Want to retire early? It’s happening more often. When can you receive Social Security?

Former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley sparked a conversation while on her campaign trail for the Republican presidential nomination.

She suggested changing a few things: limit Social Security and Medicare benefits for the wealthy and change the retirement age for the people who are now the youngest working Americans.

While those ideas have been recycled by many candidates in the past, it has stirred up the retirement debate again.

“It’s the new ones coming in. It’s those in their 20s that are coming in. You’re coming to them and you’re saying: The game has changed. We’re going to do this completely differently,” Haley said on Fox News.

The Mercer CFA Institute Global Pension Index, which analyzes retirement systems across the world ranked the U.S. retirement system barely above average with an overall grade of C+. This year the U.S. scored a 63 out of 100, a slight decrease from last year’s score of 63.9.

So how does New Jersey measure up?

As it turns out, 65% of New Jersey residents who moved in 2023 relocated to another state, according to a study done by United Van Lines. And 27% of them said their primary reason for leaving is due to retirement. Apparently the Garden State ranked as the 5th worst state for retirement as residents are departing in search of more affordable housing and smaller crowds, according to a study by RetirementLiving.com.

As of now the average retirement age in the United State is 62. According to Employee Benefit Research Institute workers continue to report an expected retirement age of 65, while retirees actually report differently; the median age of what they’re reporting is 62.

What is the retirement age for Social Security benefits?

Your full retirement age is when you can collect your full Social Security benefits without any penalty. If you were born before 1960, it’s 66 years old. If you were born in 1960 or later, full retirement age is 67.

Can you receive Social Security at age 62?

You can receive Social Security retirement benefits as early as age 62, but the benefits will be reduced. For example, if you turn 62 this year, your benefit would be about 30% lower than it would be at your full retirement age of 67.