Ken and Rick discuss the pros and cons of retiring early and how this can affect social security benefits and taxes.

In 2025, significant changes are on the horizon for Social Security beneficiaries in the United States. From cost of living adjustments to shifts in retirement age, understanding these updates is crucial for planning your financial future.

Regardless of whether you have just entered the labor force or left it a long time ago, there's a high probability you'll rely on your Social Security check, in some capacity, to

We carefully adjusted our living expenses so that we could be satisfied with less income compared to our working years. It also helped that we had some control over the hours we worked and that our work involved helping people. Both of these conditions helped us enjoy our semi-retirement more.

The year you were born, how much you've worked, and the year you claim your benefits determine how much you receive, but very few will qualify for the maximum benefit.

Waiting until this age to draw Social Security benefits allows you to maximize the amount you'll receive and provides extra time to save.

A child’s benefits can only begin once their parent has begun receiving retirement benefits. If a parent claims Social Security before their full retirement age, both their benefit and their child’s benefit will be reduced. However, claiming early for a reduced amount could still mean some families come out ahead financially.

The U.S. Social Security system is evolving to meet the needs of its beneficiaries, but not all changes are beneficial. Understanding these adjustments is crucial for financial planning.