Ask Larry

My birthday is February 12.,1943. I retired January 1st 2007 and took my first SSA that month. I f I would have waited until February that year I would have been 65 and got seven per cent more? Would I be able to get an adjustment?

Hi,

The answer to your question is no, but your benefit rate would not be 7% higher if you had waited one additional month before starting to draw your benefits. When a person starts drawing their Social Security retirement benefits prior to their full retirement age (FRA), their benefit rate is reduced by 5/9ths of 1% for the first 36 months of reduction, and 5/12ths of 1% for each additional month.

Therefore, if you started drawing your benefits 13 months prior to your full retirement age (FRA), your benefit rate is reduced by roughly 7.22% (i.e. 13 x 5/9ths of 1%). If you had instead started drawing your benefits 12 months prior to your FRA, your benefit rate would have been reduced by roughly 6.67% (i.e. 12 x 5/9ths of 1%). In other words, starting your benefits 1 month prior to age 65 vs. starting with the month you reached 65 only reduced your benefit rate by an additional 5/9ths of 1%.

In any event, though, it would be too late now to request to start your benefits effective with a different month.

Best, Jerry