I Need Advice... - Deep Gap,NC

I just don't see how you are being taken advantage of if you are the one who came up with this amount? Every one loves a good deal, no matter how much money you make. Talk to her and tell her w/ gas prices and the rise in food prices you just can't do it for 15 a day anymore.

Hun....honesty is always the best policy. I clean houses and sometimes I under bid a house, I have to be able to look that person in the face and say I am sorry, I was overly ambitious and now for it to be beneficial in order to continue I am going to need to increase the rate. I mean, you can't go backwards and get reimbursed, she did not take advantage of you, she gladly accepted the gift she was presented with...if you came across an awesome sale would you say no really, I couldn't, and pay more??? But you totally can say listen I love watching your child but I really have to make xyz and tell her if she can't handle that you will be sorry to see her go...find your backbone dear = ) I know how hard it can be ( trust me!)

Oh wow...she has really had a deal for the past 4 months!!! I think that most daycare providers where charge WAY more than that for an infant under the age of 1. I think you need to do what do exactly what most of the Mom's have said...call around and find out how much the going rate is...if you want to....you can take a little bit off of it...since this is a friend...but I would definitely be changing the rate. If she says she can't pay it...give her 2 weeks to find someone else...and she is NOT going to be finding anyone to take care of her little one for what she has been paying you!!!
Don't feel badly about it...she has been taking advantage of this situation for 4 months now and it is time for you to stand up and speak up for yourself!!

well, she's really not taking advantage of you, she's just grooving on the great deal that YOU offered her. that being said, there's no need for you to keep on with what is clearly an untenable situation. be nice about it (ie don't sound accusatory or indignant), but tell her in a professional fashion that you have researched the local going rate for daycare and either need to make an adjustment to bring your pay in line with that, or move on. and give them some time, at least 2 weeks, if they're not willing to pony up more money.
i can see how it's a little awkward, but really, it's not a huge thing. just try not to sound defensive or angry. it's a business arrangement, even though she's a friend. just treat it that way.
khairete
S.

Oh I feel horrible for you! I don't deal well with confrontation so the only advice I have is that no matter how you word it (hopefully you'll get a lot of great responses you can use by others) just make sure you let her know how much you love watching her daughter and enjoy it so she doesn't take it as if you are annoyed by her kid. Good luck!!

You're not being taken advantage of when you're the one who decided on what you should be paid in the first place. You based it on a false assumption. Of course she accepted your offer... you gave her a great deal.

You can approach her and let her know that you enjoy taking care of her child but you were hoping to revisit the subject of payment. If she asks why tell her that your expenses have gone up and you were pricing daycare costs, and realized that perhaps you could both come up with something that was still fair to both of you but more than what she's currently paying you.

So depending on your area you need to find out what the going rates are per hour per single child. Then you need to offer a competitive and reduced rate for your friend. Around here the average is anywhere between $10-15 per hour so when I babysat for my best friend I watched both of her kids for $12 per hour (together, not each). $10 for the first child and $2 for the bonus kid. :-) I made something like $145 for only 12 hours during after school hours, and much more during school vacations.

Wow.

Just tell her, "Sorry, I can't babysit anymore for $15 a day. If you need me to keep babysitting, I will have to charge the going rate."

Find out what the going rate is, before you tell her this, so that you feel comfortable naming a figure.

She has totally used you. You should not feel worried at all about telling her this. And you DEFINITELY should not worry about her getting mad. If she gets mad, she's a lunatic, and you need to drop her like a hot rock.

You have every right to ask for more money~!!!!!

Don't let this woman use you one more day. It is time to learn to speak up for yourself, like a grownup.

And DO NOT FEEL like you owe her ANY explanation. Just say the sentence exactly as I said it, with no explanation. If she has the gall to ask you for an explanation, you can just (be nice, instead of truthful) and say, "because I can't afford to work for that little any more."

Everyone on this site will support you. Tell her now.

By the way, when I occasionally babysit for a friend, she pays me $15 an hour. And she pays her nanny something close to that amount. I don't think you should babysit for less than $8/hour.

thats why they have money.
tell her because of the economy you need 5 more bucks a day.

You are working for $1.50 per hour.
I would call around, check the going rates and average it out.
I would go so far as to tell her that due to family finances and your 4 year old being old enough for preschool, you have checked on rates for daycare for your own child should you have to go back to work.
Even if you work for minimum wage 40 hours a week, you could pay daycare and still clear more money at the end of the month.
Express that you love her baby and she's a joy to have, but you have crunched the numbers. You agreed to an amount to begin with, but $1.50 per hour is not the income at home that you need to help your family get ahead.
Hopefully, she will be willing to negotiate a higher rate with you since you've had her daughter and she's used to the routine, etc. If she wants to find someone else, let her. She'll pay more than what she's paying you. You can take in another child for better pay.
I think you just need to have a talk with her about the situation. You've been getting $1.50 for 4 months. I don't think it would be horrible to ask for a "raise" at this point.

