Some people manage to retire with millions of dollars to their name. But that's certainly not everyone's situation.
Northwestern Mutual says that the average 60-something American has a mere $112,500 saved for retirement. And while that's far better than having no savings at all, it's not exactly a whopping sum of money given that it may need to last for 20 or 30 years.
If you're coming into retirement with minimal savings, you may end up having to rely heavily on Social Security to cover your expenses. And if that's the case, it pays to do what you can to score a higher monthly benefit.
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There's one specific move you can make that could boost your monthly Social Security payments substantially. But warning -- it won't necessarily be an easy one.
Extend your career
Many people reach a certain age and find that when it comes to working, they're just plain done. And that's totally understandable. But if you want more money out of Social Security throughout retirement, delaying that milestone may be your best bet.
Why? You're entitled to your complete monthly Social Security benefit based on your individual wage history once full retirement age (FRA) arrives. That age is either 66, 67, or somewhere in between, depending on the year you were born.
If you delay your Social Security filing past FRA, for each year you do, up until age 70, your monthly benefit gets an 8% boost. So let's say your FRA is 67 and that's your preferred retirement age. Working until age 70 may not be ideal. But if doing so allows you to put off Social Security for three extra years, you could end up with a monthly benefit throughout retirement that's 24% higher than what it would've been at FRA.
Not only that, but extending your career could result in a higher monthly Social Security benefit to begin with -- even when you take delayed retirement credits out of the equation.
Many people end up earning more money toward the end of their careers than earlier on. If your salary is at its highest when you're on the cusp of retirement, working longer could mean replacing some years of lower earnings with higher earnings in the formula that's used to calculate your monthly Social Security benefit. So all told, you stand to gain financially.
A tough move to strongly consider
It's not easy to push yourself to work longer when you're burned out and ready to enjoy the freedom retirement has to offer. But in some cases, delaying your career could spell the difference between struggling financially in retirement or getting by with relative ease thanks to a much higher monthly Social Security payday.
And remember, you don't necessarily have to commit to working several extra years if you can't fathom the idea. Delaying your retirement by even a single year could result in a higher Social Security benefit, so if that's what you feel you can handle, so be it.
Of course, if you feel strongly that delaying retirement will harm your health, then that's a different story. But otherwise, pushing yourself to work longer could do your finances a world of good.
