I have early 30s jowls. Is a lower facelift the best option for me? (photos)

Your photos and age appear to contraindicate a facelift. I do not recommend any intervention for your youthful beautiful neck. Talk to someone who really cares about you concerning this area. Good luck...

At 30 it is not common to under go a lower facelift - you may be a can dilate for less invasive options like liposuction or even ultherapy to tighten the lower face skin laxity. The pictures are helpful, however on exam, it will be beneficial to examine the skin tone and laxity and give you a better idea as to exactly what your options are. Other options for jawline contouring and definition are fillers, fat transfer and implants. 

A short scar facelift is a great option for many people. The recovery & downtime is very minimal. There are usually no drains, most people can go out the same day, you can shower the next day, there're no scars behind the ears and you can wear your hair up anytime and most patients take no pain medicine. The result is usually the same in selected patients as a full scar facelift but it really depends on your exam.
Surgery is not for everyone. In today's day and age, there are many nonsurgical options to consider although surgery usually gets the most improvement specifically of the neck and jowls.
I would recommend that you see a board-certified plastic surgeon in your area that is a member of both ASPS & ASAPS and performs a lot of mini facelifts and neck lifts but also offers all the nonsurgical options such as injectables and laser treatments. Go over your concerns with them and make sure above all, you walk out of there with several options and an idea of the pros and cons to each of them as well as realistic expectations. 
I hope this helps and wish you all the best in your surgery and event. If it does, please take a moment to up vote this answer on the “respond” button on the top right.

At this point, you could get the result you want with liposuction to the area and non surgical skin tightening.  Its best to go for a personal consultation.

I recommend fillers for the jowls themselves but also lifting around the mouth and cheeks to build underlying anatomical support. In our practice we combine sculptra with other fillers "layered" on top and lasers, rf treatments, J Plasma and peels to get the most conservative natural look. Please see a facial sculpting expert. Best, Dr. Emer

In view of what appears to be excellent skin tone in the photos, liposuction of the jowls may work well. You also appear to have an indentation in front of the jowl. Fat transfer to that area may also solve the entire problem for you. If the skin is lax in addition to the jowl bulge, nonsurgical skin tightening may also play a role in the solution to your problem. Visit with a plastic surgeon for a consultation, please. 

 Hi, I have performed many facial shaping procedures using dermal fillers, silastic facial implants (cheek, chin), liposuction and/or facelifts for over 30 years.  From the photos your cheeks are a bit flat in the front, the chin is quite weak but there is minimal evidence of "jowls".  
 In that scenario, augmenting the chin and cheeks and with local removal of the excess skin (under the chin) seems to make the most sense.  Facelifts are performed to address bowling which in your case seems to be rather minimal.
  I have performed many facial shaping procedures, including Chin Augmentation with dermal fillers or silastic chin implants, for over 30 years.  When the chin is weak, this creates an imbalance making the nose appear larger, the mid face top heavy, the lower face looks short, de-emphasizes the lips and allows early formation of a "double chin".  
 Proper placement of a silastic chin implant adds forward projection to the chin thereby creating harmony and balance to the lower face.  Using the same incision, liposuction can be performed to reduce the fat and further shape the neck.  Excess skin, from below the chin, can also be removed through the same incision.  
 I have found that placement of a silastic chin implant, through a small curved incision under the chin (also allows excess skin removal) to be very safe, quick, highly effective and far less invasive than a sliding genioplasty (requires extensive tissue dissection, bone cuts and placement of metal screws and plates to secure the cut segments of bone).  I perform chin implant surgery in 30 minutes or less, often using a local anesthetic alone.  In my opinion, you are a good candidate for chin implant surgery.  
 Following my beauty principles, women look the most feminine, youthful and attractive with heart shaped faces.  Heart shaped faces have cheeks that are full and round in the front.  Cheek augmentation with a dermal filler or using silastic cheek implants for a permanent enhancement will create full, round cheeks that will feminize the entire face.
 In contrast, the following information describes a facelift.  
 I have performed many SMAS facelifts for over 30 years and have performed many minimally, invasive SMAS facelifts.  If you have "jowls” these are sagging facial tissues and the main indication for some form of a SMAS facelift.  The underlying SMAS layer, of the face, must be dissected, lifted, trimmed and re-sutured (not merely folded or suspended with threads or sutures that will not last).  The excess skin is then removed and the facelift incisions closed.
 My most popular SMAS facelift is the minimally invasive, short incision SMAS facelift that has all the benefits of more invasive facelifts (traditional, mid-face, deep plane, cheek lift and subperiosteal facelifts) but with these added benefits:
very small incisions and no incisions extend or are placed within the hair.minimal tissue dissection less bruising and swelling rapid recovery ( several days instead of weeks or months with the more invasive type facelifts mentioned)can be performed in 90 minutes or less, with or without general anesthesiaproper SMAS Imbrication techniqueno incisions within the hair no hair lossexcess fat can be removed from the face and neckexcess skin removed from the face and neckcheeks, chin and jaw line can be augmented with dermal fillers (I prefer Restylane Lyft) or facial implantsmost patients fly back home to parts all over the world in as little as 3 days post-op I combine facial shaping with every facelift procedure.  When jowls are present, these should be done in concert and not alone or separately in order to create a naturally, more attractive face.
Hope this helps.