What do you pay for childcare?

[Satori]

Since I’m firing dd's daycare (see gentle discipline forum) and it may be a month or 2 wait to get into the new one I’m going to have to hire a private caregiver. I'll need her about 28 hours a week. Its 12-5 Mon-Thurs and 9-5 Friday and I’m not sure what to offer her per week. I live in a small town and I have been paying this person $4 an hour here and there so I can get stuff done while moving and such but no way can I afford that 28 hours a week. And no cutting back on my hours or staying home is not an option, I’m a single mama with no other means of support.

[kofduke]

I think it's really dependant on where you are...we pay $800/month for four 10-hour days per week, so that comes out to around $5/hour. The center is pretty standard for here in terms of price - I've seen slightly more and slightly less (philly suburbs), but I know that where I work (CC Phila) the good centers are quite a bit more. Find out what other mamas where you live are paying!

[LiamnEmma]

Private and public are different in terms of rate of pay in my experience. Currently we pay $110/week for ds and $117/week for dd (younger, not yet considered potty trained--but working on it). That's for four days during the week--they could be there 12 hours in theory, but they're there for about 9 hours. Previously we payed $325/week for both children when we had someone come into our home...so she made approximately $8/hour in theory, but actually slightly more than that because she usually showed up a tad late and we almost always came home more than a tad early than she was scheduled to be there. :) It seems like I remember your dd as being 3.5 years old? And currently potty training? I'd offer a private person between $100 and $150/wk--but I'm on the west coast, which is a little more expensive in general (I'm sorry, I don't remember where you are). Good luck. I'm sorry you and dd are going through this.

Leah

[EFmom]

I pay $160 per week, primarily for one child (3yr) five days/week from 7-3:30 or so, but that would cover till 5pm. It also includes getting her first grade aged sister on and off the bus--less than half an hour total normally, and the occasional school vacation day.

My provider is very inexpensive compared to most of the daycare options around here. She tends not to raise her rates once you start with her.

[HollyBearsMom]

I need to move near you guys. I have a lady who comes to my house. She gets $12.50 an hour, 2 weeks paid vacation and 8 sick/personal paid days off. It comes to over $580 a week. The closest local daycare center (Bright Horizons) is $475 a week and it closed more days than my nanny has off plus I still have to pay even when we are not there. Also I hated tht my vacations had to coincidene with theirs. The net results $$ is not not too much different. Thre are 2-3 home center but neither of them looked that great to me.

Even my "emergency" back up sitter gets $10 an hour.....

[lilyka]

I am a daycare provider and here is what I charge.
$145/week for infants and preschoolers
$115/per week for kids over 5
$5/ hour for part time
30% discounts on 2 &3rd child

I give a $10 a week discount for breastfeeding and $10 a week for cloth diapering (cloth diapering eventually morphs into a potty trained discount but I don't tell people this because I don't want them rushing thier child for $10 a week). I provide all food for babies over 18 months. Whole and nutritious (most of the time), occaisionally organic. No junk food. maybe an occaisional homemade cookie. a day runs 10 hours and if you are late it is $12 an hour starting 5 minutes after the 10th hour. Whole hours no prorating. Your child has been waiting for you all day, don't be late.

I am unliscened (If I had to pay for liscencing I would have to charge considerably more, up to $100 a week) and unliscened is legal here.

Home daycare, and if you homeschool I will help your child with thier schooling.

After school childcare (only for kids in walking distance) is $50 per week includes snack and homework help.

[sadean]

Daycare at a center is about $145 for full-time here. As a part-timer (2-3 days per week) we still paid somewhere in the neighborhood of $120 per week when ds#2 was an infant/toddler.

He now goes to a non-profit preschool program that is open 7:30-5:30 three days per week, which costs about $100 per week (I don't write t he check, so I am not sure of the exact amount). They breaks down to approx. $3.70 per hour ($100 per week / 3 days / 9 hours per day at the longest), so $4.00 an hour is not that far off from what I am paying. They serve two snack and lunch.

[sadie_sabot]

Lilyka, will you take my dd????

I am desperately seeking day care. i currently pay 10 an hour for a nanny (actually it's a manny...) four days a week. But am trying like mad to find a home daycare. All of the centers I have looked at and liked are over $1000 a month (usually at least $1200)and i figure if I'm going to pay that much, i m going to pay someone who will give my kid one on one care. but I can't really afford it. I am soo tired of working so hard for $400 bucks (what I make after taxes and daycare) a month.

Home day cares seem to be around 150 to 200 a week, which is more affordable.

i wish i could find one that was ok. so far they have been problematic. My standard are dropping...but I don't want to put my dd somewhere that isn't right just to save a buck, you know?

Ugh.

(sorry for the mini vent...)

[Indigomama]

I pay $800 / month for day care in a bright horizons facility (The rest is subsidized by my employer YEAH!) ... but even out here... this is definitely the priciest joint around even at my price.

