5 Ways Increasing Social Security Retirement Age Could Disrupt Financial Plans
The Social Security program faces a financing shortfall that, if left unaddressed, would result in a benefit reduction in under a decade. Lawmakers have considered raising the full retirement age, but how would that affect the way you plan, save and prepare for retirement?
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“A higher Social Security age will put stress on many people’s retirement plans,” Doug Carey, CFA, owner and founder of retirement and financial planning software WealthTrace, wrote in an email.
Here’s what that could mean for your financial strategy.
According to Phillip Battin, president and CEO of Ambassador Wealth Management, raising the full retirement age for Social Security would mean many people would have to work longer than planned, especially for those in physically demanding or stressful jobs who may struggle to continue working.
“Those without stable jobs or good benefits could face even greater challenges, as they might need to keep working just to maintain health insurance,” he added.
Carey has talked his clients through this exact scenario, and said it often means pushing retirement back by a year or more.
“I have run through this scenario with a lot of my customers, and I found that for most of them, for every year the Social Security start age is increased, they will have to work at least one more year than they had planned,” Carey wrote.
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People may need to rely more on their personal savings if the lawmakers increase the Social Security retirement age. This may be especially difficult for those who are unemployed or unable to work.
“Those individuals may have to make limited savings last longer while dealing with higher healthcare costs without government help,” Battin pointed out. “Having good health insurance, long-term disability coverage and emergency savings is more important than ever.”
For those without enough personal savings to last them until retirement, it could force some to withdraw retirement funds early.
“If Social Security starts later, retirees must depend more on their savings, such as 401(k)s, IRAs and other retirement vehicles,” according to Battin. “This would require saving more and spending less while working to prepare for the future.”
Battin also noted that in addition to putting pressure on people’s savings, it would also reduce the time for those savings to grow.
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Taking retirement funds out too soon often leads to unexpected tax bills and a 10% penalty, according to the IRS.
“Early withdrawals from traditional retirement accounts could also lead to higher taxes and a penalty if taken before age 59½,” Battin added.
“Many individuals would need to thoroughly review and adjust their retirement plans if the Social Security timeline changes,” Batin advised. Financial advisors, retirement calculators and budgeting tools can all help better plan for retirement. “In order to secure a financial future, it is sensible to understand and prepare for these changes now, no matter the current career stage,” he added.
This is certainly worse for those closer to retirement, but Carey explained that younger people can come up with a plan to save more early on.
“I found that a 35-year-old who plans on retiring at age 65 would need to save about $1,100 extra per year to a retirement account in order to make up for an increasing Social Security start age of two years,” Carey noted. “However, if a person is already 55, they would have to save an extra $5,000 per year.”
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