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| I will probably draw at age 70, but wife started drawing at age 62. We are the same age. Here is our logic-
If I die before her, then she will get my higher benefit. So my delaying is partially like a life insurance policy for her.
If one of us makes it past age 83, then we did the right thing by the numbers. If neither of us make 83, then we 'lose'.
In the meantime (until I am 70, currently 65) I will convert some of my IRA/ 401k money into Roth IRAs. I still have income from pension and other stuff, so can afford to delay SS. I can always choose to start before 70 for a few more years.
Regarding Medicare- we snowbird, and used to travel, so we wanted a Type G supplement plan. There are a lot of companies out there. Your State should have a SHIIP (or similar) site that will compare plans. (edited- we are on Type G. Type F is no longer available for us youngsters)
There is a lot of advertising for Medicare Advantage plans. The challenge with these is that you become very locked in to their system. If it works for you, they are a good deal. But a lot of folks have loved them until they had health issues, and then they are locked in. I want nothing to do with them, but it may work for some people. And they are less money (at least to start).
Social Security claiming age is actuarilly neutral. If you believe one of you will live past 83, then it may make sense for the lower earner to claim at 62, and the higher at 70. If you believe you will both croak before 80, then claim early. My wife's parents used to complain that they were 'talked into' claiming at 62, and it would have been better if they had waited because they would have gotten a larger amount. The reality is that they needed the money, so claiming early was really the only option. They also did not make it out of their 70s, so in the final analysis, it was the right choice.
Links for interest:
Iowa SHIIP site: https://shiip.iowa.gov/
Illinois SHIP: https://www2.illinois.gov/aging/ship/Pages/default.aspx
Indiana SHIP: https://www.in.gov/ship/
Minnesota couldn't find it...
Ohio: https://insurance.ohio.gov/wps/portal/gov/odi/about-us/divisions/osh...
There are many websites that look like directories. Just be careful that you don't put any private information out there.
Also- regarding drug plans- you can change those at the end of each year. So look for what makes the most sense now, and what the max out of pocket could be if something goes sideways. I take one specialty drug. It was a big cost savings to get away from United Healthcare and to get onto Medicare. It looks like I will switch to a different plan this coming year. No big deal.
Link for a socialsecurity options evaluator site: opensocialsecurity.com This is well liked, and you do not have to give up any private info (I always fudge the numbers slightly). You will need to have your PIA numbers from the social security website. You can use standard mortality tables, or input assumed age at death. This will give you lots of numbers to play with.
Edited by Up Nort 10/6/2021 12:47
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edjumakate me on turning 65....
