Retiring at 62? Here’s Why Your Social Security Check Could Be Slashed by 30% or More
Technically, You Can Still Retire at 62 — But Here’s What They’re Not Telling You About Social Security
If you were born in 1960 or later and dream of retiring at 62, you still can — technically. But before you pop the champagne and start planning your beachside escape, there’s a hard truth you need to know: retiring early could permanently shrink your Social Security benefits by up to 30%.
And if your spouse follows suit and also claims early? The financial cut gets even deeper — up to 35% less in monthly benefits for life.
Welcome to the new normal in retirement planning.
The Full Retirement Age Has Quietly Shifted — And It’s a Game Changer
The Full Retirement Age (FRA) is the age at which you can claim 100% of your Social Security benefits. For decades, that age was 65. But for anyone born in 1960 or later — including Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z — it’s now 67.
That means retiring at 62 no longer just means a few missing dollars here and there. It means you’ll receive only 70% of the monthly benefit you’d get by waiting until 67. For your spouse, if they also retire early, they could get just 65% of their full benefit.
These reductions aren’t temporary — they’re locked in for life.
Why the Cuts Are So Severe
Social Security was designed with incentives to delay benefits and penalties for claiming them early. While the idea is to give workers flexibility, the math is unrelenting: the earlier you claim, the longer Social Security expects to pay you, so the monthly amount is trimmed to compensate.
But here’s the rub: when the FRA was bumped to 67, the early retirement age stayed put at 62 — and the penalties just got steeper.
For someone born in 1959, the early retirement reduction was 25%. For someone born in 1960 or later, that penalty jumps to 30% — meaning if your full benefit would have been $2,000 a month at 67, you’ll only receive $1,400 a month if you claim at 62.
That’s a $7,200 annual difference, every year, for the rest of your life.
Couples Hit Even Harder
The impact of early claiming is even more dramatic when both spouses retire early. Social Security’s spousal benefits are also reduced if claimed before FRA — in fact, the maximum spousal benefit is limited to 50% of the primary earner’s FRA benefit, and it drops to just 32.5% if claimed at age 62.
So if your spouse’s full benefit is $2,000, the early spousal benefit could be as low as $650 a month — less than the average rent in most cities.
What This Means for Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z
The new FRA of 67 is now the official standard for:
Gen X (born 1965–1980)
Millennials (1981–1996)
Gen Z (1997–2012)
These generations are facing a perfect storm: higher FRA, longer life expectancy, rising healthcare costs, and uncertainty around whether Social Security will still be fully solvent when they retire.
As of now, the Social Security Trust Fund is projected to run dry by 2034. That doesn’t mean benefits will disappear — but it could mean across-the-board cuts of up to 20% or more, even for those who wait until FRA.
The Bottom Line: Retire Early at Your Own Risk
Yes, you can still retire at 62. But unless you’ve saved enough to bridge the income gap or are willing to live on significantly reduced Social Security checks, it might not be the dream scenario you imagine.
The difference between claiming at 62 vs. 67 isn’t just a few hundred dollars — it’s tens of thousands of dollars over your retirement lifetime.
So if you're planning to retire early, don’t just ask “Can I?” Ask “Should I?”
And most importantly, run the numbers now — before the government does it for you.
Schedule your appontment with me by clicking here. Together we will evaluate your personal circumstances.
Warm regards,
Sharon, Your Safe Money Lady™
Sharon Ben-David
Phone: (954) 261-5200
Licensed Mortgage Broker, Certified Professional Retirement Planning Adviser, and Financial Advocate
Protecting Your Nest Egg, Inc.
NMLS #2308601
