My company is downsizing, and I am forced to take early retirement. I turned 65 ('51) in June 2016, but my wife will only be 62 ('54) in Nov 2016. She never earned enough credits as she was a stay at home mom, then had a disability which even kept her from earning enough credits to file on disability, so we've been a one income family all these years. What would be our best filing strategy, as this is so confusing? Thanks.

Hi,

If you can afford to, it would probably be best for you to wait at least until your wife reaches full retirement age (FRA) to start drawing. FRA for both of you is age 66, so you will be age 69 & 5 months when she reaches FRA. At that point, she would be eligible for an unreduced spousal benefit, but she can't start drawing benefits until you do.

If you start drawing at age 69 & 5 months, you would receive a benefit increase of about 27.33% above your FRA benefit rate thanks to delayed retirement credits (DRC). If you wait until age 70 instead, you will receive 32% increase, but your wife would not be able to receive any spousal benefits until you start drawing. The other thing to consider is that any increase you receive from DRCs would carry over to potential widow's benefits for your wife.

Ultimately, deciding when to start drawing benefits is a personal choice that depends on numerous factors. You may wish to consider running the maximization software available on this website in order to help you make the best possible choice.

Best, Jerry