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Daycare Center and Family Home Forum Daycare Center and Family Home owners, Directors, Operators and Assistants should post and ask questions here. |
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#1
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Worried About Getting into the DC Business
I'm thinking about opening up my own in home daycare. I don't watch any kids regularly now, though I do baby sit my neighbors four girls quite a bit (their ages are from 18 months to 9 years). I've been reading other posts for a couple of days and noticed that alot of people decided to get into this because they wanted to stay home with their own children and that their also married or living with someone else who has an income. I'm 19, no children, and live with my parents who are unemployed, now I'm not getting into this for the money but I would like to make a living doing this and only this. Is this realistic? Has anyone else been in a similar situation?
I've read all the things I need to do to get licensed, and before I make a huge commitment to this (like moving to a bigger home, or spending money to get started), I would like to have some comfort in the fact that I will/can make a living. I know nothing is guaranteed. This is something I really want to do, I just need some reassurance (I guess? lol), that it is possible. Believe me, I'm not wanting to start this for the money or else I wouldn't be so worried! lol. Anyways, any and all help and/or advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks! |
#2
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In my own experience, I wouldn't be able to get by on just my daycare income. Granted, I have 3 kids which is an expense that you do not have. I also live in California where rents are pretty high. I probably could make ends meet if I were 19 with no dependents.
The reason I decided to do home daycare was because I need to have 4 years of experience in a licensed facility (can include home daycare) before I can open up a center. Teacher/child ratios are higher in centers and therefore I am hoping the income will be worth it. |
#3
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I have worked in Childcare for a long time
I am 30 and have been doing home daycare for several years now. I started off working in centers as an assistant teacher when I was 16. I then took some early childhood classes and became a lead teacher (when we were living in San Diego). When I was about 20 I decided I really wanted to open a home daycare. I was married, but we did not have any kids. However, we did not have our own home yet and it just was not the right time to make it all happen. If you want to offer a quality program, it takes experience--dealing with parents, finances, business practices such as contracts and policies etc... You of course can learn as you go along, but being in the childcare field for awhile really helps. Besides the licensing issues, there will be some start-up costs for toys/equipment etc... Plus, it takes some time to get enrollments in your program. Not having another income would make that difficult in my opinion. But I am sure it could be done if you had some money in savings to help bridge the gap. We live on my husbands income and bought our home/cars etc according to his income alone. My income from childcare (right now about $1400 (3 paying kids) per month with the potential of about $3000 if I took in more kids) is extra. So if I lose kids we dont have to worry about paying the bills. However, if I did not have any kids we would beon a VERY tight budget.
My point is, I think you have a good dream/goal to work toward. It may work now depending on your financial situation, but more likely it will be a goal for the future. From the time I thought about starting my home daycare to the time I actually started was about 7 years. Now it probably wont take you that long. But be sure you are in the right place in your life to start your own business as a home chaldcare provider. Good Luck!
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Originalkat |
#4
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I am a single mom of a 7 year old and I am also raising my niece. I have been doing childcare for 4 years now very sucessfully. I have actually done so well I have expanded my registration for more children and hired an assistant. I had a really good job at the county but put in my 2 week notice and went on a whim to start chidcare. It took about 3 weeks to get my first child. After the first one it is much easier. Parents don't want their children being the only ones in care.
There are always ups and downs. You have to make sure to have yourself a nest egg because you don't have that spouse to depend on. If things get tough you may have to consider opening your home on evenings and wkends as well. Being single with no children may not be difficult for you. I would also look into how many providers are in your area. When I first started, there were not that many registered providers so there was a high demand and I was able to take right off. Now in my area, there are at least 20 providers so I would not recommend starting out. I am ok now because I have connections through school and parent referrals so I am always comfortable. Would your parents home be big enough and would they let you use their home to start off with? That would allow you to save up so you could get your own home and have some savings for if things did not take off very fast. I was renting when I started and come time to buy a home and move my families were fine with it. They were very supportive. Last edited by gbcc; 12-19-2009 at 08:34 AM. |
#5
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I started doing daycare so that I could be there for my children when I was getting divorced. Daycare was my sole source of income--in addition to child support--for a few years until I remarried. I kept my house, paid my bills, and still had a some left over...
