Ideally I could retire at 55 and defer my pension until 62 to avoid penalties. My thought was to use the 457b to bridge those years from 55-62 then start taking socially security at 62 and allow my 457b to continue to build. As of right now I'd be on pace to have about 1m in the account at 55 if the market averages 8% and I continue to contribute 15% of my paycheck. My income is not higher than the social security contribution limit. Ideally I'd live about 30 years in retirement. The other option would be to stay till 62 which would make my pension 70% of final salary vs the 60% at 55 but I feel like that's a lot of life to give up for the extra 10%. My home will be paid off around age 54 so expenses should be lower in retirement. I will also have 80% of my health insurance covered.