Day care $

sweetsurprise2014

I know I have seen various posts about costs of day care in your area. What do you pay for day care? Also, what are the ratios of day care provider to babies?

sweetsurprise2014

Dang it! It posted before I added all the options and I can't figure out how to delete the post.  ....I'm ashamed of my lack of technical savvy.  Halp?  

cinnamin922

I pay $1320 for a 4 week month and $1650 for a 5 week month...but that is also for 2 kids.  I love our daycare but it sucks when there's only about $40 left in my paycheck after paying it

AppleGrapeMSTK

I cheated and asked my sister to live with us. We pay for all her food and toiletries, drive her everywhere, don't charge her rent, and pay her $100/week. For a recent high school grad, getting paid to stay in pjs, raid the fridge, and play with her nephews is a pretty sweet deal.

RockyNFrankie

SS - I didn't vote because well there was no option that worked for me. I am a preschool teacher in a daycare. I could send DS for free but I refuse to because I work in daycare and know what can and does go on in some places. Where I work is one of the cheapest in the area and they charge over $1600/month for an infant.

ETA: The ratio for infants is 1:3 or 2:7 in the state I work in.

Jesslynnsell

I'm extremely lucky!  We pay $150 a week and right now it is a 1:2 ratio.  We take Noah to an in home place where she can have up to 6 kids, but she is rebuilding after being on maternity leave herself.  Right now it is just Noah and her son.  She is happy with this set up and is in no hurry to recruit more kids at this time so we are reaping the benefits!

ETA: Ratios are hard

sweetsurprise2014

Our day care is $1360/mo and the ratio is 1:4.  I really wish I could get a better ratio, although 1:4 seems to be an industry standard.

Klavanga74

I only have her in two days but I posted what it would be for full-time.  She is with a friend of mine who has four girls, only two are at home with her (the other two are in school).  Babes is the only child she has at this time.  Couldn't get more ideal. Oh, $8/hour.

MuffinMom14

My MIL froths at the mouth to watch APurp 3x a week, and we pay my husband's cousin's wife to watch her the other two days. $30 a day, so around $240-$300 a month.

Realize, though, that that is the norm for here. I'm in an area with a very low cost of living (WV).

slsl509

RockyNFrankie said:

SS - I didn't vote because well there was no option that worked for me. I am a preschool teacher in a daycare. I could send DS for free but I refuse to because I work in daycare and know what can and does go on in some places. Where I work is one of the cheapest in the area and they charge over $1600/month for an infant.

ETA: The ratio for infants is 1:3 or 2:7 in the state I work in.

You won't send your DS to the place you work? I'm confused

We will pay $155/week for 3 days. Ratio is 1:4. Right now my parents have DS for 3 months, then they will continue to watch both kids 1 day per week. I am home on Fridays. And right now I'm doing a bang-up job of letting DS nap and DD play by herself while I am on the interwebs.

golfingdarwinfish

The ones we looked at are 2000-2500 and a nanny 2500-3000ish depending on number of hours

angeltennis3

We pay $55/day but only go three days a week. My mom watches her one day and I have Friday's off.

[Deleted User]

MRSclarke08 said:

I pay $1040 for 4 weeks ... $1300 for 5 weeks.

Same.

ETA: Our ratio is 1:4

MrMrsandBaby

Sort of a SS because my girls only go part time (2-3 hours a day).  We pay $20 a day per kid so $200 a week.  If they went full time it would be $30 a day per kid.  This is an in-home daycare, not a center.  I don't even want to know what the centers cost.

MuffinMom14

This thread is AMAZING. Some of you are paying more than our mortgage for a WEEK. Some of you are paying 2X our mortgage for a week.

#GladILiveInWV

ashleyvictoria

$215 a week and that is pretty much the cheapest around. We got lucky that our top choice ended up being the cheapest (well second choice, our real first choice has a waiting list for another year). Most of the places we looked at were in the $ 250-260 per month range. Ratio is 2:8.

heathera1979

We pay SIL $125/week, but the day cares we looked into were $135/week

RockyNFrankie

slsl509 said:

RockyNFrankie said:

SS - I didn't vote because well there was no option that worked for me. I am a preschool teacher in a daycare. I could send DS for free but I refuse to because I work in daycare and know what can and does go on in some places. Where I work is one of the cheapest in the area and they charge over $1600/month for an infant.

ETA: The ratio for infants is 1:3 or 2:7 in the state I work in.

You won't send your DS to the place you work? I'm confused

We will pay $155/week for 3 days. Ratio is 1:4. Right now my parents have DS for 3 months, then they will continue to watch both kids 1 day per week. I am home on Fridays. And right now I'm doing a bang-up job of letting DS nap and DD play by herself while I am on the interwebs.

Yes I will not send him to where I work even though it would be free. I do not want to get into details but it basically comes down to I have higher standards and expectations than the infant teachers are willing to provide. It is really difficult being a teacher and knowing what can and dose happen in some centers. I'm not saying every daycare is not good. I have worked in places that I would send my child in a heartbeat, just not where I currently work. 

MrsTinMKE

We don't send DD to daycare, but MIL watches her 3 days a week, then we have a part time nanny starting in Feb. for 2 days a week. We will pay her $75.00 a day which to me is a little pricey for just child care, but she is watching DD in our home it is 1:1 and she is going to help with light cleaning and cooking so it seemed worth the $$. We will end up around $600 a month for 2 days a week. I am hoping when we have # 2 if MIL couldn't handle both kids that the nanny would work out a better weekly rate if we needed. 

lrobi13

We pay $725 a month.  Ratio is 1:5.  There are two teachers plus a floater in DS's class.  Right now they have around 8 babies but it is rare that they are all there.