I wish you the best and hope it works out.

According to this babysitting calculator (which I'm providing the link to), you should be getting $12 PER HOUR! Your friend is getting a screaming deal! Yes, you should raise your rate. If she can't understand that your time and energy babysitting her child is worth more, then she needs to find another babysitter. She will not find daycare at all for 15 dollars a day. Either your friend doesn't realize how much babysitting costs, or she is really taking advantage of you for being naive. Bluntly tell her..."I've got to raise my rates up..here is what I come up with."...and then tell her what you want per hour. Have her sign an agreement. Don't be shy about this either. If she is an honest person, she won't have no problem signing an agreement between you two. I hope you can work it out...Here is that website I found on the babysitting fee: http://www.babysitting-rates.com/calculator.php

PS: I can certainly understand why you think you're being taken advantage of....you didn't know how much to charge....and perhaps your friend did...that's why you feel the way you do. And I totally agree with you. :-D

I don't see why you feel you are being "taken advantage of" when she is paying what you ask. If the late pick up is an issue, just tell her that in order to get ready for your dinner & evening routine, you'd like her to pick up the baby by 3:30 latest.
And if you feel you need to charge more (and you should!) you're going to HAVE to suck it up and bring up the topic. Tell her you've researched it and effective XYZ 1st, you're going to need abc per day.
You're right that you can get more--and should. You're not the Salvation Army, you're doing this for extra money!
BUT what they make per year has nothing to do with it and HOW in the world did you find out their income??? That's just odd. I would never discuss income with my friends.

You need to talk to her, she is taking advantage. Tell her that you love taking care of the baby, but you really need to be making more $$ for doing so. At a minimum you should be charging 30-50 a day, or $200-300 per week. Check around and see what the local day cares are charging. If she is not happy about it she can start using a day care were the child will not get the one on one time, and it will free you up to find one or two new children to watch at a more reasonable rate.

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The going rate around here would be about 10-15 per hour for a child that small. Make sure you give her 2 weeks notice but definetly change your price. Watching a 6 month old is a lot of work. Agree on a set amount of hours per week(or charge per hour) and come up with a new price. Of course the husband is brining the baby on his day off, why not for 15.00. Good luck w/your friend, hope it all works out.

You should be getting 10 to 15 an hour.

First, you are not being taken advantage of. You made the deal. Second, if the dad wants to bring the child to you on his day off that is his right to do so. Maybe mom runs to the grocery store after getting off work. Get over it.

Now, you can change the price and I most certainly would. Before you say anything to them, do your homework. Check around and see what others charge. I would also define what your "day" is and have a "late fee" attached to that as well. This is a business not a charity. You are providing a service and she is paying you.

I'd call around to local daycares and find out what the rate is that they are charging. Then I would charge slightly below that (so that you'll still be a deal for her). But, you're definitely being paid far too little!

I know it has to be hard to know how to approach it. I think if you say something about how you're going to need to change your rates effective in 60 days (or whatever time frame, I do think you need to give her notice and time to adjust...maybe 60 days is too long, though...perhaps 30 days?). Even tell her you had no idea what normal rates were, and that you realize you are selling yourself short. You're tight on money and realized you needed to bring in more of an income for your family. You can let her know you called around found out what the average rate is and you're charging less, but it will be more than what you are currently charging. I think she should understand! I don't think she's trying to rip you off. She probably just thinks it's a super awesome deal! But you can still be a super awesome deal and ALSO being paid the money you deserve for all the work you are doing.

Another thing to consider (this is what my neighbor is dealing with), define what your day is - what hours are covered in the $35 a day that she will start paying you (or whatever amount you choose). For example, if it's 8am-3pm that you will watch her child for $35. If she brings the baby an hour or two earlier or picks that baby up late (you could always have a late window so she has a little bit of leeway if she is running late). But anyway, if she picks up the baby late, you charge an additional amount per hour (or half hour?) that she is late. I wonder if daycares do this too and if you could find out what they do for late pickups.

My friend watches kids, and the pickup time was 4:15. The dad started getting really bad at picking the baby up on time. It was beginning to be closer to 6pm that he'd arrive. And often he wouldn't tell her he was going to be late. He'd just arrive late. It was frustrating to her because she has two kids of her own, and it was preventing her from having family time. She was stuck at home waiting for him, never sure when he was coming. She regrets not doing a "late pickup" fee or charging an extra amount per set amount of time that she has the baby longer than agreed upon. This family also did a similar deal and acted like she was overcharging to charge $35 a day. So, she lowered her price to $25...only to later learn that $35 a day was a good deal.

I don't really know how to figure it all out. Again, probably something good to check with daycares and see what their policies are and do something similar with late pickups, just stay slightly cheaper so that you are still a deal and appealing for her to want to use.

Good luck!