Quote Originally Posted by shopgirl View Post
I am in the Niagara area.
Michellesmuchkins - that does sound generous! That seems like alot of time that you dont get paid. I cant believe some of your parents dont pay the stat days when they are supposed to.

so here is kind of a spin off question - if i wanted to charge a higher rate like 40$ instead of 35$ which seems to be the norm here from the little i see. What do I have to do to make myself stand out. What are some things you offer that make a parent want to get you and pay you extra. is it hours open? the look of your house? preschool curriculum you offer?
It really is a lot of unpaid time and it really does affect the income. I could be more of a hard ass and make them pay by threatening to not take their child the following week, but for the most part I have great families and that seems to be my only issue with them so to me, its not worth fighting with them for. I should fight for it for sure though since we are entitled to it...I just choose to pick my battles and for now I'll let the stat holiday one go.

My rates will be increasing probably next year to maybe $37-38/day for new families. Current families will keep their regular rates. I also used to offer a family discount of $50/day for the 2 children and that REALLY affected the income so I'm not going to be doing that anymore.

I'd be happy to send you my website if you want to see what I've done. My hours are 6-6 which is not common in my area so that is for sure a huge reason why most families contact me. It makes for very long days though just something to think about.

I do offer a preschool program and I also offer french and sign language in my program. It by no means sells my daycare over someone else's but just gives a little something more. In my area pretty much every second house is a home daycare so we have to stand out somehow. I think my families like that I used to teach for the school board and that I have TONS of experience with special needs children (although I don't have any special needs children in care at the moment, I am qualified to take them).

My house is just your typical backsplit in a nice area of town. I have 2 schools and a park right down the street. I find the fact that I have an inground pool deters some families even though the children are NEVER allowed in my backyard because of the pool. My daycare is the main floor of my house and I use my 3 bedrooms for nap time.