Our DS needed braces also. Two were recommended by our Dentist and friends. One wanted him to have his wisdom teeth out and oral surgery that would have meant breaking his jaw before he would put him in braces. The other said that there was new technology that would resolve his problem without the surgery or pulla pulla stuff right now and she would put him in braces within the month. She showed us how the new thing works, I talked to a Dr. to verify that what she was saying about how bone in the jaw forms and he said that it would work.
We opted for Dr. #2 - the more expensive one by $6-8 hundred. Even though we have the typical $1500 ortho coverage, the rest would have been covered under dental with 90/10. I had to look at what was least invasive and in our DS's best interest. I felt surgery was out of the question. BTW, 1 year down and his teeth look really great! He is about to have the springs put on his braces that is going to bring the bottom jaw forward. He will have those on for 6 months and according to kids who have also had this, he won't even notice they are there.
My point, money isn't everything even in ortho! Good luck with your decision.
