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Daycare Center and Family Home Forum>WAY Too Many Daycares
flightlessbird11 06:50 PM 07-17-2011
Hi there! I am just in need of getting this out! I have been doing daycare for about 2 years now, and presently, I only care for one 9 mo. old who I've had since he was 2 months. I have not had the best luck with the families I've had attend. I live in a town of about 70,000, not too big, not too small, but I've noticed that there are A LOT of licensed daycares in my neighborhood. I mean A LOT. I would think that the county would put a cap on how many there are. No one is full, and there are also a lot of SAHM's advertising on craigslist to watch one family at CHEAP prices. It upsets me because they are taking away our business. At the prices they are advertising, how can we compete? I went through all the training and licensing requirements, background checks, fees, etc...., and I don't think it's fair that they aren't.

Sorry, I'm kind of venting but I'm getting frustrated. I am trying to make a living doing this, and it seems silly that the county just keeps spitting out licenses. How is anyone going to get any business?

I've just finished a website for my daycare, I've made up and handed out business cards, and I have an ad on craigslist. Anyone have any other ideas for advertising? I'm also registered with our local R&R. I just hope I get some calls soon! Thanks for listening!
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CheekyChick 06:57 PM 07-17-2011
You could try putting a sign in your front yard. You could have some magnet signs made for your car. You could make up some fliers with a "first week free" coupon. You could offer your current family $25.00 off of one week's care for referring a new client. What about specializing in infant care? Good infant care is hard to find.

Good luck. I know it's rough out there. Especially in the first year or two.
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flightlessbird11 07:04 PM 07-17-2011
Originally Posted by CheekyChick:
You could try putting a sign in your front yard. You could have some magnet signs made for your car. You could make up some fliers with a "first week free" coupon. You could offer your current family $25.00 off of one week's care for referring a new client. What about specializing in infant care? Good infant care is hard to find.

Good luck. I know it's rough out there. Especially in the first year or two.
Thanks! I think I'm going to put a sign in my yard.I'm also going to try the $25 dollars off thing for my current family. The mom works with lots of people, and would give a great reference. Thanks for the support!
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sharlan 07:27 PM 07-17-2011
I know what you mean.

My area is oversaturated with daycares. I swear there is one on just about every corner.

I've advertised in the local paper for months with no calls. I've advertised on Craigslist and got one email, gave them my phone number, no response. I'm listed with the R&R, no calls. I'm listed on 5 websites including here. I got one call from here and he'll be starting in Aug. One lady stopped last Wed when I was out front. She was supposed to come today with her dh and didn't show. I have magnetic signs on my van and dh's truck.

I will be advertising on a local restaurant's menu for a year starting next month.

The providers that I've spoken to are all under capacity. One lady had 3 kids she absolutely hated, but got $500 a week from the state so didn't dare give them up.
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Michael 07:30 PM 07-17-2011
Currently there are about 250,000 daycare in the US. Many moms are finding themselves at home without a job and daycare is an option for those that have children and can't afford to pay for care. We even have radios spots here in Southern California advertising working from home and doing daycare.
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sharlan 07:32 PM 07-17-2011
Originally Posted by Michael:
Currently there are about 250,000 daycare in the US. Many moms are finding themselves at home without a job and daycare is an option for those that have children and can't afford to pay for care. We even have radios spots here in Southern California advertising working from home and doing daycare.
I've missed those.
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Michael 07:35 PM 07-17-2011
Originally Posted by sharlan:
I've missed those.
I have Satellite radio. I hear it all the time.
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sharlan 07:42 PM 07-17-2011
Originally Posted by Michael:
I have Satellite radio. I hear it all the time.
Heaven forbid my radio play anything besides kids' songs.
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Abigail 07:47 PM 07-17-2011
Right now I have decent hopes of filling all my spots within a year of opening due to how many calls we get looking for enrollment and we don't have the room. My DH and I have been house looking for a week now so hope by summer's end we'll be homeowners and begin the home daycare instead of working for someone else in their daycare.

