Funding life between “I quit” and age 70—without gutting your portfolio
Retiring before your first Social Security check arrives can feel like stepping off a pier and waiting for the tide to rise. Each year you wait to claim your benefits can boost your payments by roughly eight percent, plus cost-of-living adjustments, until you reach age 70. Postponing benefits to age 70 offers you one of the best inflation-adjusted “yields” in retirement finance. The challenge is funding daily living while you wait to claim your benefits. A Social Security bridge is simply a plan for filling that gap so you can let your benefit grow to its maximum. The table below summarizes several ways you can build a social security bridge to keep income flowing without derailing your long-term plan. Most retirees blend two or three tactics based on their unique needs.
Bridge Strategy |
How It Works |
When It Shines |
Trade-Offs |
| Short-Term Bond or CD Ladder | Buy Treasuries or brokered CDs that mature each year until benefits start; spend both interest and principal | You value certainty and are comfortable earmarking assets for the gap | Yields are lower than the “implied return” on delaying Social Security, and tying up cash can reduce portfolio flexibility |
| Deferred or Period-Certain Income Annuity | Exchange a lump sum for guaranteed monthly payments that stop when Social Security begins (period-certain) or start later (deferred income annuity) | You want paycheck-like stability and are willing to trade liquidity for mortality credits | Irrevocable; payments from IRAs are fully taxable and may raise Medicare premiums |
| Part-Time Work or Consulting | Earn enough to cover part of the gap, reducing portfolio withdrawals | You enjoy staying engaged and your health allows light work | Earnings test applies only if you’ve already claimed benefits; doesn’t fit everyone’s lifestyle |
| Reverse Mortgage Term Payments | Use a home-equity conversion mortgage to receive monthly cash for a set term (e.g., age 62-70) | Home equity is large relative to portfolio; you prefer tax-free income that doesn’t affect IRMAA brackets | Fees and future home-equity reduction for heirs |
| Life-Insurance Cash Value | Borrow or withdraw basis from whole-life or universal-life contracts | Long-time policyholders who no longer need a large death benefit | Loans accrue interest and shrink the policy if unmanaged |
| Targeted IRA Withdrawals / Roth Conversions | Pull from pre-tax accounts (or convert to Roth) while you’re in a temporarily low bracket | Gap years often fall in a “tax valley” before RMDs begin, letting you fill brackets strategically | Conversions raise adjusted gross income and can trigger Medicare IRMAA surcharges if you cross the next threshold |
Practical Considerations
A good bridge aligns cash-flow certainty with psychological comfort. Investors who prize flexibility may combine a modest Treasury ladder with sequenced portfolio withdrawals. Safety-seekers who like guarantees may favor an eight-year SPIA paired with partial Roth conversions. Home-equity fans fold in a reverse-mortgage term payment to keep taxes and IRMAA low, while entrepreneurial types may rely on part-time work to preserve assets for heirs.
However it is designed and implemented, the bridge delivers three rewards. First, you lock in a higher, inflation-protected Social Security check for life. Second, you gain valuable control over tax brackets when conversions and capital-gain harvesting are cheapest. Last, you buy peace of mind, because your day-to-day spending no longer depends on the market’s mood.
There are also pitfalls. The biggest is promising yourself, “If markets drop, I’ll just claim Social Security early.” That choice permanently trims your benefit by up to 30 percent. Instead, it is far better to have cash or guaranteed income already earmarked in case of downturns. Another misstep is ignoring how Medicare’s two-year look-back will raise premiums if conversion income spikes in the year you turn 65. Finally, remember not to let the “tax tail wag the dog.” A bridge that saves taxes but starves lifestyle—and joy—misses the point. Saving taxes should be a secondary goal to living the lifestyle you envisioned in retirement.
If you can see yourself leaving work before your Social Security checks start, sketch out those in-between years now. Decide where each dollar will come from, how it will be taxed, and what happens if markets misbehave along the way. A well-built bridge doesn’t just get you to age 70; it lets you enjoy the journey.
Ready to Build Your Bridge?
Discover which income tools resonate with your own retirement personality by taking the free RISA® Profile. You’ll see whether ladders, annuities, reverse mortgages—or a mix—best match your comfort level. Click here to start today and cross that Social Security gap with confidence.
Want to learn more? Listen to Ep. 176 of the Retire With Style Podcast.
