My wife is 63, I'm 57. She hasn't worked in a few years but has worked enough for full benefits. If she starts collecting now, and i wait till I'm 70, is this a good strategy. We want to use her benefit to buy property. If I die before her, would she then get my full benefit?

Hi. The best strategy in your case likely depends largely on your and your wife's comparative benefit rates, but assuming that your full benefit amount would be significantly higher than your wife's then I wouldn't argue with the strategy you have in mind. Even if your wife starts drawing her benefits early, if you live at least until age 70 and if you wait until then to start drawing your benefits your wife could receive up to your full age 70 rate as a surviving spouse. She couldn't get your full rate and her own benefit, though, just the higher of the 2 amounts.

However, if she starts drawing her benefits early your wife will be stuck with the applicable reduction for age for at least as long as both of you are living. That's true even if she qualifies for an additional excess spousal benefit when you start drawing your benefits. You and your wife may want to strongly consider using our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) to fully analyze all of your options so that you can determine the filing strategy that you believe would best fit your needs.

Best, Jerry