Word of mouth works wonders. Go out to public events wearing a shirt that has your daycare name and number. Have plenty of business cards ready to give out. Do you live near any apartment buildings? You can make up signs and hang them up (if you notice other flyers hanging like for rummage sales, etc) in the entry ways and just make sure you go back and take it down after a month when everyone's had a chance to see it and pull off your name and number.
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MyAngels 09:12 PM 07-17-2011
Word of mouth is an excellent form of advertising. When my kids were younger I was involved in all of their activities, and always talked about my daycare. I still get calls from people who have been given my name by parents of my kids' friends (they're all grown now). Ask friends and family to talk you up to their friends, etc.

Talk to the receptionist at any nearby elementary schools - they can be an excellent source of referrals, especially if you do before and after school care.

I recently saw a basket of sugar free suckers with business cards attached at my dentist's office, which I thought was neat and would work for a daycare, too.

There are a couple of large companies here who have their own internal referral lists for local daycare providers. You have to be put on the list by a current employee or call HR and ask to be listed. I get calls every week from both companies.

I also think a targeted postcard mailing would work well. You could design and print it yourself, perhaps including a coupon of some sort.
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Unregistered 05:39 AM 07-18-2011
Do you take state pay? I have been open for 4 months now and I'm completely full. Mostly private pay. WIC let me put up a flyer because I take state pay. I just filled my last spots that way. I even had to term already and I'm still full. I found WIC and the health department my best advertising places.
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flightlessbird11 07:15 AM 07-18-2011
Thanks for the feedback! Great ideas for advertising. I just did a search on my counties website and within 2 miles of my home there are 52 daycares! That is a lot. I might just call my wic office and see what thwey say. I never even thought of that. Good idea about the kids activities. My oldest 2 children are involved with lots of stuff, and I go, I guess it just never dawned on me to talk about my daycare to the other parents!(duh, I know!) I'm kind of quiet, so it's kind of hard for me to just start talking to people, and it's hard for me to talk myself up! I'm sure I'll need to get over that if I'm going to be busy. I'm fine once I get to know someone....

Anyways, I still think the county should put some kind of limit on the licenses, especially if they know there are already a TON right in a certain area. JMHO.
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cheerfuldom 08:24 AM 07-18-2011
just curious but why should a county put a limit on licenses? If the providers are abiding by the rules why should there be a limit on incoming daycare? I know its frustrating the amount of competition out there (my area is overflooding with the SAHM situation) but why should new people not have a chance to try this just because other people are already doing it? The important thing is to advertise like crazy and make your program better than the competition. Good luck!
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PeanutsGalore 09:53 AM 07-18-2011
Originally Posted by Abigail:
Right now I have decent hopes of filling all my spots within a year of opening due to how many calls we get looking for enrollment and we don't have the room. My DH and I have been house looking for a week now so hope by summer's end we'll be homeowners and begin the home daycare instead of working for someone else in their daycare.

Word of mouth works wonders. Go out to public events wearing a shirt that has your daycare name and number. Have plenty of business cards ready to give out. Do you live near any apartment buildings? You can make up signs and hang them up (if you notice other flyers hanging like for rummage sales, etc) in the entry ways and just make sure you go back and take it down after a month when everyone's had a chance to see it and pull off your name and number.
This. It's cheap and effective to advertise at public events. Also, sponsoring a kids sports team is a great way to round up clients.

I understand your frustration, but don't really agree that all daycares should be licensed or the number should be capped. Licensing causes the prices to go up for the consumer, and has the potential to reduce quality of care in centers who have to enroll a huge number of kids to make a buck, and anyone who has to be licensed in order to follow the safest rules for the kids in their care shouldn't be caring for kids and will go out of business eventually. It might be a good thing for the business model for quality home care providers to enter the market. As for the ones who are severely undercutting pricing, they probably won't last, so maybe you can befriend them in order to get hold of their clients when they quit! Seriously.

I think a lot of professions are facing the issue of wages dropping so severely over the last couple of decades you can barely make the mortgage anymore. Unless, of course, you're a CEO. Sad, but we'll just have to be extra clever to figure our way around it.

ETA: I also found that my own child is my biggest way to advertise for FREE! He helps me meet people and strike up a conversation while doing errands, and if I can work in the fact that I run an in-home daycare, I do. I've done this a lot, and I also know that having my own child at interviews makes people feel more comfortable about leaving their kid with me because they see that he's well-cared for. Same goes for bringing the daycare kids on an adventure. Lots of people ask questions--lots of opportunity for advertising.

