How much should I charge for my home daycare rates?

I have a home daycare. I charge $150 a week and only accept full time. You will get tons of calls for part time people if you accept them and then you end up with kids coming and going constantly! Its better to have fewer kids and have a consistent schedule for them.

I know this may sound really low, but how about $2.50-3.00 an hour per child? I grew up in the city making $10 and hour for babysitting when I was like 15- moved to a small town in the middle of nowhere and the average per hour is $2.00-2.50.... It's crazy, I know...

I'm a home daycare provider. I charge $150 per week full time, meals and snacks included. I also take the kids on trips multiple times a week and we have a pretty structured day. My rate is for all hours I am open, no matter how many hours your child attends. I'm open 7am-6pm, and I do offer sibling discounts and part time rates. I do have ECE (Early Childhood Education) credits and have amazing references. I'm also CPR/First Aid certified. I also don't just "babysit." I am actually a registered business in the state of New Hampshire and have contracts everyone must sign, and also my own EIN number for tax purposes -- I run it like a more formal business. If you have no experience working with children other than being a Mom, I'd say charfe $120 per week, including meals and snacks. Parents will pay more for certification and experience, and since you don't have either (expect for working in a daycare years ago) you should lower your rate a little. Another good idea would be to call the big day care centers in the area and find out what they charge, and then take $10-$20 a week off their rate and just charge that. Also, advertise on craigslist. (www.craigslist.org) It's a great website and how I find most of my clients. If you have any questions on how to get started, please feel free to e-mail me and I'll hook you up! Good luck!

I would suggest to dig and delve into the prospective parents wages. Have a sliding fee based on what both parents make. I'm thinking about charging about $400 a month for watching a sibling pair (2 years old and 3 years old) I would be helping them GREATLY because they were just pulled from day care where they were paying $900 a month. Plus I'll be getting $400 a month extra for playing with 2 additional kids (I have a 1 year old and a 3 year old)

You should call around and ask other home daycares what their prices are. Then you will have a feel for what other rates are in your area. $20-$25 a day is usually what they charge where I live.