Daycare costs

Shanna729 · May 2015

We were able to secure the last spot in March for this baby, same center that DS currently attends. The waiting lists here are crazy. We'll pay $370 a week and zomg it's freaking me out. Anyone thinking about that yet or just my crazy, controlling, financial minded self?

I really wish I could gif the Kristin Wig "help me I'm poor" from Bridesmaids right now...

peevpee · May 2015

I am also thinking about daycare now. I am due December 31. did not know waiting lists can be so long. I don't care about the cost, what stresses me out is the thought of leaving my baby with a stranger... i don't know how to choose a daycare. I guess I have trust issues.

Shanna729 · May 2015

peevpee said:
I am also thinking about daycare now. I am due December 31. did not know waiting lists can be so long. I don't care about the cost, what stresses me out is the thought of leaving my baby with a stranger... i don't know how to choose a daycare. I guess I have trust issues.

Is there anyone in your life that currently has children in daycare or a center? My son started at an in home where my cousin took her daughter so that was easier (but still hard). I totally understand your concern and you don't have trust issues---you are being a good mama already.

Marchmellow2 · May 2015

$370 a week!! Wtf. I can't even. That's just so much dinero y'all. Don't you get a deal since you have 2 kids in the same daycare?? Or is that the cost for both kids combined?

Shanna729 · May 2015

That includes the "deal", 10% off for the first child.

Marchmellow2 · May 2015

I just looked. 1200-1500 a month is about normal for my area. If I had an amazing job that required to work away from home then I guess I would just make it work. But seriously... They don't pay people enough money to pay this type of money for daycare. We'd probably be fine but I know most people don't make that type of money. Just sad how everything costs so much these days. And people are still making much less than $100k a year still!

Marchmellow2 · May 2015

Shanna729 said:
That includes the "deal", 10% off for the first child.

So that's the combined cost right? Not just one child?

peevpee · May 2015

I live in Houston. Visited two day area so far. one charges $1200 and the other $1560 per month for an infant. the cheapest I saw on line was $720 per month but they accept dropins, which means more germs will circulate there.

Shanna729 · May 2015

Marchmellow2 said:

Shanna729 said:
That includes the "deal", 10% off for the first child.
So that's the combined cost right? Not just one child?

Correct, for both so it will be $1480 a month total. I know we'll make it work but it's still scary to look at!

Marchmellow2 · May 2015

peevpee said:
I live in Houston. Visited two day area so far. one charges $1200 and the other $1560 per month for an infant. the cheapest I saw on line was $720 per month but they accept dropins, which means more germs will circulate there.

Yes and most drop ins don't have a curriculum. It's just entertainment no learning.

ssinnwell · May 2015

Ah and I was freaking about $260 for 2.... My 6 year old goes to a center that feeds her breakfast and drops/picks up.... She started there at 18 months... Before that she was in an in home... Considering doing in home for this one for a bit first.... Undecided...

Magnolia+Mama · May 2015

We live in the Annapolis, MD area and pay just under $1400 / mo. for DD. Tuition will go down when she turns 2. I haven't done the math with this baby in infant care and DD in the 2YO room with our 2nd child discount, but it will be a lot to stomach. The blessing is my income does justify 2 in daycare ~ after all it is only temporary and the cost goes down as they get older.

skstaylor · May 2015

We are in Wilmington, nc and both daycares I have called are under $200 per week for full time

MegStark · May 2015

Yeah, we'll be paying $580/wk for 2 in daycare (that's combined/total). Sucks.

amw2133 · May 2015

I live in Hawaii and just left a day care where I had been working at for 8 years. They charge $1750 a month for full time infant care. Had I still been working there I would have qualified for 50% off the tuition but I don't. Luckily hubby will stay home with baby most days so we only need two days a week but that still runs $900 per month. I obviously won't be taking my LO to the center I just left because I left for a reason (found out one week later that I was pregnant). Hopefully we can all find some place affordabl that we feel comfortable at. If any one needs questions or what to look for in a center let me know. I also think there are a few other people on here that have or currently work at a center. Happy scouting.

mellybelles · May 2015

In our area , typical daycare is 1500-2000 a month for one child! Insane. I only work three days a week and sometimes one of those days falls on a weekend, we will be looking for a babysitter/nanny for those days. I would prefer to use an in home daycare but not sure how to go about finding a legitimate one as none of friends have kids yet. Most of my coworkers have private duty Nannys .... But I would prefer my child to be a bit more socialized! Any ideas?

