27 Sep Should I wait to take Social Security or start sooner?

Q. I am 62 and I hope to retire at 64. I know Social Security pays more if I wait to take it, but my investments won’t make enough income to cover my expenses when I stop working. Is it better to take more from my investments earlier in retirement and defer taking Social Security or is it better to let the investments grow and take a smaller Social Security payment sooner?
— Still working

A. It’s a great question.

And the answer depends on your specifics, but the basics are the same for everyone.

It’s one of the most important decisions you’ll make in retirement because unlike most investment choices, the Social Security piece is largely permanent once you lock it in. Jeanne Kane, a certified financial planner with OneDigital in Boonton.

The good news? What feels like a trade-off — “spend my portfolio or protect my Social Security” — is actually a well-known, deliberate strategy, she said.

Let’s walk through it.

Social Security rewards patience, Kane said. For someone whose Full Retirement Age (FRA) is 67, claiming early at 62 means a permanent reduction of roughly 30% from your full benefit.

If you wait past FRA, your benefit grows by 8% per year — so-called delayed retirement credits — up to age 70, where the benefit maxes out at 24% above your full amount, she said.

There’s no reason to wait beyond age 70 because your benefit has maxed out, Kane said.

Every year you delay is essentially buying yourself a bigger, inflation-adjusted paycheck for life, she said.

“Drawing more from your investments in the early years specifically so you can delay Social Security is a recognized approach planners call a bridge strategy — you use your portfolio to “bridge” the income gap while your benefit keeps growing,” she said.

It’s generally best suited to people in reasonably good health with enough savings to cover the gap, she said.

The logic is that you’re trading a portion of your portfolio — which carries market risk — for a guaranteed, government-backed, inflation-adjusted income stream that you can never outlive, Kane said.

“As an advisor, I can’t guarantee rates of return. Social Security is guaranteeing you an 8% increase each year from your FRA to age 70,” she said.

The catch is longevity. Delaying only “wins” if you live long enough to collect the bigger checks, Kane said.

“My name is Jeanne, pronounced Genie. I wish that I could see the future and know when you’re going to die. If I did, I could tell you exactly when you should claim for a maximum benefit,” she said. “No one can see the future, so you must examine your own health and your family members’ longevity to help you.”

Rough break-even points look like this:
· Claiming at 62 vs. 66 → you come out ahead by delaying if you live past about age 78
· Claiming at 62 vs. 70 → break-even around age 80
· Claiming at 66 vs. 70 → break-even around age 84.5

“If your family history and health point toward a long life, delaying tends to pay off. If longevity is a real concern, claiming earlier may make more sense,” she said.

If you’re married, that should be part of your calculation.

“If you’re the higher earner, delaying doesn’t just help you — it permanently raises the survivor benefit your spouse would receive, since a survivor can step up to 100% of the deceased spouse’s benefit, including any delayed credits,” Kane said.

For many couples, a common strategy is for the higher earner to delay while the lower earner claims earlier. The surviving spouse gets the higher benefit, she said.

There are a few other considerations before you make your decision.

“Pulling more from investments early means paying attention to which accounts you tap and in what order,” she said. “A common tax-efficient sequence is taxable accounts first, then traditional IRA/401(k), then Roth last — but your specific mix matters.”

The delay window can be a tax opportunity, Kane said. Those lower-income years before Social Security kicks in are often an ideal time to consider Roth conversions while you’re in a lower bracket.

When you take from investments, watch how much you draw. Leaning harder on the portfolio early raises the risk of running it down too fast, especially if a market downturn hits in your first few years, Kane said.

“It’s important to understand how much you’re withdrawing from your investments, your investment allocation, and how much of a downturn your portfolio can handle.”

She said there is no universal right answer.

“It hinges on your health and longevity outlook, whether you’re married and who the higher earner is, your tax picture, and how comfortably your portfolio can absorb the extra early withdrawals,” she said.

But the instinct behind your question — spend down some investments to secure a larger, lifelong, inflation-protected Social Security check — is a widely used strategy for the right person.

“This is exactly the kind of decision where running the actual numbers pays for itself,” she said, adding that meeting with a certified financial planner who can model your specific situation could be a smart move. “Just as you’d see a doctor for your physical health, a CFP can help with your financial health — especially at a transition as significant as retirement.”

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This story was originally published in September 2026. 

NJMoneyHelp.com presents certain general financial planning principles and advice, but should never be viewed as a substitute for obtaining advice from a personal professional advisor who understands your unique individual circumstances.