Mr. Larry;
I plan to retire from my job at 30 years 8 months service, I’ll only be 59 1/2 then. And claim social security at age 62. Will the two and a half years effect my Social security in a negative way from not working?

Hi,

Retiring early will probably have an adverse effect on your Social Security retirement benefit rate, and starting to draw your benefits at age 62 definitely will.

Your Social Security retirement benefit rate will be based on an average of your highest 35 years of wage-indexed earnings. If you have fewer than 35 years with earnings, years with zero earnings will be averaged in. That will reduced both your average earnings and your resulting benefit rate. And, if you start drawing your benefits at age 62, your monthly rate will be reduced for age. That would cause your benefit rate to be reduced to roughly 70% of the amount you'd receive if you waited until full retirement age (FRA) to start drawing.

Before making any decisions, you may want to strongly consider using our software (https://maximizemysocialsecurity.com/purchase) to determine the best way to maximize your benefits.

Best, Jerry