Brooke2327 · May 2015

As someone who has worked in daycares for 4 years and been a nanny for 4 years. Some of those prices are outrageous! Daycares in our area are $500-$1000 a month full time.

And on the opposite note most daycare workers start out at minimum wage and only average around $10 an hour with no benefits so your costs are barely providing enough for the employees to get by a month. I would not be able to afford to support myself let alone a family on this type of pay if I did not have such a awesome spouse. Childcare workers have a extremely rewarding job but an extremely unrewarding paycheck.

ToneGirl · May 2015

I'm in PA and it's $200 a week for just my son. It stresses me out but my son will be in public school this fall so I will drop his daycare expense soon. My step sons are in private catholic schools so that is another $500+ a month. It's never ending!

belindahampton · May 2015

I live in St. Louis and pay $400/week for my 13 month old. The school offers no discount for siblings, which is so sad because I absolutely LOVE it (live feed color cameras, daily reports, brand new facilities, teachers w/degrees and organic food - just some of the benefits).

I had a nanny who I paid $325/week but she moved away last month and I couldn't find anyone in my price range that I felt comfortable with.

Once this new one is born, we'll be moving to a less expensive center OR will be looking for another nanny.

Obviously the cost varies depending where you live, but it also depends on what you get.

dp1320 · May 2015

370 for two isn't too bad. We currently pay $275 for DS but we have someone come to us...so hopefully she won't charge a buttload more for the second. When we were down in VA we were paying $125/week so I was already freaking out about jumping up to the $275...now with 2 kids....

TBH, that was one of my first thoughts when I saw the BFP - how are we going to afford childcare for TWO kids?!?! Ugh.

dp1320 · May 2015

Not the thread hi jack...but.... if we're paying $275/week for one kid (for a nanny type situation) - what would be reasonable for the 2 together?

Brooke2327 · May 2015

I only work 2 days a week now and they attend a playcare center 3 days a week to start socializing them for public school. But if I was full time for two kids it would be $500 a week (50 hours) and that Includes watching the twins (4 years old) and planning outings to the park, swimming pool, friends houses or to anything mom has set up (gymnastics, ballet, swim lessons). I also have lesson plans that we follow just as if the kids were in preschool. I'm proud to say these kids have learned how to read with my help:)

I cook the kids breakfast and lunch. I also clean the downstairs of the house every week and have always done any dishes or messes the children have made. I've been with these babies since they were 4 months old and have loved them like my own. I'm so sad they are starting public school in the fall and won't get to be with them @DH09072012 nannies are amazing, I have loved being one and would choose this for my child if I made more money and could afford to pay someone else's Salary. I start my new job as a preschool teacher in August and they are a mothers morning out that charges $525 a month and follows a curriculum instead of just playing all day long. Luckily as long as I am an employee my childcare is free:)

theawc42 · May 2015

I have been thinking about just hiring a nannie. Depending on the hours of my BF ...I work from 6am-2pm and if he doesn't have to be at work until 8 maybe we can just get a nannie for 5-6 hours. I know a friend of mine who does this and found a college age student and paid her like $10 hr. Obviously interviewed and had all the certs. But would be in home. Your still looking at 200-300 a week. But if you don't need all 8 hours a day, something to consider.

VesperLove · May 2015

Ugh, daycare in Washington state is SO FREAKING expensive! We're right around where you are in cost - between $350 and $400 a week and that is for some of the ... not so great chain day cares.

We are looking at small in-home day cares in our small town too. Those are slightly less expensive but would require longer hours since we both work a bit of a ways from home.

Ideally we would love to hire my MIL to do this for us. She hates her job and doesn't make much money so it would be great to be able to hire her, pay her practically what she makes at her job, and get her out of that crappy situation ... but she lives too far away for it to be feasible.

We are definitely stressing about the cost but we're trying to start planning early. Luckily I get some pretty hefty bonuses twice a year so it'll probably mean putting those aside strictly for day care so we don't have to totally alter our monthly living by too much. But even with that it's definitely going to mean some big changes for us.

