Tess in the Burbs Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 I knew it would happen. The time has come. Both kids will be needing braces this year. DS needs it now. He has 1 last tooth to fall out. He has a ton of work needed to get his bite correct, his midline back in the middle and the front overbite fixed. DD needs to wait until 4 more teeth fall out. She too needs a bite fixed, the midline corrected and her overbite fixed. Her issues aren't as severe as Ds. Our first round of braces was short(under a year) and it was a brand new practice so we got a great deal. I was quoted 6900 yesterday for 2 year plan. I assumed it was metal braces. The retainers are different though. It's a permanent bar on the bottom behind the front 4 teeth. The top looked like invisilign but it was thicker. Looks like a better way than normal retainers. Insurance will put 1500 toward that. They wanted some down and then monthly payments. When dd starts she would get 10% off. So I would be paying on braces for almost 3 years when we do this. So much for a small car when the boy turns 16 ! I am making another consult but this time in another town nearby that the average salary isn't so high in hopes of a better financial package. what's the average price these days? Is it worth paying more for the nicer metal? Or ceramic? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itsheresomewhere Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 DS was quoted 6k for just the metal braces. That does not include the removal several teeth that need to be removed. Your price would be very within the norm here. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 Tess, let me look stuff up but I was quoted a much better deal in a nearby town than what I was quoted here in our town (though the place here is much swankier!) I can't remember the name though. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tess in the Burbs Posted March 18, 2015 Author Share Posted March 18, 2015 I went to the place here in our town...and honestly I wasn't impressed. It was sign here today and let's get started. I think they were ticked off I insisted on another price. And our orthodontists in VA were way swankier than here. I was surprised to be honest. I am calling a place just south of here that has good reviews next. I hate putting them through so many X-rays but the office doesn't share apparently. So only DS will get a second opinion. I know dd has to wait for these other teeth to come out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unsinkable Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 It is about 1000* more than we paid for our kids. Just a warning...think about that permanent retainer on the bottom. We declined it and got the same bottom retainer as the top. Our biggest reasons (which might not apply to everyone, I understand that) are that it gives off "artifact" in MRIs which my DD needs periodically; it is difficult to floss around and keep tartar from building up; it can affect speech ( I've been told this by people who have them...they hated it). *the clear braces were $500 more for top only 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinder Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 Our was about $4300 two years ago for a 12-15 month treatment period to correct an underbite. (We're in the ATL area.) The price included the follow-up retainer checks. Ds2 had the standard metal braces, standard metal retainer for the upper teeth, plastic retainer for the bottom. We got a discount since this was ds2's second round of braces with the same practice--it was slightly more than 10% for us because they do a flat rate $500. I have no idea how much more it would cost today. We totally lucked out because at the time we were looking at having to foot the whole bill. But right before we committed dh's company changed dental insurance plans so we got to start over and our new benefits covered a large chunk of the cost. :grouphug: Oh well, your ds can always get himself a car later, right? My brother had to wait until he was an adult and could pay for his own ortho treatment. His crossbite and underbite were causing other issues with neck pain and headaches. It was far more expensive than braces would have and included major surgery. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeWillSoar Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 We went to two places, and there was a difference of about a thousand dollars in price. So it might pay to shop around! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TammyS Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 We're paying $6200 for regular metal braces. Our insurance pays nothing, but we get a $700 discount because we *have* the insurance :confused1: I'd say it's about inline. On thing to consider is whether invisalign is a good idea for your kids. I've heard some parents have issues with compliance and that it might be better with some kids to just get the fixed braces. Am I the only one bothered by all of the "swank" in these offices? I mean, honestly, this already costs what a decent used car would cost...could we maybe dump the theater (I mean this literally, my son's ortho has a THEATHER) and lower the price some? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joker Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 We paid $5000 for oldest 2.5 years ago. We're paying $6000 for youngest right now. That's for metal braces, normal upper retainer, permanent bottom retainer (definitely getting since oldest already has shifting on bottom teeth), and headgear. The ortho said he rarely uses headgear anymore but poor youngest needs it because he wants to try everything possible before deciding to pull permanent teeth. That would be extra. ETA: The swank! Our ortho, and the staff, this time around is awesome but he has a water fall fountain and video games in the front. Why? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lauranc Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 Two of my kids are currently in braces. We are paying ~$5000 combined for both. Includes metal braces, retainers and follow up. I would not do the ceramic braces only because I had them and didn't care for them at all. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unsinkable Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 Our ortho split a Victorian era house with another doctor. No swank. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrixieB Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 That's in line with the prices here. I rarely see kids with the clear/ceramic braces -- that seems to be something the adult patients go for. I figured my kids' braces cost enough without the extra $ for clear/ceramic. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 That sounds in the ballpark. I am paying a little less, but I bet the COL here is less than for you, so it evens out. I personally wouldn't get invisalign for kids b/c compliance, loss, etc is going to be a pain. I've known a couple adults who got them and they all intensely disliked them. But if I needed braces for myself I might consider it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthwestMom Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 Sadly, your quote is in line with what I have paid to two different orthodontists (for two different children) up here near Evergreen Hospital. Am I the only one bothered by all of the "swank" in these offices? I mean, honestly, this already costs what a decent used car would cost...could we maybe dump the theater (I mean this literally, my son's ortho has a THEATHER) and lower the price some? :iagree: :iagree: :iagree: :iagree: :iagree: :iagree: That is why I tried Office #2. SO sick of "Like us on Facebook and receive a bedazzled coffee mug!" "Come to our Skymania party!" as if I didn't know that I am paying for these marketing efforts. UGH UGH UGH. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tess in the Burbs Posted March 18, 2015 Author Share Posted March 18, 2015 Ok, I just realized the place up the road from me isn't in network. My in network list was weird, every time I tried to update different people showed up and others disappeared from the map. I have a call into a place near me, in network, and shouldn't be swanky based on their location choices. ;-) Once i have that quote I will decide about doing a third consult. It's a lot of X-rays and I don't want to just keep doing that. but I do wonder if these other places will come in cheaper being in network. I had just gone where my in network dentist sent me....but the ortho wasn't in network. Sneaky people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shellydon Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 We have no braces coverage. It is going to be about $5000 per kid. I have two getting them this summer. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minerva Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 I have no experience with this, but I am really bothered by the fact that your orthodontist won't give you your x-rays. Maybe this is standard procedure, but presumably you have paid for them, so they should belong to you. Am I way off base on this? I hate x-rays and would do what I could to get them to hand them over. Sorry for the mini rant, but sheesh! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joker Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 I have no experience with this, but I am really bothered by the fact that your orthodontist won't give you your x-rays. Maybe this is standard procedure, but presumably you have paid for them, so they should belong to you. Am I way off base on this? I hate x-rays and would do what I could to get them to hand them over. Sorry for the mini rant, but sheesh! Here those x rays are part of the free consult all ortho offer. So, you don't actually pay for them. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tess in the Burbs Posted March 18, 2015 Author Share Posted March 18, 2015 well, each office does it their own way. So one office might use traditional X-rays. Other uses the fancy full mouth digital ones. It's not normal to bring them with you. When DS did the first round we moved and the new office wanted their own pics. Very normal but for a mom not wanting her kids exposed to multiple X-rays it's frustrating. Insurance pays for the X-rays. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momto10blessings Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 Erased because my prices were hearsay and seem WAY too low compared to others Carry on :) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mimm Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 Ours was about $6000 and that paid for everything. Consultation was free (and there was no pressure to make a decision that day, and I would never go to a place that would pressure me to make a six thousand dollar decision in a day). Braces, all visits, retainers, all of it was covered by the price quoted. I got 5% off by paying ahead of time, or I could make payments. I liked the orthodontist and I did go to another office and get a similar quote but I preferred the way the first office was going to go about it, so I went with them. It's been about six months now and her teeth are looking a ton better. The office we went