Good luck! May lots of clients find their way to your doorstep.
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dEHmom 09:57 AM 07-18-2011
one recommendation I have is if you go the route of referral bonus, set a specific amount of time before they receive their bonus. example would be, after 3 consecutive months of service for the new fam, referring client will receive a 25 bonus.

Otherwise you might find yourself becoming a babysitter for a day or 2, and then having to put out the bonus anyway
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littlemissmuffet 10:56 AM 07-18-2011
Originally Posted by :
I went through all the training and licensing requirements, background checks, fees, etc...., and I don't think it's fair that they aren't.
Um, I am not licensed and I have the best daycare in my area - I am always full, I have stellar recommendations and referals, I have a 4 year wait list, I feed my DCKs only healthy foods, we go on WEEKLY field trips, we spend much of our days outdoors, we are CLEAN, we DON'T HAVE A TELEVISION, etc...
And to top it off I charge quite a bit less than the licensed home daycares in my area who stay inside all day long, eat grabage for meals, do not even have a designated play area and have a tv going all day long.
Life isn't fair, honey

This business, much like any other, NEEDS competition - to weed out the short-lived fly by night dayhomes. Trust me, the majority of these stay at home moms who are charging ridiculously low fees won't last... the ones who think this job is easy and they can just lay around all day - well, they have the kind of clients we don't want. You have to sell yourself as being the best!

Here's some advertising tips that work for me:

- I bring business cards EVERYWHERE I go and hand them out to almost every parent I see (grocery stores, parks, malls, corner stores, beauty salons, schools - and I usually have some DCKs in tow when I do it)
- I print brochures and leave them at my neighborhood schools and churches
- Find community boards and print the boldest, brightest and easist to read ad possible (I make them with pull tabs that have my name, number and email)
- Craigslist... and also ANY free online advertising site
- Get your number in the phone book
- Lawn signs
- Poster ads around schools, churches, your home, the gym
- Staple a business card to candy bags at halloween (this got me countless calls!)
- Advertise on local online mom/parent groups
- Welcome Wagon - get them to ad your business card to their packets
- Get a website
and best of all Word of Mouth... tell everyone you're looking for kids!!

Good luck!
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Blackcat31 11:01 AM 07-18-2011
I agree with littlemissmuffet...if you're good, then it doesn't matter how much competition is out there.

If a parent wants care, but only if it's cheap then I don't want them and am very grateful for those sahm's who are offering exactly that.
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MsMe 11:16 AM 07-18-2011
Originally Posted by momwith4:
Hi there! I am just in need of getting this out! I have been doing daycare for about 2 years now, and presently, I only care for one 9 mo. old who I've had since he was 2 months. I have not had the best luck with the families I've had attend. I live in a town of about 70,000, not too big, not too small, but I've noticed that there are A LOT of licensed daycares in my neighborhood. I mean A LOT. I would think that the county would put a cap on how many there are. No one is full, and there are also a lot of SAHM's advertising on craigslist to watch one family at CHEAP prices. It upsets me because they are taking away our business. At the prices they are advertising, how can we compete? I went through all the training and licensing requirements, background checks, fees, etc...., and I don't think it's fair that they aren't.

Sorry, I'm kind of venting but I'm getting frustrated. I am trying to make a living doing this, and it seems silly that the county just keeps spitting out licenses. How is anyone going to get any business?

I've just finished a website for my daycare, I've made up and handed out business cards, and I have an ad on craigslist. Anyone have any other ideas for advertising? I'm also registered with our local R&R. I just hope I get some calls soon! Thanks for listening!
If they had put a cap on it I bet you would have been too late to ge a license two years ago. I am sure there are other providers in your area that have been at it longer than you thinking you are one of too many. If they are in it for a quick buck or easy money they will stop soon enough and word will get around soon enough who is good and who is not.

Talk talk talk good luck
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dEHmom 11:31 AM 07-18-2011
to the op, you mentioned "they are taking away our business". It's just as much their business as yours. Not to sound harsh, I understand how you feel, but if they aren't very good daycares, charge too little or too much, or don't do what they should be doing, they will not last. Some may be doing it because they have no other option, some might have wanted to do this their whole life and change of events allowed it to happen for them. You never know.

A lot of people prefer licensed centers over private unlicensed. Others prefer unlicensed. Everyone will have their own ideas how to run it, and not everyone will agree. Be the best you can be, and people will start coming to you.

