Want to make sure I’m entering the correct information to “trick” the SSA calculator into giving me an estimate of benefits if I retire early (age 54) and do not earn anything between 54 and full retirement age of 67.
I keyed in:
My DOB
Age at retirement: 67
Annual earnings from my actual record
Estimated earnings for 2019: $xxx,xxx
Earnings in 2020 and later: $0
I assume this is the correct way to enter the retirement date and NOT “age at retirement = 54”. If I put 54 then the program defaults to age 62, which is not when I plan to take benefits.
I’m pleasantly surprised that the payment amount is so favorable, even with 13 years of zeroes. In fact, the calculator shows benefits (today’s dollars) are 83% of the estimated benefits if I kept working till age 67 earning the same pay. Seems too good to be true.
Does anyone know how accurate this calculator is when compared with actual experience? Is it safe to use this figure for retirement planning purposes (even though I’m not counting on SS in my retirement plans)?
Thanks!
I keyed in:
My DOB
Age at retirement: 67
Annual earnings from my actual record
Estimated earnings for 2019: $xxx,xxx
Earnings in 2020 and later: $0
I assume this is the correct way to enter the retirement date and NOT “age at retirement = 54”. If I put 54 then the program defaults to age 62, which is not when I plan to take benefits.
I’m pleasantly surprised that the payment amount is so favorable, even with 13 years of zeroes. In fact, the calculator shows benefits (today’s dollars) are 83% of the estimated benefits if I kept working till age 67 earning the same pay. Seems too good to be true.
Does anyone know how accurate this calculator is when compared with actual experience? Is it safe to use this figure for retirement planning purposes (even though I’m not counting on SS in my retirement plans)?
Thanks!