Is there any reason to not have January 1 as your starting date for starting Social Security benefits?
It’s starting in January, would you be entitled to the increase that most people get starting at the beginning of each year?

Hi. There's nothing inherently wrong with starting benefits effective with January, but in many cases it's not the best option. If you start your payments effective with January you would receive the cost of living (COLA) increase that Social Security recipients receive in most years, but not because you chose to start your benefits in January. All Social Security COLA increases that occur after a person reaches age 62 are credited to the person's Social Security retirement benefit rate regardless of whether or not they are drawing their benefits. In other words, you don't need to start your benefits effective with January in order to receive any COLA increases to which you're entitled.

The best month and year to start benefits depends on many different variables, and each person's set of circumstances are different. You may want to strongly consider using our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) to fully analyze the options available to you in order to determine your best strategy for maximizing your benefits.

Best, Jerry