Financial Crooks

Why Do I Care Whether PC Financial Is Offering an Interest Rate Bonus for 3 Months on Savings?

When Tangerine announced its newest incentive to lure new customers we already had our savings largely in our Tangerine account. That meant our cash savings account money was only going to keep receiving the regular 1.3% interest rate. The Tangerine 3% rate only applies to deposits made which raise the total of your savings above the level they were at on August 31. (You can read the details of what they add up at the Tangerine website.)

So I waited for PC Financial to come out with a competing offer. Then I could simply transfer our cash savings (basically our emergency fund plus a bit for a home project that starts in the New Year) to our President’s Choice savings account.

Crickets chirped.

Sunrise. Sunset. (Cue Fiddler on the Roof.)

It wasn’t till I was reading a thread on RedFlagDeals about the Tangerine promotion that I found out that PC Financial HAD launched a competitive offer. They were NOT advertising it on their website nor by email to their customers; at least, not by September 8, 2014.

Ah ha! But as of today, September 9, the ad is up on the PC Financial website. Anyway….

What Is the PC Financial Bonus Rate Offer?

Well, I’m still trying to get the details in writing.

By telephone, we were told

They will add up all of your types of savings with them as of September 5, 2014. This would include your chequing account, savings account, TFSA and RRSP amounts. (It may include other amounts: check the details carefully.)

Interest will only be paid on the daily balance that is higher than this amount. (That’s the same rule as Tangerine.)

The new money must be deposited by September 30 2014 to qualify. Remember that the date it is deposited is not necessarily the date you make the transfer from another bank or the date you put a cheque into an ABM. It has to be processed and posted to your account before September 30. (That’s the same at Tangerine as well, although there the money has to be in your account by September 15.)

You must “enroll” to receive the offer. To do so, you must talk to an agent at their 1 888 723 8881 number (press 0 if you want to skip the tree of choices), by visiting a PCF pavilion or hub and speaking to the agent, or if you get one, by accepting the online banking invitation sent to your email.

The higher interest rate, which only applies to the money you deposit above the amount you had in your accounts September 5, applies until December 15, 2014. Any amount equal or below the amount on September 5 just earns the usual interest rate. For savings that’s about 1.3%.

You can now read the complete details at the PC Financial website.

How Did Our Chat with the Agent Go?

Well, once again we hit the “Primary Account Holder” stupidity. Only my husband can ask to have the interest rate promotion applied to our Savings account. I’ve ~~ranted~~ talked about this before: Can you believe my husband would OBJECT if I, the Secondary Account Holder, managed to get us a higher interest rate on our savings without him having to do anything?

The rate did get applied to our account. But I had to phone again to check if it was working because the “confirmation email” we were promised has not arrived yet, as of September 9. (We called on September 7.)

So Off Our Money Goes

So our money is off on another adventure. Wish me luck!

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Do you transfer your savings balance to capture the best possible rate in these days of ultra-low interest rates? Or would you rather skip the dim sum lunch you could buy with the additional proceeds and just leave your money parked in one bank? Please share your views with a comment.

Somewhere round about age 8 or 9 you start realizing that although the Tooth Fairy has been bringing lovely healthy adult teeth to your child, they seem to have brought ones wrong size. Teeth are coming in at odd angles or in strange places. With a tinge of sadness and worry you realize that your child may be going to need braces to look presentable or to eat comfortably. And with another twinge you realize that you don’t have long to save up for this unplanned expense: Didn’t your nephew get his braces on at 12? And your neighbour’s kid at 13? How much do you need to save for orthodontic work for your child or, worse, your children?

Orthodontists Know You Are Already Afraid of Braces So They Don’t Scare You with Online Prices

Orthodontists are very considerate. They know many parents are already scared of getting braces put on their child’s teeth. What if they hurt? What if they have to have healthy teeth pulled? What if they don’t brush properly and end up with dozens of cavities? What if they use whitening toothpaste while wearing braces and end up with permanent “checkerboards” on their teeth? So Orthodontists don’t usually put the cost of treatment on their websites: instead, they invite you to visit for a consultation.

That is why, right? It isn’t because they’re afraid you might shop for prices online? Or faint?

What Does It Cost to Get Braces?

Orthodontists are quick to point out that every mouth is different and costs can vary widely.

Fair enough. It is true that someone who has a malformed jaw or needs four teeth extracted or is missing permanent adult teeth will need different treatment that someone who just has a mild overbite.

However, as a parent I need and needed some number to budget with. Were we looking at $2000, $5000, $7500 or over $10 000?

Friends and Family May Be Reluctant to Share the Cost of Their Child’s Braces

Surprisingly, to me, many friends and family seemed embarrassed when asked a vague “what price range are braces these days?”

I suspect they were all afraid they’d been “taken” and didn’t want to quote a number in case they discovered they’d paid thousands more than they needed to.

Orthodontics are also a very expensive procedure and people often feel someone is going to accuse them of spending too much on their child “just to look pretty.”

What Did We Pay for Orthodontics Specifically Braces?

I can tell you what we paid, in southern Ontario where there are quite a few orthodontists available.

For a child who only really needed correction of a fairly severe over-bite, it cost $6500.

That’s for the initial installation, all the adjustments over 2.5 years (estimated), a retainer, and an “appliance.”

That’s not including any extractions or any sophisticated appliances to change jaw shape or length. (I was hugely relieved that no extractions were required. I doubt we would have gone ahead if they had been.)

We had guesstimated $10 000 for budgeting a few years ago, so we sighed a bit with relief because we had the money waiting in the bank.

What Did Other People Pay for Braces?

Since I had a hard time getting numbers from relatives and friends, I used the anonymity of the internet to try to get a few other opinions.

Here are some of the results:

For a child in 2013, $6910
For a teen for 5 years of treatment including a Herbst appliance and braces, $10 000
For a child, two quotes for the same work in 2014: $6500, $7000
For a child, for braces for 1 year, in 2007, $4500
For a child in 2004, $5500
For a child in 1999, $5000
For an adult, 28, in 2014: 5800
For an adult $7-8 000

So there seems to be a bit of a range.

What Should You Budget for Orthodontic Work or Braces for Your Child?

First, I’d check what, if any, coverage your work place provides for braces for a dependent child. As I mentioned in another article, our work coverage pays for only $1500 of work per child, and it costs us more than that in premiums to get it!

Then, I’d start with a budget of $10 000 per child less the amount paid for by insurance.

If you’re like most people, that may be “an impossible dream!” Still, it gives you a number to shoot for.

A more practical number may be $6 000 per child less the insurance amount.

Remember it is possible for adults to get braces, so unless you child is experiencing pain or in dental distress, you may decide not to get any orthodontic work done at all. It may be more important to save for your own retirement or for your child’s education than for cosmetic dentistry.

Don’t get bullied into spending money you don’t have!

How Can You Ensure You Get the Best Value for Orthodontic Work

Several people mentioned

Always wear your retainer for the recommended time to prevent teeth shifting back
Don’t start getting orthodontic work too early if the child is comfortable: wait till the jaw has grown
Always make sure you consider the “do nothing” alternative; It doesn’t mean you are a “bad” parent!