Moving! :(

So my husband just informed me that he got a job offer in another city :mad:. I am really upset because I spent the whole summer this far opening my daycare and have filled up my spots. We have three options Brampton, Mississauga and Toronto. I told him I will be picking the city that will most benefit me in terms of daycare. I have homeschooled my children using the Montessori/Reggio approach. I have completed the AMI certification (association Montessori international) so I am a certified Montessori teacher. My dream is to look for an area where Montessori/Reggio is in high demand. I have been looking at rates in Toronto and on average I have been finding 50-65 per day. Does anyone know of any areas or which city/where it would be best.

I'd said TO

I'd think a good place to start looking would be on here in terms of searching for daycare by area which will let you know how saturated an area is and how much it costs. Each area is so large so I imagine there will be quite a bit of variance within those places and you may not get a specific and accurate picture until you narrow down exactly what area you want to live in within a block or two. Also figure out where YOU want to live. I understand that filling those daycare spots is very important, but you have to be happy in the neighbourhood. Additionally, the cost of living in TO in terms of rent and mortgage will be significantly more than Brampton or Mississauga for the most part. So why not start making some lists of wants and needs based on your personal budget and criteria, and then make a separate list of pros and cons based on daycare needs and see which meet in the middle to find some middle ground that will suit your family personally and your business professionally. Good Luck!

I just moved out of Brampton. I did daycare there for 6 years and it was tough. Every second house was an in home daycare. Competition was tough. All the daycare providers did however, work together by giving each others info out if they were full or their schedule didn't fit the client needs. I was NEVER full in Brampton, though some providers seem to do well. I agree TO is the best place to start your daycare, however cost of living is MUCH more higher. The rates in Brampton for in home daycare is about $25/30 per day. Alot of providers there offer sibling discounts which sucks because you have to be comparable to keep up! Good luck and keep us posted!!

This site would be good for rate but not so reliable for saturation. There lot of day home providers in 10 kms of me but really unusual that anyone has ad on this site, in my area. Carer use FB and Kijiji more.

I also think that because it hard to get grip on number providers in area, other than those with current places and finding their ads, that other factors need consider. I would look at places near large school where demand higher even if only for BAS care. I would look at where school bus stops too. I would look at places which have high concentrate of small families. I would look at where most people work so you can plan to be on the route for as many as possible. If you are mid-way between large city and high residential area where school is walking distance and maybe easy access to highway, these would more likely have higher demand.

Look for FB groups or kijiji ads in those areas. We are considering moving right now, and if it looks like it is a go, I plan on emailing a few ads in the area we are looking at and asking the providers - do they have trouble finding clients, are there lots of people needing care or is the market oversaturated, etc. I've had an email or 2 from other providers before asking about my area.

I live in Toronto so I can give you a bit of insight if needed. Will you be renting or buying?

In Toronto, a lot of families want DC centres I would say but because of supply and demand, home daycares will often still do well. There are lot's of family neighbourhoods that are in need of daycares. I think that opening a home daycare happens less often in T.O then in say smaller towns either because financially it makes more sense to work or because they are invested in their careers. The market is less saturated and there is less "under cutting" because we all want to earn as much as possible to pay our mortgage. I guess what I am saying is usually the daycares are businesses first and less SAHM.

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Originally Posted by Suzie_Homemaker

There lot of day home providers in 10 kms of me but really unusual that anyone has ad on this site, in my area. Carer use FB and Kijiji more.

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Not to be picky...but that's because Daycare Bear doesn't have PEI listed, like as if it doesn't exist!

Thank you so much for your help!

Toronto kids I wanted to be close to downtown ish. We will be renting and the reason we can't buy yet is bc of this sudden move. Once I know that I will be in a location for a min of three years I have no problem buying. I would love to live in Toronto but such a big city I don't even know how to even go about finding clients. I am in a smaller town were it's easier to connect and find people Toronto is so big that I'm already lost in terms of finding a location :(

I want to find a client base who is interest in the Montessori approach bc I know in Toronto there is a big waiting list and the fees are $1900-2200 per month.

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Originally Posted by kindertime

Not to be picky...but that's because Daycare Bear doesn't have PEI listed, like as if it doesn't exist!

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I didn't realize that. I tend to search using postal code and even if I pick code from bigger town, nothing ever came up to compare with. Now I know why no ads are ever shown.