with is nice but smaller. They have bottled water for free in the lobby and wifi but that's it for perks. The other place I went for a quote was huge and felt like a bank lobby. And the treatment he was suggesting was less up to date from what I read online. So it seemed like not the best priorities there. We didn't pay for xrays when we went in for the consultation, they did those for free and they kept them. When I went to the second place, same thing. Seems to be somewhat standard in my area. It would be frustrating if you were wanting to limit xray exposure if you were wanting several quotes. One thing that did make me laugh is that everyone who works there has perfect teeth. When we asked questions, they would frequently answer, "Well when I had mine done.." Even if it was just a receptionist or something. Apparently that's a requirement for working there. :) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicksMama-Zack's Mama Too Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 5000 per kid here, no matter what the treatment. Oldest had Herbst appliance, youngest had palate expander. Price included all aspects of the braces including retainers (traditional upper and c permanent lower) and two year follow up. It was a swanky practice. I've had a permanent lower retainer for 25 years and have had no problems with it and honestly, I rarely floss under it with the threaded floss). I still wear a retainer at night. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kroe1 Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 Invisalign is becoming a cheaper option for many people, especially since regular dentists can prescribe them. DD had the clear braces for phase 1 and Invisalign for phase 2. The last tray in Invisalign becomes the retainer the kiddos wear at night. You may want to see if your kiddos are candidates. Plus, DD saved a ton by getting headgear for the overbite. Since she is homeschooled, compliance was not a problem. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chocolatechip Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 I have adult braces (read, the fee is more, about $1000-$1500 more than child under 18) to correct a teeth wear issue. My quote was less than yours by about $1400. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 Honestly, I'd like a teensy bit of swank...just a little bit. Maybe some free coffee in the office? A plant? Some music? Lord knows I am paying enough that they could cough up a freaking Keurig or something. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prairiewindmomma Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 $5900-6400 were the quotes I got a few months ago for one kid, $2000ish for phase 1 (6 months) for the other kid. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrixieB Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 Just had another $0.02 to add: I wouldn't choose an orthodontist based on price alone. If you can get recommendations from people who are happy with their kids' orthodontic work (or their own orthodontic work) that is a huge plus. Also, if you have a dentist you like and trust, who does he/she recommend? We really like and trust our family dentist. He has been my dentist for 25 years now. He recommended our ortho, who was his kids' ortho. I could have probably found one who was less expensive, but I am really pleased with the work she did on my kids' teeth. Plus she is a very kind and pleasant person (and her staff are too) which is important when your kids are scheduled for visits every 5-8 weeks. Other things of importance: Office hours (usually 3-5 days a week but I heard of one in our area who is in the office only one day per MONTH!) Driving distance (because things break/fall off and if you have to drive an hour each way...) 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom22ns Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 My dd was able to have her braces done through our regular dentist. His charge was about $3000 and our insurance paid $2,000. The dentist considered ds's case too complicated for him. The orthodontist charged $6500, same $2000 paid by insurance. Dd was done in just under two years. Ds has had his braces for 2 1/2 and they are now estimating close to 3 years before he gets them off. Dd did get ceramic brackets. She really preferred that and since I saved so much by getting hers through the dentist office, I didn't mind the extra couple hundred for ceramic. They really were less visible. People often thought she was just wearing a retainer. Speaking of retainers, Dd got a permanent retainer on the bottom. She has been very happy with it. The dentist that put it in has one himself. No speech issues. Ds will get removable top and bottom retainers. His orthodontist doesn't like permanent retainers. We had good orthodontia benefits because dh's company offered 2 different dental plans and with the higher plan we got double the orthodontia coverage. It cost us something like $10 more/month and we only kept it for one year when both kids got their braces, so buy paying $120 extra we got $2000 extra benefit. Score. