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Thread: Red Flags!!

  1. #1
    Starting to feel at home...
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    Red Flags!!

    Hi Ladies,

    I finally filled my dayhome spot. The little girl was set to start November 30. The mom sent me a msg asking if everything was still good to go. I said of course and then asked if she would need an invoice or just receipts once a year. I also told her that I would pro rate the 30th for her. She then lost it and doesn't understand that her monthly fee doesn't include the 30th. She is accusing me of ripping her off because now I am asking for more money. I explained that her monthly fee is from the 1-31 in December and that November 30 is an extra day and I thought that I was being more than fair by pro rating it.

    She also kept going on about how she is only using 15 days in December and paying FT. Which I explained to her and she signed in the contract. This spot is for FT. The fee is the same every month even if you don't utilize all the days. I told her that if she only wanted to pay the monthly fee she can, but her daughter won't be starting on the 30, she is welcome to start on the 1.

    I told her to swing by for her copy of the contract or pop in to talk. She will be coming to talk about it.

    This...all before we even begin. She even said to me "I feel that this is a very bad start to a relationship where you watch my daughter". That's uncalled for....it's her mistake. Sure it sucks if she didn't budget for that additional day, but she shouldn't be blaming me.

    Ugh...the day started out so well and now I am stressed. What a month for this to happen. BTW she told me that she couldn't afford to bring her daughter to my dayhome then. ga!

  2. #2
    Expansive... Artsand crafts's Avatar
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    It is easier to charge bi-weekly or a set fee the 1st day of the month. This way you can avoid misunderstandings and parents feeling like they were ripped off, because it is hard to understand for some. I prefer to charge bi-weekly, because if you do the math at the end you charge more per year and since it is pretty easy to understand parents do not feel that they were taken advantage of.

  3. #3
    Starting to feel at home...
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    yes, The fee I have is for the first of the month. Very clearly stated. My fee is per month due on the first of the month every month. Not sure why she thinks the 30th is included in December fees. It is very basic.

  4. #4
    Expansive... Artsand crafts's Avatar
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    I would tell her that the other option would be bi-weekly if that sounds more transparent to her. If she goes for the 2nd option she will be paying more per year, but she may feel happier because she may understand that model better.

  5. #5
    Expansive... Artsand crafts's Avatar
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    How much do you charge per month? I charge $500 bi-weekly (or $1,000 every 4 weeks). That is $12,250/year for 49 weeks that I am open and paid for (my 3 weeks unpaid vacation). If I charged $1,000 per month it would be $11,250 ($1,000/month by 12 months minus 15 days vacation at $50/day).

    Also $500 bi-weekly sounds easier to put together than $1,000 per month.

  6. #6
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    I charge 700/month

  7. #7
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    While I don't think this is acceptable to be getting notably upset about I can understand her confusion. If you check the Calendar she is starting the first week of December, it just happens that December 1st is a Tuesday. So, depending on how you look at it and how her paydays work it could be considered paying for an extra day if she is used to biweekly payments. But again, I find it concerning that she is still notably upset about this after you have explained it to her.

    I would also suggest switching to biweekly payments or paying by the number of worked days in a month because charging a flat monthly fee means you work extra days for free many months of the year.

  8. #8
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    If she is starting on the 30th, then why would she think that she didn't have to pay for it. It doesn't matter whether she pays monthly or not. I have a family that pays monthly on the first of the month, so I just give her the number of working days each month and she pays.

  9. #9
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    Is she regularly only going to be coming about 15 days a month (even though she`s paying full-time fees) or is December just an unusual month because of Christmas. If that is the case, maybe there was some misunderstanding and she thought that she was substituting the November 30 day for one of the days that she would not be coming over Christmas. Of course, she shouldn`t have assumed that and it`s strange that she would get so upset over it. But I can see how it might be confusing, especially with her first day being on a Monday on the last day of the month. Hopefully after you talk to her, it all gets sorted out and ends up being a good relationship.

  10. #10
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    It makes perfect sense to me. I also do payments per month it doesn't matter when the 1st falls. She is using the 30th so she has to pay for that day. I operate the same way and I think she is definitely in the wrong here. Just stick to your guns and try to explain that you operate monthly not weekly.

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