I am unlicensed, and live less than a block away from a licensed center directly across from a school. Many people have chosen me over her. She offers french, and I do not. But that doesn't make her better than me. I offer more flexibility, but I cost more than she does (although she makes more than me because of government grants).
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Blackcat31 11:36 AM 07-18-2011
Originally Posted by MsMe:
If they had put a cap on it I bet you would have been too late to ge a license two years ago. I am sure there are other providers in your area that have been at it longert han youthinking you are one of too many. If they are in it for a quick buck or easy money they will stop soon enough and word will get around soon ebough who is good and who is not.

Talk talk talk good luck

Momwith4, Please don't take this wrong but if I used your line of thinking I should be mad that you are in business....I have been in this business for a loooong time (almost 2 decades) and I have done all the required trainings and licensing requirements PLUS earned a CDA, a A.A.S in ECE and am working on my B.A. in ECE/Sp. Ed and participated in several other trainings and courses that aren't required but still lose business sometimes to new providers because they are less expensive or because their rules/hours are more flexible...etc...etc... I even purchased a home with a mortgage strictly for daycare and am trying to make a living doing this as well. I am not a fly by night provider and have devoted many many years to this business and the state still just keeps spitting out new licenses every year....

But since I have been doing this for so long, I do welcome new licensed and unlicensed providers because it makes it so that parents have choices. No one is ever forced to stay in a child care that isn't a good fit. No one has to put up with a provider or parent that doesn't meet their needs. No one has to pay money out to an expensive (or to a less expensive) daycare unwillingly. It provides parents the opportunity to find the perfect fit and it provides me with options to give parents that don't or won't fit well with me.

I work closely with neighboring providers and share their names and numbers with parents who call me and I either can't or won't take them so I have lots of other provider numbers to give them in hopes that they are able to get that one "right" provider for their children. Some of these neighboring providers love babies, some do not. Some are willing to transport or make all organic foods or do cloth diapers or keep kids late or not charge late fees or let kids bring toys from home or don't offer naps or take drop ins or......???

There are choices (and seems like more every year) and IMHO, that is what should be happening.
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flightlessbird11 11:37 AM 07-18-2011
wow...I'm not trying to ruffle any feathers here. I'm very aware that life is not fair, but if people are doing daycare without being licensed, why bother to be licensed at all? In my county, you can only have up to four non related, from one family at a timr if you're not licensed, and thats not an option for me.

If the county is going to keep spitting out licenses, then they are setting up a lot of people for failure. It's kind of the same thing for other licenses. There is only a certain amount of rental licenses allowed on any city block at a tinme in my county, liquor licenses, etc..

I also don't mind competition. I have an excellent program, and almost everyone that i've interviewed and offered a spot to, has come to me. All I was saying is that for a smaller town, there are ALOT of daycares here.
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Blackcat31 11:40 AM 07-18-2011
Originally Posted by momwith4:
wow...I'm not trying to ruffle any feathers here. I'm very aware that life is not fair, but if people are doing daycare without being licensed, why bother to be licensed at all? In my county, you can only have up to four non related, from one family at a timr if you're not licensed, and thats not an option for me.

If the county is going to keep spitting out licenses, then they are setting up a lot of people for failure. It's kind of the same thing for other licenses. There is only a certain amount of rental licenses allowed on any city block at a tinme in my county, liquor licenses, etc..

I also don't mind competition. I have an excellent program, and almost everyone that i've interviewed and offered a spot to, has come to me. All I was saying is that for a smaller town, there are ALOT of daycares here.
Unlicensed providers can make money while watching only one other family's children AND stay home with their own children so that is why it works for them.

How are they setting up people for failure?
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flightlessbird11 11:46 AM 07-18-2011
Originally Posted by MsMe:
If they had put a cap on it I bet you would have been too late to ge a license two years ago. I am sure there are other providers in your area that have been at it longer than you thinking you are one of too many. If they are in it for a quick buck or easy money they will stop soon enough and word will get around soon enough who is good and who is not.

