How much do you pay for child care?

[*MamaJen*]

So I'm in grad school for public policy and taking a class that involves family and social policy. According to the official "cost of raising a child" charts that are used to calculate all sorts of social services, including child support, a single parent household earning less than $56,000 per year pays about $1,290 per year in child care costs for a 0 - 2 year old and $1,700 per year for child care costs for a 3 - 5 year old. The figures are about the same for a married household in the same income bracket. 

My official, academic policy response to those numbers is somewhere between "Oh, that's BS" and "WTF?!?". I recognize that some people get government assistance towards child care (in my city the line to get childcare assistance is about as long as the line for subsidized housing), I know some people get family members to take care of the child for free, some people manage to avoid the need for childcare by working from home, etc. But in general, if you're not lucky enough to have a grandma who just wants to watch the child full-time for free, and you're either on the list or don't qualify for child care assistance, there's basically no way to pay less than at least $500 per month, which is $6,000 per year. I wound up getting about $600 back on my taxes for childcare expenses, but it barely made a dent in the cost. 

So I'm curious. What do you guys pay for childcare, per child, for kids who are not yet in kindergarten?

[rubelin]

I live in Los Angeles. When my youngest was 4, my neighbor babysat him for 6 hrs a day for $600/month and that was about half the cost of most day care/full-time preschools around here. The co-op preschool that my oldest attended was $250/month, but it was only 4 hrs a day and a parent had to work one full day per week (which made it only 16 hours each week of actual child care)

[Alphaghetti]

I don't pay for childcare, but I provide daycare from my home in the largest city in Canada. I charge $250 dollars per week for full time care, and I am considered a deal. Daycare here is very expensive.  Centres charge upward of 75 to 80 dollars per day per child.

[Phoenix~Mama]

Gee... maybe that's how the "terriffic" government came up with lame cut-offs about who needs aide because someone obviously has no clue what childcare costs!!!  :-O

I pay $1300/month for two kids, and that's at the most affordable care prices in the area for my aged kids.  So yeah... Definitely more than $1290/year, considering that is my MONTHLY cost.  

WTF is right.

[tccandlsccmom]

My kiddos are in school so it is only afternoons, and I am able to get them from school 2-3 days a week...so I have them in the afterschool program at their school and it is just over $300/month for both of them.  However, in the summer my ex paid well over $2,000 per month to have them in full time care during his weeks with them (I am a professor so during my time I didn't need care, luckily)...

[sunflowers]

I currently pay @ $580/mo for before and after care for my Kindy kid- 2.5hr kindergarten at public school so about 7 hours of care there every day.  It's $29/day.  Includes breakfast but I provide lunch.  Days school is closed will cost $39/day.

Summer day camp cost $210/wk- about $840/mo.  5 days/wk for 10 hours/day.  No meals provided.  Trips were extra and there was a registration fee of $52.

Previously, from 3yo-5.5yo, she went to public preschool and had a babysitter (in provider's home) and it cost $135/wk for 29 hours of care with no meals provided.  Approx $540/mo.

I assume that it would have cost $35/day at the sitter's if she did not go to any school and was there 9 hours every day.  Estimated at $700/mo.

Her dad pays 1/2 the cost so I really only pay 1/2 of the above costs but I voted on how much the various providers charge.

[Everrgreen]

I'm in Canada and in the city I'm in I've got a full subsidy for daycare.  The costs in this city are $30-37/day for a preschool age child.  I'm actually going to be commuting to go to university in a very large city where daycare is $65/day and I've been on the wait list for MONTHS for a subsidy and haven't heard anything.  And that's why I'm choosing to commute from this city instead (and my mom  lives here so double bonus)

[Coconut Chronicles]

I pay $540 a month ($135 a week) for "half days"... 8 am to 12 pm Monday to Friday. That costs includes breakfast, 2 snacks and lunch.

ETA: Sorry for crashing guys... I saw this in new posts and totally missed that it was in Single Parenting!

[MadelinesMama]

I currently pay $418 a month for my 4 year old.  Once I have this baby his care will be $600 a month.  So a little over $1k a month for both.

[animegeekmom]

i pay about 650 a month for my three kids to be watched on two different nights a week for me to attend school.

[kylie1]

$0. My DH is a WAHD so he cares for the kids while I'm at work.

[PatioGardener]

$80/day. It's really killing my finances, but I have no other options right now other than a sitter. Thankfully she's awesome, and my little guy loves her. That and rent eat up most of my paycheck. I can't wait until he's old enough for daycare ($40/day) in a few more months. In my town it's hard to find a daycare spot for a child less than 18 months old.

[Shanny2032]

I have a feeling that a situation like mine is why there is such a huge range and disparity hence the average seeming so "off".  I pay nothing for child care because I take my daughter to work with me.  I am a Nanny and Household Manager for 2 children.  Their parents pay me about $70,000 a year so if we were 2 families surveyed the average would come out to be $35,000 a year!  Not sure how common my situation is but I am sure it is just 2 extremes that tip the scales when trying to figure out what is "normal".

[Mylie]

I pay $95 dollars a week for part-time care..she goes to preschool until about 2:30 in the afternoon 5 days a week..So she needs afterschool care 4 days a week(I am off 1 day so I get her) from 2:30-5:30.So I basically need care about 12 hours a week unless school is out for vacation/breaks ect...But she is covered there also..

[provocativa]

I answered 0, because I get childcare assistance, but I can't ever find anyone for Sundays, and I've had to change child care providers twice because they sucked (driving 6 kids in the backseat without seatbelts, 2 of them under the age of 3!).  So really I spend just under 300 a month.  It runs between 100 and 250 a week here, and the quality of care in my state is abysmal.

[nanamar]

I pay $779/mo for my 2yo and $736/mo for my 4yo.

Total: $1550, and yes, that is more than my mortgage. Sadly, I will pay more than that since I have to pay with student loans that are accruing interest... 

[saoirse2007]

I have only been working full time over the summer so that I can quaify for Canada's 50week paid maternity leave...it will be my first time -soooo excited!!!

I pay $170 per week for each kiddo ( I have 2)

For my youngest (2) it includes lunch and snacks - for my oldest (4) it includes snacks.

It is a professional public licenced daycare in Ontario Canada.

eta: I voted wrong - I voted 3-500, but I was thinking of how I pay - every 2 weeks d'oh ...can I blame it on pg brain????

[PoetryMom]

DH and I use creative scheduling and still pay 135 for 3 days a week.

[lunarlady]

WTF is right. around here, infants run $52/day,toddlers $45/day, and preschool $35/day. So their annual cost is close to our monthly cost, regardless of our income bracket. Even bottom basement care is $30/day.

[UpSheRises]

We live in the Detroit area. DS just started Kindergarten today but before this we paid $1400/month. He's in a tuition based school now and we pay $800/month after our scholarship otherwise we'd be paying about the same. By the time DS finishes highschool we'll have spent $182,400 (assuming tuition never increases). That seems like quite a bit of money for a family who only makes $50k/year but i guess that's just the cost of high quality care and education.