SS

People often ask when is the best time to start social security but, in many ways, it is a moot question. This is because social security is like an annuity. It always pays out the same amount based on life expectancy. Example. Take $2,000 per month at age 62 or $3,500 per month at age 70. Life expectancy for a white male at age 62 is 20 years and 16 years at age 70. $2,000 per month for 20 years is $480,000 while $3,500 per month for 16 years is $672,000. If you start at invest $2,000 per month at 5% for 8 years you will have $235,000 and adding that to $480,000 you have a total of $715,000. This is one way that retired people can invest in the stock market with minimal risk. The reasons to start early are less about money but more about feeling well enough to do things when you are younger. One other point is that social security is racist. Example. A white female and a Black male both have the same work record and both receive $2,000 per month from social security. The Black male has a life expectancy of 15.5 years while the White female lives another 22 years. The male collects $372,000 and the female collects $528,000. One way to even things out is to privatize social security.