Talk talk talk good luck
sounds like i offended you, you seem defensive. Maybe that would have been the case, but when I was licensed initially, there were only 15 daycares in my neighborhood-not the present 52. (I actually did do my homework), so I don't think it would have been a problem. But thanks for the support....geesh, this thread wasn't intended to be taken the way some of you are reacting. I've just hit a dry spot, and money is tight, and I am in this for the long haul,so whatever I guess. Just looking for some clever advertising ideas, not the static I'm getting.
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flightlessbird11 11:51 AM 07-18-2011
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
Unlicensed providers can make money while watching only one other family's children AND stay home with their own children so that is why it works for them.

How are they setting up people for failure?
I'm talking about the county. The government. They make the money off all the licensing fees they keep turning out, not thinking about how many children are actually in need of chldcare, so if there are sooooooooo many daycares, and not enough children to go around....see where I'm going with this.
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Blackcat31 11:56 AM 07-18-2011
Originally Posted by momwith4:
sounds like i offended you, you seem defensive. Maybe that would have been the case, but when I was licensed initially, there were only 15 daycares in my neighborhood-not the present 52. (I actually did do my homework), so I don't think it would have been a problem. But thanks for the support....geesh, this thread wasn't intended to be taken the way some of you are reacting. I've just hit a dry spot, and money is tight, and I am in this for the long haul,so whatever I guess. Just looking for some clever advertising ideas, not the static I'm getting.
Please don't get discouraged...it is the dry spells that weed out the good from the bad. We have all been there. This forum is where you should go to vent and let off steam, but you also can't get mad when someone else says things from a different viewpoint or standpoint. There are many many sides and not one single one is right. You may have just been venting but it read as though you were dissing on new providers or the fact that the state allows new ones daily without capping the numbers...but if that were the case, then as MsMe was saying, you are on that one side of the argument as being one of the newly licensed providers and even if there were only 15 providers, those 15 probably felt that you were intruding into an area they already had covered.

FTR, I wasn't getting ruffled, just sayin' so you could see things from a different perspective. I do think you shoud hang in there. I have seen providers come and go and unfortunatley the cycle will turn that way forever and all we can do in all the mess is do what YOU do best...they will come. Patience is definately a virtue in this biz.

I also didn't pay one dime for my license and none of the new providers in my county do either. My county doesn't charge for licensing so I am lost in that area.
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Sugar Magnolia 11:57 AM 07-18-2011
The market has a way of correcting itself. The poor quality ones will go away. The large center across the street from my small center has been 3 (!!!) different places in 6 years. They were ALL AWFUL and they go away eventually.

But if we want to live in a free market economy, we have to deal with competition as a fact of life. I had a nice wake-up call myself on this very topic today myself.
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flightlessbird11 11:58 AM 07-18-2011
Originally Posted by littlemissmuffet:
Um, I am not licensed and I have the best daycare in my area - I am always full, I have stellar recommendations and referals, I have a 4 year wait list, I feed my DCKs only healthy foods, we go on WEEKLY field trips, we spend much of our days outdoors, we are CLEAN, we DON'T HAVE A TELEVISION, etc...
And to top it off I charge quite a bit less than the licensed home daycares in my area who stay inside all day long, eat grabage for meals, do not even have a designated play area and have a tv going all day long.
Life isn't fair, honey

This business, much like any other, NEEDS competition - to weed out the short-lived fly by night dayhomes. Trust me, the majority of these stay at home moms who are charging ridiculously low fees won't last... the ones who think this job is easy and they can just lay around all day - well, they have the kind of clients we don't want. You have to sell yourself as being the best!

Here's some advertising tips that work for me:

- I bring business cards EVERYWHERE I go and hand them out to almost every parent I see (grocery stores, parks, malls, corner stores, beauty salons, schools - and I usually have some DCKs in tow when I do it)
- I print brochures and leave them at my neighborhood schools and churches
- Find community boards and print the boldest, brightest and easist to read ad possible (I make them with pull tabs that have my name, number and email)
- Craigslist... and also ANY free online advertising site
- Get your number in the phone book
- Lawn signs
- Poster ads around schools, churches, your home, the gym
- Staple a business card to candy bags at halloween (this got me countless calls!)
- Advertise on local online mom/parent groups
- Welcome Wagon - get them to ad your business card to their packets
- Get a website
and best of all Word of Mouth... tell everyone you're looking for kids!!

