Retirement age of 78 for social security? Can this be true?

Question

My daughter (age 30) states that according to social security her retirement age is 78? Is this true? Sounds ridiculous.

Answer 1

I hope it is not true, I will never make it that far. Unless they up the current retirement age, 78 is not right. She may have gotten copy fo her SS earnings and expected benefits and it may have said that at the age of 78 you should receive x amount of dollars.

The did up the retirement age in the 80's from 62 to 65, but 78? That can not be right.

Answer 2

Your daughter is mistaken, though, throughout the recent debate on how to save Social Security, there have been suggestions made to increase the retirement age.

Here is the the official retirement age schedule published by the Social Security Administration: http://www.ssa.gov/retirechartred.htm

Here is an excerpt from an AARP Bulletin describing a proposal to raise the age of full retirement.

What’s the Big Idea?
There’s more than one solution for Social Security. Here are nine ways to keep the system solvent

By Thomas N. Bethell

April 2005

"The normal retirement age—the age of eligibility for full benefits—is slowly increasing from 65 to 67. (It will reach 67 in 2027, for workers born in 1960.) Workers can still retire as early as 62, but with benefits reduced a fraction of a percent for each month before full retirement age.

"One idea is to continue raising the normal retirement age as life expectancy rises. Edward M. Gramlich, a Federal Reserve governor who chaired the 1994-96 Social Security advisory council, is among those favoring this approach. Gradually increasing the retirement age to 70, he says, would make a "huge impact" but would be "hugely controversial" because people would think they had to work longer. Not so, he insists, because people could still retire earlier, although with lower monthly benefits. A "slight cut in the growth of future benefits," he says, is a fair way to deal with the fact that retirees are likely to live longer—and collect more in benefits—than in 1935, when the retirement age was set at 65. Raising the retirement age to 70 would cut the shortfall by about 36 percent."

Answer 3

I think so. I think people born after a certain year has a higher retirment age. I don't know about 78 thought. I thought it was like 67 or something.

Answer 4

It may be, I know they're going to have to push it further and further out as the baby boomers start using up all the funds. Social Security freely admits to this fact, go to their website, they'll tell you all about it. But on another note, centenarian studies (studies of people who live to be 100) show that the number of centenarians every year are growing exponentially, and some predict that in the next 10 - 15 years the AVERAGE lifespan will be 100. Incidentally, these 100 year olds that are being studied aren't just sitting around drooling on themselves either, they are running every day, vital to their community, etc., etc....kinda hopeful for all of us. But then, what do we do about overpopulation as we get better at keeping people alive on this earth?

Answer 5

No Way!!!! I was just at the SS office 2 weeks ago and the age hasn't changed but I believe they are trying to change it. I guess they are hoping you drop dead before you collect.

Answer 6

I'd better check into that. I don;t want to be working THAT long.