 67 if you were born before January 2, 1954. That way you get some income now while still maximizing your own benefit later.

I feel your pain! I had to stop working at 63 (I'm 64 now) because my body just couldn't take it anymore after 40+ years as a nurse. My benefit is about $600 less than what I'd get at my FRA of 66 and 8 months. What I did was take a part-time job that's much less physically demanding - 15 hours a week at a local library. It's below the earnings limit ($22,320 in 2025 if you're under FRA) so it doesn't affect my SS benefits, and it helps supplement my income without killing me physically. Could you maybe find something similar that uses your knowledge but isn't so hard on your body?

I tried calling the SSA to discuss these exact same options last month and spent THREE DAYS trying to get through. Kept getting disconnected or told the wait time was over 2 hours. Finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to a real person at SSA in under 20 minutes. They have a video showing how it works at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU The agent I spoke with actually ran different scenarios for me - retirement now, retirement at 66, spousal benefits, etc. Super helpful once I actually got someone on the phone! They explained that with my specific earnings history, waiting until 66 (my FRA) would increase my monthly check by $410, which adds up over time.

Consider this: you've already mentioned that physically you're struggling. Construction is brutal on the body. I've worked with many clients in similar situations, and here's what I typically suggest: 1. Get an exact calculation of your combined household income with different scenarios (you retire now + wife's benefit when she claims) 2. Look at your expenses - do you have mortgage/debt that needs to be paid before retiring? 3. Health insurance costs until Medicare kicks in (though at 65 you should already have Medicare) 4. Tax implications of different claiming strategies Many people fixate on maximizing their SS benefit, but if continuing to work is damaging your health or significantly reducing your quality of life, the extra amount may not be worth it. Remember, your benefit gets COLA adjustments regardless of when you claim.

i retired at 62 and never looked back! monthly check is smaller sure but i got 5 extra yrs of freedom and my health improved a ton once i stopped the physical work. no amount of money can buy those years back. you only live once man

My neighbor was in construction too, waited til 67 to retire and had a heart attack 3 months later!!! Spent his last year in and out of hospitals. What good did those extra dollars do him? NONE. The system is rigged to make us work ourselves to death.

One thing no one's mentioned yet - have you considered the impact on your spouse if something happened to you? If you claim early and pass away before her, her survivor benefit would be based on your reduced amount (though there are some special rules that might apply). If you think she might rely on your benefit as a survivor someday, waiting for a higher amount might be worth considering. On the other hand, if she'll always use her own higher benefit amount, then this is less of a concern. Just something else to factor into your decision.