Most people I know who are in home care pay 115 - 150/wk.

I know the feeling about not wanting to be stingy on care, but dying everytime you pay the bill. It's so difficult. I just started this place (my ds is 3.5 yr old) and if it wasn't so incredibly awesome, no way would I pay this much.

[dancingmama]

Wow. We pay $916/month for 3 days per week for one toddler. Full-time would be over $1500/month.

[Bippity]

Well, this is interesting!

We pay $160/week for an in-home daycare. She has 3 helpers and takes 9-10 kids - could take up to 12. She only takes infants/babies/toddlers up to 2 1/2 then they gotta move on. She's really good about not closing on most holidays & doesn't take sick days or unexpected days off 'cause she's got the helpers to cover. She doesn't raise her rates once you've signed on & provides formula & food (we bring diapers). She is on the expensive side for this area - there are other centers & homes that are a bit cheaper, but she's been running this daycare in her home for 18 YEARS & is the most patient woman I've ever seen & all of her helpers have been there for awhile - the short-timer is 2 1/2 years. We're happy with 'em - especially since I can go over there every day at lunch to nurse - that makes me feel better!

[PUPPYLUV]

I pay $30 a day to an in home, I provide diapers and most food. This is not unreasonable in this area, but not the cheapest either. Its totally worth it for me because she's very flexible on hours if I have to stay late and open most holidays. She hasn't raised her rates since we've been there, but if she did I'd pay it.

[megincl]

Wow! I thought we had it good. Not really. We actually have it good considering the going rate in our area. We're in Cambridge, MA and the going rate is $12-16 an hour. We have students watch DS when I'm in class and DP is not back from teaching school. Usually we have between 10 and 15 hours of care a week. We pay $10 an hour. Phew! I'd love for him to be with some of you/go to the places where your DC go. But, we have some great folks who come and hang out with him at home and it seems to work. You all have added fuel to my rants about how dang expensive it is to live here!

megin

[jeyer]

We pay $915 a month for 3 days a week at a center near our house. i guess that works out to about $8.50 an hour, right?

Also, they take care of everything -- literally all we have to bring is her (and the breast milk, of course!).

They even use cloth diapers!! :D

[dancingmama]

jeyer,

I'm guessing your dc is at gretchen's house.... am I right? us too!

[jeyer]

Dancingmama-

You guessed it! Probably not many out there that CD, eh?

Which house are you at? We're at #3.

[petit_bleuet]

My kid had his first day at daycare today. $80/day or $160 a week for our purposes. *sigh* He's had a babysitter in our home for the gaps in the schedule that DH and I can't cover but this semester I have to student teach and I can't afford private care at $10/hr 4 days a week. So Ian will still have his babysitter on Tuesdays, they're wild about each other, and I'll be forking out about $260 a week. :eek

[dancingmama]

jeyer, we are at house 5 and LOVE it!

[Satori]

I cant believe what you all are paying! Your sitters are getting paid more then I make! Maybe its time to start babysitting! I have a very small 1 bedroom apt with no furniture at the moment so I doubt anyone would want me to watch there kid though... sigh... I dont know what i'm gonna do.

[Potty Diva]

We pay 65 dollars a week for Kailey to stay with a SAHM who has two children and keep two others. She is AWESOME! It is just like she is staying home with me. Our care provider works with the kids(who are all Kailey's age or a little younger) on there ABC's, numbers, coloring, painting, outisde play, manners, and so much more. She even provides healthy snacks and meals!

The best part is that she loves to talk about Kailey's day, what she did/didn't do, how pottying went, how she interacted with other children, etc. Her house is well-maintained and there are toys in every room!!!!

The breakdown is 13 dollars a day no matter how many hours you stay per day. She opens at 7:30 AM and closes at 5 pm. Though Kailey only stays as late at 2:30 when I come and get her after my last class.

[Mere]

Interesting! We pay $525 for our toddler to do 3 days a week at a center...I thought that was a lot (compared to what I would pay for in-home care), but yikes, I guess it's not that bad after all. That's pretty much the going rate around here.

We bring our own diapers as well as food, which at first I thought was a pain but now I actually prefer.

[Periwinkle]

Wow. We pay $450/week for our part-time nanny. She works 3 to 3 1/2 days a week. That is pretty much standard in Washington D.C. though, so that makes me a feel a teensy bit better.

[BabyOsMommy]

Around here, it's around $750+/month for infant care and $550 to $650 for toddler care (18mos+), meals included, but it's a tax write-off.

I pay my parents $500/month cash for full time 9hour days times 5. It's the only way I'd have peace of mind that he's well cared for, and I'm very fortunate to have family who is so willing to help. I insisted on paying them, because it didn't seem right to me not to. They cloth diaper him (I do the laundry) and they feed him.