Why claiming Social Security at 70 could be your best bet

Once you turn 62, you can claim Social Security at any time. And while there's technically no "final age" to sign up for Social Security, it doesn't pay to delay your claim past age 70.

At full retirement age, which is 67 if you were born in 1960 or later, you'll get your monthly benefit without a reduction. If you delay your claim past that point, your benefits will increase 8% a year until your 70th birthday.

Based on all of this, you might assume that 70 is the optimal age to file for Social Security. But that's not a given across the board.

In some cases, claiming Social Security at 70 could backfire and result in less lifetime income or other consequences. But if the following scenarios apply to you, filing for Social Security at 70 could be a savvy choice that pays off big time.

When you claim Social Security at 70, you give up years of payments by default. So it's important to make sure you expect to live long enough to make up for those missed payments.

Now you can't see into the future and predict how long you'll live exactly. But you can use your…

Original source: https://www.usatoday.com/money/