Tough Decision

[Maverick]

Hello,

For the last month I was really excited about getting braces.
I've had two consults and its a tough decision for me to make now financially.

I was really excited before these consults, because from reading on the internet, I was expecting a quote between $3000-$5000.
Now the two orthos I've gone to have very similar prices about $6100, for Metal Brackets/20-30 Months.
I suspect they both have "standard prices" for all patients and do not set the price on a patient to patient basis?

I might book another consult to see if the third ortho is similar as well, but the waiting period for consults is about month.

I guess that's what I get for living in a big city like Toronto, Big prices.
My case isn't a very complicated one, I don't think it should be that much.

I could delay treatment for now and save some more money?
But, that's not something I want to do with something like braces that takes 2 years to complete once I finally start. I'm almost 21 now.

It really sucks that I got my hopes up and now I'm uncertain if it's going to happen now.
I've missed out on so much in life socially because of my teeth. I never smile, and talk as little as possible.
Many people think I'm mean or too serious, because I only have one facial expression, pretty much.

Here are some pictures of my teeth.







What do you think? I just had to share with someone.

Thanks

[ArchAngle]

Please do not delay.

I went through the same thing. All set to go at around the same age, put off by the price, thought I would need to save in order to go on. Start, time goes by, you forget about, other things take place and at the end of the day 20 years have flown by

Critical: you do not have to pay the entire amount in one go. The price you mention looks correct for the Big Smoke for a full and complete treatment (there is or was someone here with a 6 month treat - next to nothing needed to be done - paying 5000$). Most if not all orthos there will take 1200 down on 6200 and balance on your credit card over the 24 months. This is nothing. $200 a month. If you got 3000 saved, squirrel it away you are well ahead of the game. But do not delay to try to save the full amount - it is not necessary and chances are you will get sidetracked and delay it even longer.

Leap in and enjoy. You will not regret it.

Did your dentist give you a referral? Get refer alls f rom your dentist so the ortho knows you good to pay. Go for one more if you like but be wary if the price is well below what has already been quoted.

[purpleteeth]

Price does depend on the length of treatment. My braces were 4700$USD, but my treatment time is only 18 months... however I will have splinting done of my TMJ and other stuff too, in addition to the braces. I was quoted nearly 6grand by another ortho and I ran out of that office, not to mention I was told it could take 2yrs!

In terms of delaying treatment, you are never too old to get them and if you believe you can get them cleaper later on - then wait. Your teeth won't necessarily getting WORSE between now and then, so it can't hurt.

[SnowSara]

Yes, next step would be to talk payment options with these orthos (which might help you decide who to use as well). And if you have insurance or any benefits look into ways that that can help you pay for it as well. For instance, I used my company's Flex Spending Account to pay for my braces which saved me a bundle in taxes (I figured out what I was paying per year on my braces and set that aside in my account). Then all I had to do was send in my receipts for my ortho payments and I would get reimbursed right away. In my case they also reimbursed the downpayment so I didn't have to worry about coming up with any money up front.

Even without that sort of benefit I still agree with the others that say not to worry about saving up all that money before starting treatment, your ortho should be able to do a payment plan that works for you!

[Maverick]

So, I made another consult appointment for next week.

The second Ortho I went to was very flexible with payment.
They would do a $1200 Deposit and about $150 a month for 40 months, so that's pretty good, but I'll see what happens at the next ortho next week.

That price is for Sapphire brackets on top and includes the records fee.

The real financial complication I have is I owe a few thousand in traffic fines since I was a bad boy on my motorcycle.
I'm applying for an extension of these fines and if the extention is granted, It'll be easier to afford the braces.

Plus, I just looked into claiming Orthodontics on my tax return and it seems I could possibly be refunded more than $2000.

So, I'm going to get them ASAP. Just have to wait till the next consult.
If all works out I could have my braces this month or next.

[river]

Hello, wow i think your teeth will look amazing after braces , i would do it as soon as you can , I have learnt the longer you wait the more the price goes up.

Get as many free consultations as you can , i was lucky , i only went to two . one was in birmingham -uk ( had to pay £80 consultation fee for 15 mins ) and the other one was out of the city in a small high street . they didnt charge me anything for the consultation and was over £1000 cheaper plus they were much nicer

Good luck

[ohmyjaw]

Maverick,

I live in Victoria BC, and I got three different quotes. All were between $6000 and $7000. I think this is typical for Canada - it doesn't really matter where you live.

Also, you can claim orthodontics on your tax return as long as your total medical expenses amount to more than 3% of your income. You may want to figure out how much that is for you, before you agree to a payment plan. In some cases it is advanageous to pay more up-front, so that you can exceed that 3% in a single year. Make sense?

Good luck!

[eh to zed]

I was reading an article about cost of braces, and in general in Canada it is higher, than the neighbours to the south.

