Waiting until your Social Security full retirement age (FRA) to start taking benefits can have a big financial payoff. Any delay in taking your Social Security benefits will increase your monthly check for the rest of your life. Your check will get a bump up for every month you don't collect benefits up to the age of 70.
If you wait until your full retirement age, you can collect 100% of your Social Security retirement benefit. Initially, when the Social Security Act was signed into law in 1935, the age was 65. However, a law passed in 1983 gradually increased the retirement age to 67.
You can take your benefits early — which will reduce your checks — or delay until past your full retirement age, netting you a bigger benefit. Despite the financial incentive of waiting, we explore some sound reasons to take Social Security early.
