when should I claim?

Do you keep getting those ads in the mail for a free class all about social security? We did too and I kept throwing them out just as quickly as they came in until one day, getting closer and closer to that certain age, I thought well, why not? And I signed up for one.

The class was held at a nearby library, which sounded pretty safe and low pressure. I didn't enroll for one of those free dinners thinking they would want something in return, like becoming my new financial advisor.

The class was taught by a volunteer from a nonprofit called SOFA, The Society for Financial Awareness.

This was the first thing they told us: "Currently there are over 560 ways to collect Social Security benefits. Making a bad decision can potentially cost thousands of dollars in benefits for either you, your spouse, or your family over the course of a lifetime."

Yikes. That got everyone's attention in a hurry!

The next thing they told us was "don't go thinking the Social Security Administration will fix it all for you, because they're not legally allowed to give out financial advice."

Okay then, so where should you begin?

• Educate yourself. The book they recommended in the class is Get What's Yours: The Secrets to Maxing Out Your Social Security by Laurence Kotlikoff. I did read the book and it's very informative.
• Go online to SSA.gov. Here you can find out your full retirement age (FRA) which is based on the year you were born. The retirement age is increasing from age 65 to age 67. The earliest age a person can begin collecting social security retirement benefits is age 62. However, at that age your benefits will be reduced.
• While on the SSA.gov website, you can sign up for an account and learn what your monthly benefit will be if you file at age 62, your full retirement age, or at age 70. If you wait until your full retirement age to file, your benefit will be increased by 8% per year from age 62.
• When you get your account, look closely at your work history. Are there any years with zero earnings, when you know you did work during that year? It could be your employer got your social security number incorrect. If so, contact SSA.gov so they can correct your information.

Talk with a financial advisor. It can get complicated!