Why Full Retirement Age Matters More for Married Couples

For married couples, Full Retirement Age isn't just a milestone—it's the foundation of your entire household Social Security strategy 💍 Most couples focus on when to claim their own benefits but miss the bigger picture: the higher earner's decision sets the survivor benefit for potentially 30+ years. When the higher-earning spouse delays until 70, the surviving spouse could receive up to 24% more in lifetime benefits compared to claiming at Full Retirement Age. That's not just a few extra dollars—it's potentially hundreds of thousands over a retirement. Spousal benefits work differently too. They're based on 50% of the primary earner's Full Retirement Age amount—not the reduced benefit if they claimed early. Claiming at 62 could slash that spousal benefit by 35% permanently. The smartest couples coordinate their claiming ages strategically: one claims at Full Retirement Age for current income, while the higher earner delays to maximize the survivor protection. You're not just choosing your benefit—you're choosing what your spouse will live on after you're gone. For help creating a claiming strategy that protects your household for decades, schedule a call through the link in my bio. Salient Wealth Planning ("SWP") is a registered investment advisor. Advisory services are only offered to clients or prospective clients where SWP and its representatives are properly licensed or exempt from licensure. The views expressed in this commentary are subject to change based on market and other conditions. These documents may contain certain statements that may be deemed forward looking statements. Please note that any such statements are not guarantees of any future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected. Any projections, market outlooks, or estimates are based upon certain assumptions and should not be construed as indicative of actual events that will occur. The information provided is for educational and informati