Edit: I found the article!
Here you go Maverick (and others who are interested)

USA

NorthWest
Idaho N. Idaho $5,184 (Damon brackets)
Oregon Portland suburbs $5,500
Washington Seattle $5,700
Wyoming Casper $4,200

SouthWest & California
Texas unknown $4,500
Texas Austin $5,500
Texas Houston $4,800
California San Jose area $5,620
California SF East Bay area $4,500
California Los Angeles $4,000
California SF Peninsula area $5,000
Arizona Phoenix $4,200
Arizona Phoenix suburbs $3,250

Central States
Illinois Chicago suburbs $5,500
Illinois Chicago city $3,975
South Dakota Sioux Falls $5,225
Wisconsin SE area $4,600
Indiana Logansport $4,500
Ohio Cleveland $2,500
Ohio Cincinnati $5,000
Michigan Ann Arbor $5,000
Iowa Central area $3,700

NorthEast
Washington D.C. Washington suburbs $3,600 (speed braces)
Connecticut New Haven $5,200
New Hampshire Manchester suburbs $5,980
Virginia Fishersville $4,650
Maryland Annapolis $4,000

SouthEast
Georgia Atlanta $4,700
North Carolina Raleigh $5,985 (with expanders)
North Carloina Charlotte $4,600
North Carolina Ashville $4,245
Florida Orlando $5,000
Tennessee Nashville $2,850 (six months)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Canada

Vancouver C $5,557, $5400
Montreal C $4,800
Newfoundland (Grand Falls) C $1,200 (top treatment only)
Edmonton C $5,500
Ontario C $5,200
Ottawa C $6,900

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Europe and the UK

Poland Warsaw PLN 5,200
France 3,500 Euro
Scotland 2,200 Pounds
Ireland Galway 3,500 Euro
Ireland Dublin 5,500 Euro
Great Britain Somerset 2,100 Pounds (Damon Brackets)
Germany 3,660 Euro
Finland Helsinki 3,000 Euro

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Africa and South Africa

South Africa Capetown R17,000

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

New Zealand

unknown city NZ $4,500
unknown city NZ $3,800

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Austrialia

Melbourne suburbs AU $4,400
Melbourne city AU $5,500+
Sydney (New South Wales) AU $5,770

[eybic]

I'm starting to think that living in the UK is actually a good thing now . I've been told that my treatment would cost well over £10k including surgery but luckily because it is necessary, I dont have to pay anything (thank god for the NHS)

[TumbleDryLow]

Hmmm........I'm sure most will, but take that price list as a very general guideline.

I got 4 ortho consults in and around Ann Arbor, MI, and man, do I wish the bottom line came to $5000! It should say $6000+ and my case isn't that complicated. (Add more for clear brackets.)

[Maverick]

Hey,

I had my third consult and not surprisingly the price was within $100 of the other two orthos!

So, for metal brackets top and bottom I'm looking at approx. $6500 Total.
For Sapphire top, metal bottom it would be approx. $7100 Total.
+/- $100-$200 depending on which ortho I choose.

I'm pretty sure I'm going to choose the second ortho I saw.
They had the most flexible payment plan, the Dr was very nice and more informative then the others, he has about 15 years experience and was the first my dentist referred to.

Now, I just have to book my records appointment and get started!

I also have to decide between Metal or Sapphire tops?
I'd like to get Sapphire on top, but I could save $500 by getting metal? hmmm?

I suppose I could cope with metal brackets.
I'll probably procrastinate a little bit longer, but soon I will start!

[Faerydust]

Wow, coming from Hawaii where most things cost more than the mainland US, $6100 sounds quite high! My total cost was $4058 and that's for ceramics.

Is it possible that any orthos in your area offer discounts for college students? I enrolled in my dental office's college student discount plan so I get a percentage off most dental/orthodontic services. I don't have medical or dental insurance so the discount program was really helpful.

$4058 is still pricey for a student so I'm using a portion of my student loans to pay for my orthodontic work and extractions.

From my experience I really wish I could've started treatment sooner. I've wanted to fix my smile since my early 20's, but at the time I couldn't afford braces and I wasn't a student so student loans weren't an option. If it's in anyway possible for you to start treatment soon, I'd say go for it! I'm 25 and just started my treatment this past March. I'm so glad that I finally have the opportunity to do this now, but if I had a way to go back in time and start sooner, I'd have saved myself about 5 years of feeling self-conscious about my teeth and trying not to open my mouth too much when smiling.

Lastly, I want to mention that you have nice teeth. They look evenly sized/shaped and you don't have a bunch of fillings showing like I do. It seems that you'd have an easy case to treat and wonderful results. Go for it!

[Maverick]

Hey,

I wanted to see what my teeth would look like with metal brackets.
So, a few minutes in Photoshop and walaa! Cool, eh?



These aren't the same brackets I would be getting, but it gives a general idea.
I'm still undecided, but I have some time to decide.
Maybe my ortho will have some incite on what I should choose. I know I will have to wear elastics, but I don't know for how long.

I took the braces out of this picture by the way.
http://motdesign.com/shvu/orthochi/phot ... gating.jpg

[Maverick]

I did another one with Ceramics on top this time.

http://motdesign.com/shvu/orthochi/phot ... eramic.jpg

[Miranbrady20]

thats pretty cool! you should do mine with damons on top and bottom! I'm so anxious to know what it will look like!