Millions of Americans Are Filing for Social Security Early — and Losing Money

Most financial planners will tell you the same thing: wait until 70 to claim Social Security if you possibly can. The monthly benefit grows every year you delay, and at 70 it maxes out at the highest amount you'll ever receive.

Most Americans aren't listening.

A new retirement survey from global asset management company Schroders found that 45% of not-yet-retired Americans plan to file for Social Security before age 67 — which the Social Security Administration considers full retirement age. Only 10% plan to wait until 70, when they'd get the maximum benefit.

The most popular age to claim is actually 62 — the earliest age most retirees can file. It's also the age that permanently locks in the lowest possible benefit — up to 30% less per month than what they'd receive at full retirement age, for the rest of their life.

Why People Are Filing Early Anyway

The Schroders survey asked people why they planned to claim before 70. Three reasons dominated.

Forty-five percent said they'd need the money for regular income. Forty-three percent said they just want access to it as soon as possible. And 40% said they're worried Social Security may run out of money or stop making payments entirely.

That last one is significant — and not entirely unfounded.

The Trust Fund Really Is In Trouble

The 2026 Social Security Trustees Report, released in June, moved up the projected depletion date for the retirement trust fund to the fourth quarter of 2032 — one quarter earlier than last year's projection and a full year earlier than where it stood in 2025.

To be clear: 2032 doesn't mean Social Security disappears. It means the trust fund's reserves run out. After that, the program would still collect payroll taxes — but those taxes alone would only cover about 78% of scheduled benefits. The result would be an automatic benefit cut of roughly 22% unless Congress acts.

That's the scenario nobody in Washington wants to say out loud but everyone is quietly aware of. The senators elected this November will be in office when the trust fund hits that wall.

"The question is no longer whether these challenges demand attention," said the Bipartisan Policy Center after the trustees report was released. "It is whether Washington will find the will to act."

Why Claiming Early Because of Fund Concerns Is Backwards

Here's the irony that retirement experts keep pointing out. The 40% of Americans who say they're filing early because they're worried Social Security will run out are actually making the fund's problem worse — and making their own financial situation worse at the same time.

When large numbers of people claim early, the trust fund pays out benefits earlier and for longer, accelerating depletion. The more people file at 62 instead of 67 or 70, the faster the reserves drain.

And for the individual, claiming early is a permanent reduction. Someone who files at 62 instead of 70 could leave hundreds of thousands of dollars on the table over the course of a long retirement. A person who lives to 85 — not unusual — and claims at 62 instead of 70 can lose well over $200,000 in lifetime benefits. Social Security's own actuarial data consistently shows that the break-even point where waiting pays off comes somewhere in the mid-70s. Anyone who lives past that — and most Americans reaching 62 will — comes out ahead by waiting.

What Would Actually Fix The Trust Fund

There are really only a handful of levers Congress can pull. Raise payroll taxes. Raise or eliminate the cap on income subject to those taxes — currently set at $174,900 in 2026, meaning every dollar earned above that is completely exempt from Social Security tax. Reduce benefits for higher earners. Raise the full retirement age. Or some combination of all of the above.

None of those options are popular. All of them would fix the problem. Congress has been avoiding the conversation for years while the 2032 deadline moves closer.

The senators who win this fall will have to decide whether to keep avoiding it or finally act. Either way, the 75 million Americans currently receiving Social Security benefits — and the millions more paying into it today — are waiting for an answer.

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