[Crowbob]

It really doesn't make much of a difference at what age you draw SS Retirement bennies. The bean counters have it pretty much figured out. It's a wash.

There are several reasons they encourage people to wait. One is the outgo stays smaller so the dire straights that the fund is in don't look so bad. Two is the more people who wait means there will be less of a payout because many of those people who waited will croak and end up collecting considerably less.

The argument to wait is always that your checks are bigger. Which is true. What they don't tell you is you get fewer of them in the long run.

There are many more reasons to collect ASAP. One is you get your hands on the money sooner so you can actually put it to work. The younger you are the longer it works instead of losing value due to inflation. Another is there is always the likelihood that they will increase the taxes owed on the benefits (which is what The White Bill C did thus creating the largest tax increase in the history of the nation) or raise the retirement age for full benefit or...RUN OUT OF MONEY forcing the benefits to become less. Also...if you have a 401K or other tax-deferred retirement account, you will be taxed at a higher rate because at some point you will be forced to start collecting on the account(s) while collecting a higher SS check which increases your taxable income. AND, even of you don't need the money now, you can sign up and give all or some of it to your kids (who are actually gonna pay for it) and look like a hero (which is what I'm doing)
except I don't look like a hero. I am one!