I am going to be using a babysitter for the first time and don't know how much to pay her. I have 3 kids (ages 8, 5 and 3). She will be babysitting for about 1 to 1-1/2 hours in the early evening ... I will have the kids ready for bed and she will just have to sit with them and watch a movie or read books until I get home. She may have to tuck the youngest one into bed. Do I ask her how much she charges or do I tell her how much I will be paying her? What is the going rate? Any other advice or rules you give to your sitters would be helpful too.
Thanks everyone! We settled on $6 hour (she's 13) for sporadic use (dinners out, school meetings, mom's helper, etc.)
I have a sitter that comes for 2 hours a day. I pay her $10 an hour. She is not paid for days off. This owuld probably be different if she was with us all day but we discussed everything before she started. I plan to raise her pay to $12 soon. She is great with the kids.
The going rate for a sitter is $10 to $15 an hour. I have 4 kids, she mainly is in charge of the 2 yr old and supervises the older ones.
When kiddo is awake, I pay $10 per hour.
However, what I did/do more frequently, is to use a college student after kiddo was in bed. $20 for the night (typically 9-12, or 9-2) plus a homecooked meal or pizza. They get quiet study space and food and token cash... I get to go out. When my son was little (4 and under) I also had a caveat that if he woke up at any point to give him a drink I had prepped and call me, I'd come straight home.
If she's going to be regular (like 1-5 days a week, every week), I'd both ask her what she charges AND make sure that it's enough to have her keep her schedule free. Ditto, if this is a work thing to have a backup planned for days she's sick, because everyone gets sick from time to time. If instead it's sporadic, I would just let her know what you pay.
It depends on the sitter herself. I have younger sitters (15 -16) that have asked for $5-10 per hour which I usually pay $7-8 per hour. Then if i'm in a jam, I have older ones (20-25) that want $10 per hour. Actually, what you should do before you leave is ask her what she usually gets paid. She'll probly give you a range which you should try to aim for the middle on. You don't want to be her lowest payer if you want to have her back.
I am a babysitter in aurora. I make $8 an hour for one $10 for 2 and $12 for more than that it is for strictly sitting and giving snacks. no cleaning, etc. although I do send them up for showers etc. I get more when it is an infant.
We pay our sitter at $10 an hour. I would also talk to her about talking on her phone, facebooking, what is appropriate for the kids to watch on tv etc...and let her know where you stand on those issues.
