Survey: Tooth Fairy paying less for second year in row

FOSTER CITY, Calif., Aug. 17 (UPI) -- The tooth fairy must be having a lean year because she paid children 24 cents less per tooth than she did last year, a Visa survey indicates.

Visa's sixth annual Tooth Fairy survey found children received on average $3.19 per lost tooth, down from $3.43 in 2014. This is the second year in a row the going rate for a lost tooth has decreased. In 2013, kids were receiving $3.70.

"The Tooth Fairy is finally fluttering back to earth," said Nat Sillin, Visa's director of global financial education. "No matter how much is left under the pillow, a visit from the Tooth Fairy is an ideal opportunity to talk with children about the importance of saving and budgeting."

The survey found that how much the Tooth Fairy leaves under kids' pillows is directly related to household income. For families who make less than $75,000 a year, children received on average $3.07 per tooth in 2015. Children whose families have a higher income receive $3.46.

Children who live in the Northeast receive the most money -- $3.56 -- while those who live in the South get the least, $3.07.

The most common form of payment for teeth reported are crisp $1 bills for 32 percent of children. Five percent receive $20 or more, 20 percent received $5, while 10 percent nothing from the Tooth Fairy.