5. Forfeiting Delayed Retirement Credits by Claiming at FRA or Earlier
While claiming at Full Retirement Age provides 100% of your calculated benefit, failing to wait past FRA means forfeiting delayed retirement credits. For workers born in 1960 or later, Social Security rewards patience by increasing your monthly check by 8% for each full year you delay claiming beyond FRA, up to age 70. This creates a potential permanent boost of up to 24% above your baseline Primary Insurance Amount.
If your full retirement benefit at age 67 is $2,000, waiting until age 70 permanently raises your monthly payment to $2,480 before annual Cost-of-Living Adjustments (COLAs). Claiming at age 67 or earlier forfeits this entire 24% gain. Because delayed retirement credits also expand the baseline used for future COLA calculations, walking away from these credits results in lower annual dollar increases for the rest of your life.