It can be done! |
#6
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Yup, my daycare is the primary source of income in my household as well. My hubby lost his job last year and instead of going on EI, he picked up a job at McDonalds so that we could at least have some benefits. For the most part, his paycheck pays for the medical insurance and a bit of the mortgage.
A very good friend of mine's mother was a single mother who ran a daycare, also the sole provider for the family, and she did very well for herself. |
#7
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I am a single mom of 2 and the daycare is my only income. I have found that I am making more money than I would if I worked out of the house. I am pleased with my income. However, I know that it could change in an instant, so I put away as much as I can, even if it's just a few dollars. My advise is to make sure your parents are perfectly happy, keep advertising even if your full (if word spreads that you're always full, when you do have an opening, people will jump on it!!) and save what you can. Eventually, it's going to rain.
Good luck! |
#8
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Taxes
Is the frustration with taxes worth it though? I don't know enough about taxes and how much to know to save come tax season!
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#9
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I am planning on opening my home daycare near the end of August.. I also don't know in my opinion enough about the taxes to catch everything possible that will work in my favor, but that's what H&R Block is for The few bucks they will charge me the first year or two until I am comfy doing taxes myself will be well worth it.
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#10
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I have learned as far as taxes go (depending on your state and how much you make) a rule of thumb is to expect at least between 15-25% of your earned wages to be taken out (my experience from when I worked). At first try to plan saving that percentage of money from what you earned and put it to the side for taxes, in some cases that may be too much so after taxes are done a few times you can see a pattern and will learn what percentage you should put away for taxes. I heard you can do taxes quarterly (every for months) or yearly.
You should look into how many daycares (home and center) in your area, the population, and see if there is a major or even a slight need for child care. In my current town there are ALOT of home daycares and daycare centers, as well as a low population (under 36,000) so I plan on moving before I start my business (currently in school full time). Some other tips: *RECORD EVERYTHING! Keep the receipts of everything you buy that is related to your daycare including materials, home repairs, food, toys, furniture, etc. *Tom Copeland has a lot of great books about child care including taxes and record keeping (and what is considered tax deductible). http://www.tomcopelandblog.com *You can also try to go into food program, they will reimburse you for feeding children. *Consider taking some classes in business and child care (CD/ECE). Some colleges have classes specifically for family child care providers and business administration. If you go to school full time may be able to qualify for financial aid. Also if your on the younger side, a degree can make you look more professional and serious about your business. If you do decide to open a daycare, consider becoming a member of the board and joining the Providers In Training group. |
#11
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For information on child care and taxes go to http://www.tomcopelandblog.com/. He has lots of books for family child care providers and helping money related issues.
To look at the books he has go to http://www.redleafpress.org/, they are reasonably priced (about $20) and have lots of advice about how to save money and what can be tax deductible. |
#12
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Anyone self employed should do their homework about paying taxes as well as find a tax consultant and/or preparer that specializes in child care taxes. Quote:
If you are younger?? What age is too old to go to school in your opinion? Professionalism has NOTHING to do with having a degree. |
#13
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I'm thinking she meant that if you are a younger person in this field parents may not take you seriously as far as being committed to a long-term career in the field, and a degree may help mitigate that somewhat. At least that's how I read it .
