Age 62 changes three parts of the plan
- Social Security becomes available, but early claiming can reduce the monthly benefit. The exact effect depends on the worker’s full retirement age and official benefit record.
- Medicare generally has not begun. A person retiring at 62 needs a plan for health coverage before Medicare eligibility, subject to individual circumstances.
- The withdrawal period is longer. Planning from 62 through age 90 creates 29 annual cash-flow rows when both endpoints are included.
Do not automatically claim Social Security when work stops
The calculator deliberately asks for planned retirement age and Social Security claiming age separately. If work ends at 62 but benefits begin at 67, assets and other income must cover the five-year interval. If benefits begin at 62, the cash flow starts sooner but uses the benefit estimate associated with that claiming age.
Use the estimate from your official SSA account. BonusMetric does not tell you that 62, 67, or 70 is universally optimal and does not reconstruct your benefit from incomplete earnings information.
Build the healthcare bridge explicitly
Do not hide pre-Medicare coverage inside a generic spending percentage. Enter the healthcare budget you expect to pay during retirement in today’s dollars, and update the plan when you have actual employer retiree coverage, marketplace pricing, or Medicare information.
Check access to retirement accounts separately
Age 62 is beyond the common age 59½ early-distribution threshold, but account rules and tax treatment still vary. The MVP combines retirement-designated accounts into one investment pool and does not model Traditional, Roth, and taxable withdrawal sequencing. Review account-specific rules before acting.
What would make age 62 more workable?
- Lower essential or housing costs that are genuinely sustainable.
- A funded healthcare bridge to Medicare eligibility.
- Enough liquid assets to cover the period before delayed income begins.
- Debt scheduled to end early in retirement.
- A plan that still holds under a more conservative return and spending scenario.
Retiring at 62 may be feasible for one household and underfunded for another with the same assets. Spending, housing, health coverage, Social Security, pensions, debt, and planning age all matter.
Before deciding, compare age 62 against your current plan in the retirement affordability guide.