Hello Larry !!
i will turn 62 ......this october 2022
can i collect my early ( 62 ) social security
and then....
when i become FRA 67
can i switch over and collect my deceased husband spousal benefit social security ?
i never made much money
i am believing that his would grow if i wait ... untill i am FRA 67
one more question....
i do not know if he started taking his social security early... would this make a difference ?

Hi. You could claim your own benefits at age 62 and wait until your full retirement age (FRA) to claim unreduced widow's benefits, but if you're still working and if you earn too much then some or all of your benefits may need to be withheld because of Social Security's earnings test (https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/planner/whileworking.html).

It would change your optimal filing strategy if your husband collected reduced Social Security retirement benefits prior to his death. If he did, then your maximum widow's rate would be limited to the higher of his reduced benefit rate including any Social Security cost of living (COLA) increases that occurred after his death, or 82.5% of his primary insurance amount (PIA). A person's PIA is equal to their Social Security retirement benefit rate if they start drawing their benefits at full retirement age (FRA).

You should be able to find out from Social Security whether or not your husband collected reduced retirement benefits prior to his death. If he did, then instead of waiting until your FRA to claim widow's benefits you'd almost certainly want to claim them at some point before then. The bottom line, though, is that if you're positive that your own benefit rate would be lower than your widow's rate even if you waited until age 70 to claim your benefits, then your best filing strategy would likely be to claim your own benefits at age 62 or as soon as your earnings will permit at least some benefits to be paid, then file for widow's benefits when your widow's rate reaches it's maximum rate.

Our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) could help sort all of this out for you so that you can determine the best strategy for maximizing your benefits, but to get the best possible results you will need to find out from Social Security whether or not your husband collected reduced retirement benefits.

Best, Jerry