I am 62. I made the decision to quit my job due to working conditions and Covid-19. I don't plan on starting to draw my social security until I reach 66 1/2 years of age. Assuming I don't ever return to work how will my social security be impacted?

Hi,

Social Security retirement benefits are calculated based on an average of a person's highest 35 years of Social Security covered wage-indexed earnings. Social Security will end up using your highest 35 earnings years to calculate your benefit rate whether you return to work or not. So, stopping work would only adversely affect your benefit rate to the extent that you wouldn't have any future earnings that might raise your benefit rate by replacing one of your previous highest 35 earnings years with a higher future earnings year.

How much if any of a negative effect stopping work would have on your benefit rate depends on how much you earned in your previous 35 highest wage-indexed earnings years, and how much you would have been earning had you not stopped working. Regardless, though, if you wait until your full retirement age (FRA) to start drawing your benefits then no age reduction will be applied to your benefit rate and you'll be paid 100% of your primary insurance amount (PIA).

You may want to strongly consider using our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) to do your Social Security planning. The software allows you enter projected future year earnings, which would enable you to determine what difference, if any, returning to work would have on your future benefit rate.

Best, Jerry