Over half of all Americans (55%) believe that 65 is the age when you can claim your full Social Security benefit. This is not true, and believing this myth could be damaging. The age of 65 is a milestone, but that's because of Medicare.
If you're 65, you must be aware of some very important Social Security facts to make informed choices about your retirement planning. Here's what you need to know. This Rare Signal Is Flashing Again.
In 2009, a "Double Down" signal flashed for a little-known chipmaker called Nvidia. For the first time in years, that same "Total Conviction" signal is flashing for a company 1/100th the size of Nvidia. Continue » The first and most important thing that you must be aware of is that 65 is no longer full retirement age (FRA).
While it once was the age when everyone could claim their standard benefit, that changed due to Social Security reforms. FRA was gradually raised, and now anyone born in 1960 or later must wait until 67 to claim Social Security to receive their full benefits. Because of this, if you claim at 65, it's considered an early claim.
You'll shrink your monthly Social Security check, and you'll never catch up to where you'd have been if you waited to claim benefits. The next key thing to know is that you become eligible for Medicare at 65. When you become eligible, you need to each full year that you delay signing up for coverage.
There are exceptions, such as having qualifying insurance through a job. But you must either sign up or make sure you fall within the exceptions to avoid making Medicare more expensive for the rest of your life. This can affect the amount of benefits you have for covering other expenses, so be sure to plan for that.
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