I interviewed for a job today. If I get it I would need chidlcare for my 3 yr old DD. A friend who is looking for additional income said she would do it. Luckily w/ DHs schedule and DD being in school I would only need someone about 16 hrs a week max. I have no idea what to pay her. I pay a teenage sitter $6/hr & $7 if they drive so is $10/hr fair?

What all are you expecting from her?

Cooking, cleaning...picking your DS up from school..any of that? Or just watching your DD for a couple hours a day?

I think there was already a thread about this, but here's my 2 cents:

I had a nanny come to our home a few days a week. I'd say no more than 15 hours total. She'd help watch my son and did very light house cleaning- making the beds, dishes, folding clothes, etc. I paid her 10/hr and gave her a 10.00 tip on top of whatever she made.

I am a nanny. PM me and I will let you know what I think is fair. Also a lot of other questions I have to ask too. Are you going to pay her health benifits, ect. I would love to give you some advice but only though pm since it is personal

You may want to call around to local daycares or other after school programs and see what their weekly rate and such is. I think it totally depends on the area, your salary, the location (your house or hers), will there be other kids, will she provide food, drive around, help with homework? Lots of things to consider. Does she have a degree? Any professional experience with childcare, or just a friend with mommy experience?

WOW! Every time I read this I realize how good I have it. We have a WONDERFUL daycare provider who watches DS in her home for $110 a week.

I am PMing vartrip since she has personal experience. FYI, it is just childcare at her home, no other kids besides her own and she would feed her lunch. She would also pick her up form school 1-2 days a week. She is onyl 3 so noting more than babysitting.

I had someone recommend another lady for daycare and I am paying her $100 a week! I jumped on that as my son is almost 2 and that is a great price!

Good luck to ya!

$10 a hour is great! i nanny for 3 kids and have to take one to school and pick up from school (this is two days at the most) and I only get $50 a day! (please please don't do that). They range from 5 years to 7 months and on top of that I have a 16 month old and a 3 month old.

You also have to remember that you are paying someone to take care of your DD. You pay them good because that is one of the most precious things to you.

Good luck.

I will just say that it can put a strain on a friendship to change it to a business relationship. I have been doing childcare in my home for 8 yrs. Sometimes it works great, sometimes not so great. The main thing I would recommend is that you put everything in writing. What if she or one of her kids gets sick, do you have a backup plan? Do you still pay her if your child is sick? Will you pay her when you go on vacation? What about if she wants a day off or a vacation? Put down your drop off and pick up times. You need to give her written permission to transport your child, and written permission to seek medical help if there is an emergency.

First I would call around, to both daycare settings and also whatever is listed in the paper for home day care, so you have an idea of what other people are paying. If you are only needing a sitter a few hours, the price you pay per hour has to go up. For a full time sitter, the price needs to be more reasonable (sorry, babysitters) or none of us could afford it. Unless you are a doctor, attorney, or some other high-paying profession, your childcare needs to be reasonable otherwise your job isn't worth it.

Our daycare for 2 children is as much as our mortgage every month. Yikes! And my kids only go 4 days. Thank goodness, next fall, one will be in free Pre-K in the mornings. Yay! We're just hoping our cars hang on for a couple more years until we're not paying a sitter. Won't we feel rich then?

The price also depends on whether she is in your home or her own. The pay is less if she's working in her own home, because you're basically paying her to sit your kids in front of the TV while she folds her own laundry... at least some of the time. The pay is more if they are in your home - if she folds any laundry while they watch TV, it would be yours! However if they are in your home, you need to pay social security on her income and also withhold taxes from her checks - may not be worth the hassle, or the fear of getting caught if you're not doing that. In her home, you are not responsible for the taxes and if you ask for her SSN, you can deduct the childcare costs from your taxes.

I have done it both ways. When they were in my home I felt like I had more control over what they are doing all day, but they had to go when they got too loud (I work at home). Maybe I have control issues, but I hate not knowing what they are doing! As you can see, I suspect there is entirely too much TV watching and laundry-folding going on and not enough one-on-one attention, get down on the floor with them-type play. However the location is convenient, the price is OK, we know her very well by now, we trust her, she's reliable and even takes them when they're sick, she's CPR certified, experienced as a mother, and she is very warm and loving to my children. I've decided I can't "have it all" so we just limit their TV here as much as we can, play on the floor as much as we can, and hope it balances out.

Doh! Hijacked again!

Good luck finding a sitter you are comfortable with!