Watch the overview
A quick look at the claiming decision and why break-even math misleads. Then decide whether this topic is for you.
What you'll learn
This topic is built around one question that matters more than almost any other in retirement planning — and the economics-based answer to it.
Break-even calculators turn claiming into a bet on your death date. You'll see why economics treats delayed claiming as longevity insurance instead — priced better than anything a private insurer sells.
Full retirement age, actuarial reductions, delayed retirement credits, and the inflation-indexing that protects your higher benefit from rising prices — the mechanics you need before the decision makes sense.
Follow the Lovejoys through the retire-and-claim decision — what five extra years of work is worth, and how much of that gain comes specifically from the claiming age itself.
Health and longevity, the bridge problem, and the couples' claiming pattern — three situations where claiming early is genuinely the better economics, and how to recognize them in your own household.
A step-by-step walkthrough for entering your earnings record and comparing claiming ages by their effect on your lifetime living standard.
A free 1:1 session with Professor Puelz — for students who complete the topic
Finish the course and score 7 or higher on the closing quiz, and you unlock a free 15-minute live Zoom session with Professor Robert Puelz — focused entirely on your Social Security claiming question and situation.
This is not a webinar or a group call. It is a 1:1.
Scheduling is simple: after you pass, a form appears inside the course. Fill in a few good times and a sentence about what you want to discuss, and your request goes straight to the Moneygimme team.
Unlock this topic
This is a standalone topic — you don't need to have completed Path 1 or Path 2 first. If you've been wrestling with the claiming-age question, start here.
You'll get the full lesson sequence, the claiming-age framework, the closing quiz, and — after you pass — the chance to schedule a 1:1 Zoom session with Professor Puelz to talk through your own situation.
Price: One-time purchase of $99 for full access.
After purchase, you'll receive access instructions by email.
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