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#14
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#15
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"Your tax rate will either be 10%, 15%, or 25%, plus 15.3% in Social Security" (ok so I forgot to include SS) On the bottom of the page How Much Should You Withhold: "A rough rule of thumb is that federal income and Social Security taxes will amount to about 20% of your gross income (your gross income includes all fees you receive for child care and reimbursement from the Food Program)" Of course she would have to pay more taxes if she has an employee but chances are she wont need an employee starting out and that her mom could help her if she does. And yes, I for one am terrible at math and have said that I would need a finance/tax expert. Quote:
After all, would you want a doctor who didn't go to med school to preform surgery on you? Or would you want to pay a beautician top dollar if they didn't have any education/certificates in styling hair, or doing nails and skin? I was in cosmetology and trust me, there are ALOT of illnesses you can get if a nail artist or esthetician is not educated in sanitizing and proper application/storage of material. Also how are child care experts supposed to break out of the "glorified babysitter" label if they don't hold themselves to a higher standard than bare minimum? Yes there are some things you cannot learn from a class or a book and having a degree doesn't "magically" make you know everything or make you professional; but its always good to keep up to date on the latest break-threw on ECE techniques and information. Sometimes it seems to me that you don't really value education of child care professionals because you are always talking about how standards are getting higher and "Family child care will never be the same again". But for things to get better they have to grow, and growth sometimes means change. And not all change is bad. Last edited by Starburst; 07-07-2013 at 01:34 PM. Reason: Another thought |
#16
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You mentioned it in another thread too so I am assuming it is some sort of show like Super Nanny or something.... ?? I think we will agree to disagree about professionalism and it's connection to a degree. That is an insulting statement to make towards/about providers who do not have a degree. There are MANY providers here who do not have a degree yet are VERY professional and take their career just as seriously......kwim? Quote:
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Same as above....a degree may give you a formal education but the hands on experience a provider gets from actually doing the job teaches you FAR MORE than any textbook you can cite or memorize. Not to mention that earning a degree in early childhood education has very little to do with the actual care of a child. Sure you learn all sorts about developmental growth and about the ages and stages of cognitive and physical development but that still does NOT guarantee that you are a quality CARE giver. Like I said, many providers choose to provide CARE without so much emphasis on the education part. Of course learning happens naturally through play but the caregiver doesn't HAVE to follow a specific curriculum or purposely teach the child anything to be a good caregiver. I owned and operated my child care business for 15 years before I went to back to school and earned my degree and in all honestly, I didn't really learn anything I didn't already know other than textbook terms and words to define the skills and knowledge I already knew and a little of the "why" behind some behaviors but I can guarantee that it didn't automatically make me a better caregiver or instantly make parents view me more professionally. |
#17
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I discuss the downside of standards getting higher and more time consuming because as a child care provider (WITH a degree, by the way) I already work 50-60+ hours per week. Requiring MORE from a provider who works that much in a week's time for LOW wages is NOT something that is doable or even feasible in the real world. Child care providers are already one of the lowest paid professions there is. Not to mention the fact that there are no medical benefits, pensions or retirement plans just more standards. I FULLY and 100% support the change in standards for Early Childhood TEACHERS but NOT for child care providers. That is the difference you are not seeing/understanding. NOT all child care providers WANT to teach academics. Some just want to provide quality care and have fun while doing it....and to do that you do NOT need to know all the things you learn from a formal education. ....and no, family child care will never be the same again.....the government has taken the "family" part out. Last edited by Blackcat31; 07-07-2013 at 02:00 PM. |
#18
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#19
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Maybe by increasing the standard that will lower the over abundance of child care providers in certain areas where there are too many child cares there will be more emphasis of importance in this field (after all if it weren't for daycare, many parents would not be able to work). The way I see it the more of something someone has have the less they tend to value it. This may be the excuse that some providers need to increase their rates or help them to qualify for more tax breaks or even better access to benefits (such as being able to care for an additional SA child without an assistant, or their own child not counting for their ratio, or a type of licenses that would allow them to care for an extra group of children with an additional assistant). If they don't want to teach academics that's fine, then they shouldn't advertise as a preschool or they should focus mostly on infants/after school children or cater to parents who want to "unschool" their children. And as I stated in PP, part of quality care to me is having an enriching environment that educates as well as cares. |
#20
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I agree with Starburst about the comment of having more education and being younger. I started my daycare business at 22 and am 23 and I myself sometimes feel some parents may not take me as seriously bc of my young age.
