RP: How much should I charge?

whitward87

My friend is going back to work and wants me to watch her 1 year old DD from 8-3 M-F. How much should I charge her? I was thinking as much as a daycare, but I am really not sure. My first though was $125 a week and I would pay for any activities we go to as well as daily food and snacks. Does this seem fair or am I overcharging? Let me know what you ladies think! TIA!

pdxjenn

Based on what I pay that would seem fair.

bb80

seems a little low to me, 1 year olds are a lot of work!

 

 

lilitaliangirl

That is what I pay for my babysitter. She charges $25 a day and if DS isn't there, we don't pay for that day (my husband works construction so they have rain days, etc). Anyone should know $125/week is a steal.

cassianddavid

I think that would be fair, considering that she is your friend. But I also think that she should provide her own DD's food and snacks.

doyous&idos

That is a very fair price, especially if you are providing entertainment, food and snacks.

MrsWindyCity

I think this largely depends on your area.

That's $3.50 an hour, so I would say that's a steal. I'd pay more than daycare costs for a babysitter/nanny since they are getting more individualized attention than they are getting at DC. Even DC costs about $7/hr for me, so I'd be willing to pay at least that.

melbry15

i would think that was fair, but maybe even if you do outings that she agrees to, she could pitch in for the cost.  We pay a friend about this much to watch DD for us for about the same number of hours per week.  Plus, I think its nice for you not to charge them as much as a daycare since it's your friend after all.

bobbyme

If you can afford to do it at that price, then it seems a fair deal since she is your friend. However, you should work out ahead of time if you will charge extra for early drop-offs, late pick-ups, etc. I have seen friends babysit for friends and the friendship turn sour because the friend watching the baby charged a low price and then was constantly asked to watch longer hours, etc without paying more. That being said, I would probably charge a tad more because friend or not, people respect the money coming out of their wallet. Or just make your boundaries clear from the beginning to avoid an awkwardness. Good luck!

ivys2cute

To bad u dont live in Texas...I pay 140!

KRMac

Seems reasonable to me!

starryeyeddreamer

Seems fair to me - we pay $130 a week for an in home DC. LO is the only other baby she has at this time. She is the cheapest and best DCP that we met with too - so it was a double bonus for us!

celiabwatson

That's what I pay for 4 days/week and in my area that's super cheap. Also, evidently my mom watched babies for one of my teachers once and charged very little but when the teacher came to pick up she stayed for a bit so my mom could go for a run. That helped my mom feel good about the exchange.

VanderLaan

Thats a great price!!  We pay $200 a week for DC.

Ellie12910

We will be paying 24 a day (so that is 120 a week) for in home.  We don't pay for days she isn't there and we provide her food (formula, and hopefully some baby food if doc clears her tomorrow!)  If she is there for 6 hours or less it is only 18 for the day.