Year long waitlists for daycare ?!

terese0913 · July 2015

I'm a FTM and One of my coworkers suggested I start looking into daycares as she remembered having to be on a waitlist for 6 months. I'm 14 weeks today, and I called 11 different daycares who care for infants and all of them were booked until October of 2016! Some weren't even taking names for a waitlist. That is crazy to me! Has anyone else run into this? Any ideas ?! I have to go back to work after 12 weeks and I'm starting to freak out !

ainverso · July 2015

I would ask around with over moms, we found a great in home lady who came by word of mouth. Sometimes also the county has a list through jobs and family services of in home people who are licensed and u can call.

teachmegs817 · July 2015

I have heard this too. I agree with PP in asking around for someone local and out of the home. My husband works for a University with a really nice Daycare on campus. I know that it will probably be full for the baby to start right away, (I've been on him, about calling) so we are planning on having a family member watch the baby for a few months when I go back to work and then hope to start him/her up in daycare next September, when I start back for the school year.

skfg · July 2015

In my area, generally there is a longer wait for centers than home daycares. Also, a friend of mine was faced w/similar stats when she started looking while pregnant. Long story short, her original daycare fell through a week before she went back to work. She found that needing daycare right away opened up a lot of opportunities that previously were unavailable. Try not to worry too much, daycare will fall into place, it takes time. I would also look into nanny shares, in some areas they are more cost effective. Good luck!

ariasbabyblog · July 2015

It is unfortunately not uncommon to have to wait a year or more for daycare. We are going to start DS in preschool Fall of 2016 but we had to get him on the list and fill out paperwork this spring to ensure that he will have a spot. It's crazy and (for infants) crazy expensive too. In my area it is an average of $1,000 a month for an infant.

I agree, don't worry too much, but be prepared for long waits, and call early, particularly if you have a specific daycare in mind.

erincjackson · July 2015

That is fairly common with centers and some well known homes. It took us a while to find a trustworthy home for my 2 year old and she's been on a waiting list for an all day preschool since she was born to guarantee her an enrollment spot when she is 2 1/2.

vvitchhazel · July 2015

Reading this just made me sick to my stomach.

apinkpelican · July 2015

Yep. If you know anyone already in one of the centers have them out in a good word for you and put a little pressure on them. That's how we got in ours but I didn't have confirmation until 2 weeks before I went back. Talk about nerve racking!

vvitchhazel · July 2015

I guess I'll start calling around! I don't even know where to start... We're moving next month, so it'll be a whole new ball game in unfamiliar territory! I'm not going back to work after the LO comes, but I am going back to school two-ish months after s/he arrives, on top of the fact that my SO will be traveling for 1-2 weeks a month for work. Scary!!!

lwebley · July 2015

Ya, with my first there was an 11 month wait list. This go around they have a 13 month wait list. So crazy. At first I didn't really get why. It didn't look like anything special, but after having my LO there, I get it! I love our daycare center! Definitely get on a wait list. Keep in mind some people sign up when they are just trying and a spot my open up. Good luck!

terese0913 · July 2015

Thanks for all your comments everyone! It does seem crazy, but I guess that's just how it is. We are asking a family friend who has a 3 month old if she'd be interested, keep your fingers crossed! I got on a few waiting lists but they pretty much all said not to hold my breath

mrhargr · July 2015

We got lucky that the daycare DD attends has agreed to watch the new baby when he or she arrives. I don't know what we would do if they didn't because everywhere else that has a good reputation is full for awhile.

kgcnyc · July 2015

I ended up in tears last night after spending the day looking for day care. We are in NYC and it's looking like $2500-$3000/mo on average with the application process starting this Aug or Sept! Just one more reason to hate the city. I am a former nanny so I'm considering not going back to my job in corporate event marketing to stay at home and possibly taking on one other child to make a few dollars. Either that or I move back home to CA!!

Mamabeagle · July 2015

kgcnyc said:
I ended up in tears last night after spending the day looking for day care. We are in NYC and it's looking like $2500-$3000/mo on average with the application process starting this Aug or Sept! Just one more reason to hate the city. I am a former nanny so I'm considering not going back to my job in corporate event marketing to stay at home and possibly taking on one other child to make a few dollars. Either that or I move back home to CA!!

That's a good idea! Join a pregnancy yoga class and meet other expecting mom's and hopefully you can find one other baby or toddler. If it's 3k in the city, maybe offer to do it for 1K or 1500 cash and cut their expense in half to make it a more attractive option. Just make sure they provide diapers and milk.

yankeeinthesouth · July 2015

Hey ladies! I've worked as an admin for two local upscale preschools (Atlanta area). Wait lists are VERY common for the "nicer" schools, especially for infants.

I have two suggestions. First, go ahead and get on any wait lists that you can for schools that you would consider. The wait lists changes constantly with families changing plans, moving, etc. Just because they say it's 1 year + doesn't mean that that will stay true. Also, it doesn't hurt to be SUPER friendly with the director. I know that sounds ridiculous but a lot of directors have no problems playing favorites. Seriously!

Good luck, everyone!!!

KayTaylor14 · July 2015

I'm so lucky my mom is willing to help. There's usually open places around here but they can be pricey if you want a good one. I heard in bigger metro areas like NY and Chicago they can be backed up for quite a while. Especially anything that's accredited will be in high demand. If you find one that seems to be wide open, dig into it and find out why it's not as high demand. I've worked in daycare and not all are created equal.

Mamabeagle · July 2015

My younger twin sisters are moving to our city to finish their bachelor degrees, both studying education, so we've been talking about hiring them as sort of a job share nanny depending on their class schedules. I'm so excited and relieved, and they will work for half what any daycare in this area would charge.

claireloSC · July 2015

I'm going on a tour of the local Montessori today because it's the same here. Ultimately I want to put our LO at DW's university daycare, but they don't take kiddos until they are 11 months so I'll have to find another option in the interim. I definitely suggest that anyone who has had their 12 week scan start looking.

ashin121 · July 2015

Thanks for the reminder. People have told us this too. I just got really anxious reading this. Both my DH and I work for the University so hopefully we will be able to get into the campus one. Will call on Monday.

sherks11 · July 2015

There is always a much longer wait for an infant room because the student to teacher ratio is lowest (4-1). It gets easier as that ratio increases. Our daycare also will give preference to families that are already enrolled. So for example, since dd is alr day enrolled, this baby will have a higher ranking than a family who is coming in brand new. It can't hurt to go in early just to be safe!!!! Good luck ladies!

amyelise25 · July 2015

In MD the infant to caregiver ratio is 3:1. We went to visit two yesterday and one doesn't have a spot until early May, which would work for us. The other (Goddard - a national chain) automatically does a wait list and calls about two months prior to when you want to start to let you know if you have a spot. I was told that given how early I would be going on the list, and that time of year, there probably wouldn't be an issue.

Luckily our favorite (which we visited earlier) has plenty of spots. We plan to lock in next week for piece of mind.

stlmomof2 · July 2015

In FL it is a 1 to 4 ratio when it comes to infants I believe but never ran into a problem with enrollment. Never a wait. Now that I am in STL it kind of makes me worry but I have family around just in case of emergencies! Thankfully lol

dwilson928 · July 2015

If daycare is really expensive in your area, or a super long wait list, you might consider using a nanny. They can be an afordable option, and can work right from your home. Background checks are also easy to get when using a service or care.com .

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Year long waitlists for daycare ?!

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