And daycare is more than our current mortgage (DH has owned the house we live in for almost 20 years).

DreadGamerWife

Ours is $372/week (full time).  The rate includes diapers, at least.  Once she is eating table food (toddler room and above), it also includes food.  

Standard 1:4 ratio for teachers, but the day care's manager and assistant managers are frequently in the infant rooms when they can spare the time (so during 10-3, it is frequently a lower ratio).  

bumpuser10309732

holy shit! The one time I'm glad I live in BFE. Small town, you know EVERYTHING going on ALL THE TIME. Which is a plus for daycare. :-) DH has weird hours. She's hit the 40 hour mark every week so far though.

I have a unicorn daycare. She is the only baby. There's a 3 year old and a 4 year old. The rest of the kids are in school all day so it gets chaotic around 3:30. She has a high schooler that helps her after school with the older kids. Then she spoils the shit out of my daughter. She just told me I owe her $165.00 for the last two weeks  :-O I buy her all the diapers and wipes. 

golfingdarwinfish

Welp, at least daycare & nanny are less than my rent.  That makes me feel better!

bsquaredmsquared

I've seen places that range from $1600 - $2200. There are extra fees for extended hours. I have to say that the quality seemed really high but the costs are tied to the high cost of living in the NY suburbs.

sas2551

$560 for 4 weeks, but only for 2 days/week- would be $1450/4weeks if full time .....luckily my boss has agreed to a modified work schedule of 4days/week where I'm in office/lab 2days/week (daycare for LO) and work from home 2 days/week.....no idea how the 2days/week from home is going to work out- I guess juggling with DH on weekends and nights to get the work done.

Aarg

In my area it's super expensive! And the daycare I worked at was also expensive. By the time I would work a 40 hour work week, my check would be $0-20. And that's not including filling my gas tank!
So my husband gave me the ok to quit my job since we get benefits thru him.
My sister pays me though to watch her DD and I ask for $30 a day.

DCFS ratio for infants up to 14 months is 1:4. But I've been to centers where they prefer 1:3.

Sidenote**we lost a lot of enrollment over time due to families realizing they were literally working to pay for daycare tuition.

cmcookaln

I'm not going to complain anymore about my expense for Childcare. I pay $150 a week for in home. The lady and her husband pretty much only have teachers' children so we don't have to pay on the weeks that we are out for break to hold our spots and that includes summer.

2goingon3

$35-$40/day for full time care, and we have multiple programs with different ratios so it depends on the type of setting you want:
Age 0-3 ratio 1:4
3-5 1:8
0-12 1:7 (family setting including caregiver's own kids)
0-12 1:8 (center setting with early childhood educated provider)
0-12 1:2+caregiver's own kids

The larger ratios have a maximums on number of infants, number of toddlers.

For 2 kids in before and after school care plus 1 full time infant, I'm looking at about $1500-$1600/month and we'd probably have 2 different pick ups and drop offs. So, I might just get a nanny. I haven't decided and am just starting my research.

Jennyc00

I have no idea how any one person could watch four infants ... That just scares me

chicitygirl7

$450/week with a 1:3 ratio at a daycare center. We provide all of the diapers and wipes. We love the place and it's on the less expensive end of options around us. Most are $500-$550/week.

AmandaJean12

Jennyc00 said:

I have no idea how any one person could watch four infants ... That just scares me

I did it for a year, all 6 weeks to 6 months. And honestly, it's usually 2:8 which sounds the same but it isn't in reality because it's a second set of hands, and there usually aren't two "emergencies" at once.

trisharenee0316

$1600-$2500, depending on the center.  $15-$20+ per hour for a nanny.

Kelsbells6

I decided not to go back to work since I worked for the devil (in my opinion) and am watching a 4 yr old for 3 1/2 hours and am getting $55 for the 3 hours. I can't believe some of you pay $50 a day. That's so incredible! It's expensive where we live but I love it and wouldn't change it.

StephanieAnnLee

We are so lucky. We found a home daycare by a lady who has done it for years. She only has 4-5 kids per day and LO is the only infant. And the best part...$100 a week!!

2goingon3

Jennyc00 said:

I have no idea how any one person could watch four infants ... That just scares me

I should clarify....Eventhough the rules are 0-3yrs for infant/toddler where the ratio is 1:4, there are rarely any babies under the age of 1 because I'm in Canada and maternity leave is for a full year.

ajh1230

Ours is an in home daycare that charges $25/day for infants and she provides diaper and wipes also. There are 2 adults for 9 kids but like my lo most of them are part time so at most there is 4 or 5 kids there. Dd is one of two babies.

mrsc928

I'm so lucky to have my mom. She would do it for free, but I give her $50 a week. My sister is a head teacher at a highly accredited daycare/preschool and they charge $1900 a month. We are in the CA Bay Area.

PC0909

I pay $350/week for 2 under 2.  It's a home daycare with 10 kids and at least 2 adults at all times.

angeltennis3

We pay $55 a day for daycare, but DD will only go 3 times a week. I also signed up for a dependent care savings account so all my daycare dollars are pulled from my paycheck prior to taxes, so that helps us save about 40% on daycare costs.