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My parents sign a contract that states what days they are reserving. The contract states that they pay their monthly fee on or before the 1st of the month. If a parent needs sparadic days per week then I suggest that they sign up for the full time spot and pay the full time fee of $900. per month. I let them know that I cannot guarantee that I will have space for their child if they do not do this. I explain to them that they then have a place that they can drop off their child to do such chores as shopping, haircuts, doctors or dentists appointment, etc. I use analogies with parents and they seem to understand the situation better, such as if you were reserving a hotel room, but you did not know which days you needed it for would the hotel hold the room for the full week knowing that you would only be paying for 3 or 4 of those days? If you think that getting your fees from this parent is going to be a problem every month, it may be worth looking for another family that appreciates what you do.
My contract states that if a child is absent from care and I am open, the family needs to pay for the reserved space. This is why parents pay on the first of the month. I have had parents ask me about their holiday and if they have to pay when they are away. I use the analogy---If you go away for 2 weeks do you phone your bank and tell them because you are not living in your house for 2 weeks that you are not going to pay 2 weeks of your mortgage? Or -- if they have a car loan will they phone the bank and let them know that they are not going to pay for the 2 weeks they will not be driving their car? Mine is a service also. Most parents get paid vacations, medical/dental and pension plans, paid sick days, etc, etc. and some of these benefits can add up to 35% of their wages. This is the hardest part of my business.
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The family contacted me and asked if they could come for an interview on monday and asked for my rates. This is the response I have typed out, but haven't sent it yet.
Hi,
Because I usually just have a firm price for child care, no matter what hours child care is needed, I had a hard time trying to find a way to accomodate to your family's needs. Usually the way dayhomes operate is that each family pays for a space in the dayhome, regardless of the days the children attend. Providers are only allowed to have a certain number of children enrolled. So if a provider enrolls a child who's attendance is unpredictable the provider isn't able to enroll another child to be there on the days that the other child doesn't attend, because the provider has to always have space for that child to come whenever child care is needed. That is why providers usually charge for the space that child is using in the dayhome, instead of days child care is needed.
But I try very hard to accomodate to my family's individual needs and understand how difficult it is to pay the full amount when your child will only attend my dayhome a few days on some months. This is why I have decided to give your family a special rate.
I am offering these prices for your particular situation. These prices include all agency fees, meals, etc.:
-$300 for enrollment (charged to all parents at enrollment)
-50 or less hours a month: $295/month (a special rate I am giving your family)
-50 to 100 hours a month: $434/month (my part time rate)
-100 or more hours a month: $650/month (my full time rate)
My dayhome is open from 7:30 to 5:30. If you need child care outside of those hours, you would be charged my extended hours fees with your monthly bill. These are my extended hours rates:
If you use less than 10 hours a month of extended child care hours = $30/month
11 or more hours/month of extended hours = $3.50/hour
Your family is more than welcome to come meet me and see our place on Monday after 7 pm.
Have a wonderful weekend,
xxxxxxx
What do you think?
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I think that your response is very well worded, and that if you are comfortable with that arrangement, then it works.
I was going to say; my full timers pay monthly, and my part timers pay daily. Either way, their fee holds a SPOT in the dayhome, as opposed to paying hourly, etc. I have 2 families that we have determined the minimum amount I require (both happen to be 6 days per month at the least). Over and above that, they give the schedule in advance (usuallly the end of the month for the next month) and pay extra for any more days.
That way, I know that I have a minimum amount coming in, and some months it is more but never less. I can budget, they have flexibility as needed, and some days it means less kids than usual. Works for us, but I could never let someone come and go as they please. I need to be able to budget!
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Thanks everyone for your input! :)
They decided I was too expensive. Even with the discount I was giving them, and even considering I am subsidy approved. :rolleyes:
So I wished them good luck and am moving on.
And I have decided not to personalize my prices anymore. I charge what I charge; if they don't like it, they can go somewhere else. I am charging very reasonable rates and offer high quality child care, so I won't feel guilty for charging what I charge anymore.
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Good for you Country Mommy...don't negotiate. Give them your part and full time rate and they can either accept or walk away. Often people negotiate because they get concerned about filling the spots and then at some point in time, you'll just end up regretting that you did.
I only do full time right now, but my part time fee was similar to yours $35 daily rate for under 4 hours and for a 3 day minimum...works out to about $420 for 4 weeks. Anything over 4 hours and it's full time rate.
Don't feel guilty. You need to do what is best for you, your family and your business. Good luck with filling the spots...it will happen.