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinder Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 Honestly, I'd like a teensy bit of swank...just a little bit. Maybe some free coffee in the office? A plant? Some music? Lord knows I am paying enough that they could cough up a freaking Keurig or something. Yeah, ours has a Keurig and I take advantage of it every time. :D Dd just likes the free gum. She's not even the patient. lol 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tess in the Burbs Posted March 18, 2015 Author Share Posted March 18, 2015 I appreciate the opinion about the permanent retainer on the bottom. I had never seen that before. Not sure what we will decide about that. I won't choose based on cost. Dh and I agree that if locations come within $500 of each other then we will choose the one we are most comfortable with. I had a list to call today, but I am going to focus my efforts on getting in network first. The office is open tomorrow for one not too far away but in network. I hope their prices will be lower. My dentist suggested the one we saw yesterday, but they are not in network and I didn't love them. It was just ok. My previous places I felt good about. This felt like a pushy sales call. So I want to look at at least one more that is in network. And maybe one I see good reviews for down the road. We don't know enough people here to get a lot of reviews. In our past town it was obvious where to go. I only know 1 kid who has braces. I will call the in network place tomorrow. see what their deal is. And then I have another one to call next week that is swankier but not too far away. this is just a pain in the butt! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngieW in Texas Posted March 19, 2015 Share Posted March 19, 2015 I went to three orthodontists. Two of them wanted about $5000 and wanted to pull 4-6 adult teeth and use headgear. The third wanted about $5500 and said he tried not to pull any adult teeth if at all possible, but might need to pull 2. The dentist was very much against pulling any teeth on the bottom because of dd's recessed jaw. He said that if her jaw recessed any further, it would need to be broken and moved, and that removing teeth on the bottom would cause it to recess further. He strongly advocated for the third ortho. We ended up going for the third ortho. He managed to do it without pulling any adult teeth. We got the permanent retainer on the bottom that she will keep at least until she goes to college. She also has a removable top retainer that she sleeps with at night. She knows that she still needs it because she doesn't wear it when she feels like she's starting to come down with something and after just 1-2 nights without it, it hurts to wear it the next night. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cottonwood Posted March 19, 2015 Share Posted March 19, 2015 I visited 3 places and got estimates before deciding. We ended up with the most expensive one ($6100) only because of the way they billed our insurance..it was more helpful for us in the long run b/c dh is military. If we moved it would get all complicated but not with this ortho. We also chose him b/c he didn't do the permanent retainer. Just good old fashioned metal braces with bands and a retainer at the end. We are almost at the 3 yr mark..ug! This is never going to end! lol 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted March 19, 2015 Share Posted March 19, 2015 DD16s were about $5000 for traditional style braces. She only needed minor corrections plus a couple of months in Forsus springs (no expanders or other appliances). She did get the permanent retainer on the bottom and has a clear retainer on top 24hours a day for 6mths and then will move to a traditional nighttime wire one after that. She was done with brackets and wires in 20 months. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LucyStoner Posted March 19, 2015 Share Posted March 19, 2015 Are you near Jean? That means we are in the same general region. I paid less than that AND the retainers (all three- upper invisible, lower hawley type and lower permanent one) were included in that price. It pays to shop around. PM me if you want a reccomendation. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momling Posted March 19, 2015 Share Posted March 19, 2015 My DD's total was $6400 but had $2000 of it paid for by insurance. That included the palatal expander and any needed headgear or retainers and such, but not oral surgery to bring down impacted teeth (done) or to correct her underbite (which is hopefully not going to be needed). The office is swanky - lots of iPads, pop music and overly cheerful staff. They also do monthly competitions and t-shirts for kids and such. It's unnecessary but my younger daughter loves that sort of thing (Possibly because she was the winner of $50 of cold stone gift cards last summer) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amira Posted March 19, 2015 Share Posted March 19, 2015 $2000 here in Mexico. Thank you, Mexico. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
umsami Posted March 19, 2015 Share Posted March 19, 2015 I would definitely get another consult. Here, the two main orthodontists differ by $1000. I had ceramic braces when I had them in college. At the time, I was already so self-conscious of having braces as an adult that it was worth it. (25+ years ago, it was $5000.) If your kids are "normal" age to have braces, then I'd probably go with normal metal ones. They can customize them with rubber bands and such for fun. :) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinder Posted March 19, 2015 Share Posted March 19, 2015 If your kids are "normal" age to have braces, then I'd probably go with normal metal ones. They can customize them with rubber bands and such for fun. :) I forgot about customizing. Ds2 got a blue chain once or twice. It looked pretty good with the silver brackets. There were a few other colors offered. And the first time he got his retainer done in half blue/half red--the plastic part, I mean. (Can't remember what that's called.) 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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