Also, I don't see why so many people in this forum feel the need to disect every little thing another person comments. I don't think anyone means to offend anyone and if you take offense then maybe you are being too sensitive, however, I have seen that some other people that will comment directly to offend someone on the way they do things bc they do not agree. I find it very childish to go back and forth with each other on a forum about CHILDCARE business, I think if a lot of parents such as myself were to read a lot of these forums would find many of the people childish. This forum is for advice and suggestions. This is just my opinion. Not trying to offend or be rude to anyone, especially no one in particular. |
#21
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#22
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Lol I think you just made her point for her...anyway.... Moving right along....
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#23
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I wasn't trying to go back and forth but I always feel like I have to defend my opinions on this board and part of it I do think is because some of the others don't take me seriously either because of my age or (as pointed out earlier) because I don't have any kids of my own .
I was actually thinking of saying something about this getting off topic a while ago but got caught up in the debate So I am sorry to the OP, I didn't mean to get off topic. |
#24
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That is exactly what I mean...all the arguing on the thread is unneccessary, especially when you are suppossed to be grown and professional!!
if the shoe fits...wear it... Will be finding a new forum!! |
#25
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Perhaps. I don't usually call anyone out. I tend to be a live and let live kind of person. But in this case I see a member who joined just recently, with a total post count of less than 30, painting the entire population of this forum with a rather broad brush. I think there are better ways to make the point. And yes, I found her comments to be both rude and offensive.
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#26
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I wasn't talking about you starburst going back and forth. I took it as you had to explain yourself for a comment you made to the OP and someone else felt the need to take it way out of context and that should not have been the issue. I just feel some people get on this forum with a lot if judgement and make comments that are just not necessary.
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#27
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There is a lot of drama junk here. There's drama junk everywhere. Ignore the drama (sometimes its really hard) and stick around. You can learn a lot here. |
#28
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I was not trying to say everyone or anyone is childish. I am a very blunt and verbal person. and I can see how things can be taken out of context by people by reading something, I was just saying the bickering between us as grown professional people is childish. I have read a lot of the threads and somewhere along a lot of the thread some negativity comes out, and I can say that at this I am probably guilty of that by the post I made and I do apologize, as i said b4 my intention was not to be rude or offensive.
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#29
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When it comes to age, didn't we just have the thread about how age effects enrollment? If I recall correctly I'm sure nearly all the early 20s people said they had no problem getting clients because of their age. As for education, I have a degree and never once has a parent asked in an interview about my education. I don't feel I am a better provider or more professional than any other provider just because I have a degree, I learned nothing about the business side or general care side of childcare in school, that has been all been hands on (and this board ). And on that same note I have DCPs that know I have a degree but still refer to me as "babysitter." IMO the Tabatha debate has nothing to with these situations, its a tv show about people who have given up and are about to loose their businesses because they don't care and have just let everything go Last edited by Lyss; 07-07-2013 at 05:33 PM. Reason: added |
#30
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I know when I first started visiting here I was like a lot. The more I read, though, the more I realized that this is a great group of providers. Yes, at times we can "get into it" - myself included - but you won't find a better group anywhere. Stick around, participate, and before long I bet you'll know what I mean. |
#31
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ok?
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#32
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I was directing OP to my experiences with education and the thread about age in relation to enrollment. Tabatha comment? Yeah it has nothing to do with childcare but its been going back and forth. I'll comment on it if I feel like it, just like you can post what you want on whatever thread you want |
#33
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#34
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Why do you feel the need to open this up again? As well as trying to get in the middle of it? And yes honestly you are stirring the pot right now after everything has cooled off and I even apologized to the original post for letting it accelerate this far and off the original topic. And this type of behavior you have shown is even more bringing the point across that DCM2012 was saying. Its things like this that make me feel unwelcome here and what does make some people leave because they don't want to be bullied by someone who is supposed to be an adult. And yes I do consider this borderline cyber bullying (intentionally trying to pick on someone and trying to cause them unnecessary stress) and I am sick of it. |
#35
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Um, ok...
