Life as the new Lower Middle Class.

[magical thyme]

59. any reduction now is made up for later, when I fully retire

In these parts, I don't expect to exceed the max working p/w anyway, but my main point is that it's not a pat answer. Different people's situations are different, and if the money comes back to you in increased payments later it can make a lot of sense.

For me, I can live off one check and pay down/pay off my student loans and/or make major repairs/upgrades to my house with the other. SSN gets adjusted annually as I continue to knock the last of the very low income years off my average.

Then when I fully retire, I don't have major repairs on the house or student loans hanging over my head, plus at 65 I get a small pension if HP doesn't steal it, and then at 66 my SS gets adjusted if any that was withheld while I was working. And without the student loans hanging over me, I can sell my house at a loss, enabling me to downsize to reduce my property taxes, heating costs, etc.

So for me, it makes far more sense than continuing to run myself into the ground and feeling miserable working at one p/t job I hate and another p/t job that I like but can't get enough hours at to support myself.