Our other option is to have hubby stay at home. We aren't sure we can manage one income but he might be able to work part time or go back to working at a coffee shop for a couple shifts (he did this for 11 years and absolutely loved it) to cover the little bit of his salary that we would still need. Definitely lots of decisions to make.

ETA: Just read some of your posts and now I don't feel so bad at the $400 mark ... some of your areas are outrageously priced!

AlejandraN2 · May 2015

You guys! All these rates are making me feel so bad about what we are paying. Rates in my area are from $1600 to $2500 per month for one child. We pay $1800 now for 4 days a week. I love love our daycare and our girl is thriving there but man is it expensive.

EEB88 · May 2015

mellybelles said:
In our area , typical daycare is 1500-2000 a month for one child! Insane. I only work three days a week and sometimes one of those days falls on a weekend, we will be looking for a babysitter/nanny for those days. I would prefer to use an in home daycare but not sure how to go about finding a legitimate one as none of friends have kids yet. Most of my coworkers have private duty Nannys .... But I would prefer my child to be a bit more socialized! Any ideas?

@mellybelles You can find certified in-home daycare providers online by searching your county in home daycare providers. You can also look at care.com and if the provider is certified, they will say so.

I do in-home daycare and I love it because I'm able to be home with my son (and soon baby # 2) and he likes it because all his friends come over everyday.

Peanut1128 · May 2015

Wow, I thought prices in my area were expensive! The biggest issue I have run into is extremely long wait lists. I have a spot for June 2016 but will need a nanny for at least 3 months before that.

Unknown · May 2015

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AlejandraN2 · May 2015

@aebxo - do some research first on local daycares and costs as it varies dramatically depending on when you are. also some people do in-home daycare which is often a lot cheaper. there are definitely quite a few options out there depending on where you live.

mommamelmo · May 2015

The centre I have my 2 kids at already only charges $275/week. But with all 3 in some form of care I'm looking at $2200/month. oMG. My jaw just hit the floor.

nmonty15 · May 2015

Wow!! I'm astonished by these costs. Where I want to bring my baby is $860/month...and it's a top notch daycare. I actually thought that was expensive!!!

amw2133 · May 2015

Brooke2327 said:
As someone who has worked in daycares for 4 years and been a nanny for 4 years. Some of those prices are outrageous! Daycares in our area are $500-$1000 a month full time.

And on the opposite note most daycare workers start out at minimum wage and only average around $10 an hour with no benefits so your costs are barely providing enough for the employees to get by a month. I would not be able to afford to support myself let alone a family on this type of pay if I did not have such a awesome spouse. Childcare workers have a extremely rewarding job but an extremely unrewarding paycheck.

Seriously! I can totally relate. I have masters degree and was earning at the poverty level still. Such an amazing job though! It's really hard to find any thing, to me personally, that is more rewarding.

amw2133 · May 2015

aebxo said:
Welp now I'm freaking out because I can't afford to quit my full time job and I also only make about $1600 a month after tax and such so HOW am I going to be able to pay rent, car payment, insurance, cell phone, etc, AND daycare?! I'm going to have to quit my job and work part time at night somewhere when my husband isn't working. He makes about the same as I do and we are struggling as it is. Awesome

Look into state subsidies for child care. Out here it's called Abor Care. It's always worth a look. Some of the day cares might be able to point you in the right direction.

Also along this line I recommend any one who is in the military (hubby or you) look into GSA they will help pay for part of your child care expenece.

mfarglio · May 2015

Yeah there's no freaking way I can afford childcare but also can't afford to be a SAHM. Maybe if I wasn't paying for school, but thank God I have an arrangement with my boss to work from home some days and bring my LO to work me me the other couple of days. I wouldn't be able to feed us if I had to pay for childcare, no idea how you all do it!!

mfarglio · May 2015

aebxo said:
Welp now I'm freaking out because I can't afford to quit my full time job and I also only make about $1600 a month after tax and such so HOW am I going to be able to pay rent, car payment, insurance, cell phone, etc, AND daycare?! I'm going to have to quit my job and work part time at night somewhere when my husband isn't working. He makes about the same as I do and we are struggling as it is. Awesome

I'm right there with you. Somehow it will work out though. Hang in there and try to be more proactive about it rather than stressing out, easier said then done, I know, but a momma bear gets tough for her cubs and I know you can do it.

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