first off, there are NO forum rules stating that threads can't go off topic. As a matter of fact, more threads do than don't and that is great.....daycare related comments, opinions and advice is ALL relevant content for this board. Why can't posters discuss things they disagree about or view differently? @Starburst~....I mean this with a kind heart.... I think you need to let go of feeling as if members don't take you seriously based on your age or parental status as there are many members here that are the same age as well as members who don't have children yet. I am sorry you feel that is how people perceive you as I certainly don't. I think you have valid content and usually offer really good advice and support. There are times in which you do seem to struggle to get your point across or perhaps misinterpret what others are saying, but again that is not age dependent....we ALL do it. Personally, I don't think Lyss is stirring any pot..... her first post was actually a great condensed version of what I was trying to say. She stated her opinion, just like everyone else has done. I don't see how that is bullying anyone. @Daycaremom2012~ In response to the "going back and forth".... I was having a discussion with Starburst. Not all threads are just one member after another saying "I agree" over and over. Some of them do get heated sometimes but I don't think anyone here was being rude or out of line. Starburst and I often see things from a different perspective and although we may appear to disagree more often than not, her opinion is still valuable and insightful to me. @unregistered~ I am sorry you feel I come across as judgmental and condescending. That is never my intent. |
#36
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@Daycaremom2012~ In response to the "going back and forth".... I was having a discussion with Starburst. Not all threads are just one member after another saying "I agree" over and over. Some of them do get heated sometimes but I don't think anyone here was being rude or out of line.
Starburst and I often see things from a different perspective and although we may appear to disagree more often than not, her opinion is still valuable and insightful to me. THere is nothing wrong with going back and forth as that is what happens in any discussion, of course, however I took most of the discussion that I read between you two as she was just trying to explain herself and justify what she commented, which is something she nor anyone else should have to do, you nor anyone else here are anyone that any of us should feel the need to explain ourselves to. If someone posts something I do not agree with, I just keep it moving and do not comment if I have nothing nice to say. It seems that you comment on everything someone has to say, and IMO it's not always needed, but then again that is my opinion and others may feel different and that is fine. I just feel that if I post something and someone doesn't agree or if I do not put it in the right context, then it will just be a negative back and forth thing. I'm all for people disagreeing with each other and making their points or putting in their input, however there are nicer ways to do it w/o being condescending. |
#37
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I am not "picking any fights" or being rude intentionally. I now see I my didn't appear at the end of my last post and if you already thought I was out to get you, you would take that as rude but I wasn't even talking to you and it wasn't about you. MANY of these threads go off topic, its the nature of conversation, I'm sorry that you feel I did it intentional just to get at you but really it had nothing to do with you. I was just posting on the recently active threads for today and this was one. |
#38
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Last edited by Lyss; 07-07-2013 at 09:25 PM. Reason: spelling |
#39
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It was those emoticons like that kinda made it seem like you were making fun of me and I may have been a little sensitive because last year on my birthday I was harassed and cyber bullied by friends of a friend through my friends FB page (I was not friends with them). And I tried not to do anything about it but they just keep going and going and pretty much ruined my birthday. The worst thing was they weren't just kids they were a couple in their 40s !
So I may be a little touchy about that and I jumped the gun a bit and I am sorry about that. As one of my ECE teachers put it "you never know what is in someone else backpack" meaning you never now what they have been through or how they see things. |
#40
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And I'm sorry it came off as being directed at you but my comments with the s honestly had nothing to do with you. I even quoted the "unregistered" I was replying to in order to avoid this situation. So unless you logged out to egg on the conversation and then logged back in to chastise me for responding to the unregistered comment (which I'm NOT saying you did in anyway, shape, or form [or tone] because I know you wouldn't do that) I promise it had nothing to do with you and I didn't mean anything bad about you (or anyone really). I just joking around with 1 unregistered user, not purposefully offending "many registered users" like you accused. So again, sorry it came off as being directed at you. I'm not out to get you or start drama for you. |
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advice, starting a daycare |
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