When Should You Claim Social Security if You Don't Actually Need the Money?

For many retirees, Social Security is an absolute lifeline. Without those monthly benefits, a large number of seniors would not have a way to cover their basic needs.

But what if you're in the enviable position of having more than enough savings to cover your essential bills without Social Security? To some degree, that takes a lot of pressure off of your filing decision. But it's a decision you want to get right nonetheless. Here's how to navigate it.

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The case for delaying benefits

Even if you have a very large retirement nest egg, you never know how a prolonged market downturn or a very slow recovery might impact your portfolio over time. One thing Social Security may have going for it over your savings is that your monthly benefits are guaranteed for life.

With that in mind, you should know that there's a huge advantage to delaying your claim past full retirement age. For each year you do, until you turn 70, your benefits get a permanent 8% lift. This means that even if your savings eventually start to dwindle, you'll have larger monthly checks to look forward to for life.

Now if you're someone who needs Social Security to cover basic expenses, filing for benefits at 70 could mean having to work until 70. If you don't actually need Social Security for your essential bills, you should have the option to retire when you want and delay your claim at the same time. That way, you have more long-term financial stability to look forward to.

The case for filing early

If you don't need your Social Security benefits to pay for your essential needs, you may take the attitude that you might as well grow those checks and get more money out of them. But you could also do the opposite -- file ahead of full retirement age and reduce your monthly benefits at the same time.

Why might you do this? If you want to use your Social Security for fun purposes, the sooner you start collecting benefits, the sooner you can maximize good health.

The earliest age to claim Social Security is 62. And you may feel up to a lot of high-intensity travel at that stage of life.

Will you feel the same way at 70? Maybe not. So if you don't need Social Security to cover your basic bills, you may want to take benefits at a time when you can enjoy them the most.

Ultimately, there's no right or wrong answer when it comes to claiming Social Security. This holds true whether you actually need the money or not. But if you can cover your basic bills without those benefits, it changes the equation. So you'll need to think about what you value most -- enjoying those benefits earlier on, or maximizing your monthly paychecks and buying yourself more longevity protection.

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