Good luck!


not trying to offend..sorry. Just a question for you though; does your county let you have more than one family's children at a time without being licensed? I'm guessing they do by the sounds of it, just curious. Mine doesnt.
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SilverSabre25 12:02 PM 07-18-2011
Originally Posted by momwith4:
not trying to offend..sorry. Just a question for you though; does your county let you have more than one families children at a time without being licensed? I'm guessing they do by the sounds of it, just curious. Mine doesnt.
I live in a state where we can have up to 6 children, including our own under age 6, without being licensed. In fact, my particular county does not license any home daycare providers at all, though other counties do (and then you have to have 2 providers). 3 of the six can be under age 2, too. Different states have different rules.
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flightlessbird11 12:10 PM 07-18-2011
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
Please don't get discouraged...it is the dry spells that weed out the good from the bad. We have all been there. This forum is where you should go to vent and let off steam, but you also can't get mad when someone else says things from a different viewpoint or standpoint. There are many many sides and not one single one is right. You may have just been venting but it read as though you were dissing on new providers or the fact that the state allows new ones daily without capping the numbers...but if that were the case, then as MsMe was saying, you are on that one side of the argument as being one of the newly licensed providers and even if there were only 15 providers, those 15 probably felt that you were intruding into an area they already had covered.

FTR, I wasn't getting ruffled, just sayin' so you could see things from a different perspective. I do think you shoud hang in there. I have seen providers come and go and unfortunatley the cycle will turn that way forever and all we can do in all the mess is do what YOU do best...they will come. Patience is definately a virtue in this biz.

I also didn't pay one dime for my license and none of the new providers in my county do either. My county doesn't charge for licensing so I am lost in that area.
In my county, there is a $100 licensing fee/year-no joke. That's the reason I brought up my frustration with non licensed. I'm not against new providers at all, like you've all pointed out-I'm relatively new myself. In 20 years, I'll get to say I'm experienced-just not there yet. I may be new to daycare, but I'm a mother of four wonderful children and have been working with children all my life. I'm in it for the long haul.
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flightlessbird11 12:15 PM 07-18-2011
Originally Posted by SilverSabre25:
I live in a state where we can have up to 6 children, including our own under age 6, without being licensed. In fact, my particular county does not license any home daycare providers at all, though other counties do (and then you have to have 2 providers). 3 of the six can be under age 2, too. Different states have different rules.
ok, that's interesting. I realize diff. counties, have diff. rules, I guess I didn't think about that as I was writing. We pay $100/year to be licensed in my county.
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Blackcat31 12:19 PM 07-18-2011
Originally Posted by momwith4:
In my county, there is a $100 licensing fee/year-no joke. That's the reason I brought up my frustration with non licensed. I'm not against new providers at all, like you've all pointed out-I'm relatively new myself. In 20 years, I'll get to say I'm experienced-just not there yet. I may be new to daycare, but I'm a mother of four wonderful children and have been working with children all my life. I'm in it for the long haul.
...and that is what will keep you in it. I know some counties are charging for licensing (up to $1000) and I am lucky I live in one that doesn't, however, I do know some counties in MN charge for licensing and for fire marshall inspections and even renewals of licenses.

It is hard and it is worth it. I get frustrated everyday. I laugh at some of the issues some of the posters on this forum have that I never had/have only to wake up two weeks later facing the same problem! It is a weird weird world us child care providers live/work in .....Just when you think you know it all, have seen it all, have done it all, some family comes around and blows that theory outta the water.... so for advice, I can only say to hang in there.....every day is different and things have a weird way of working themselves out. Reputation is sometimes the best advertisement and sometimes we just have to wait it out. Calls seem to come in groups. Crazy busy some years and deadly silent the next. I have no explanation except that it is what it is.

Stress over the things you CAN change and learn to brush off the rest. If you were in my area...I'd be glad to work with you but I think my clients might have a problem with the drive time....
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Country Kids 01:14 PM 07-18-2011
Originally Posted by momwith4:
sounds like i offended you, you seem defensive. Maybe that would have been the case, but when I was licensed initially, there were only 15 daycares in my neighborhood-not the present 52. (I actually did do my homework), so I don't think it would have been a problem. But thanks for the support....geesh, this thread wasn't intended to be taken the way some of you are reacting. I've just hit a dry spot, and money is tight, and I am in this for the long haul,so whatever I guess. Just looking for some clever advertising ideas, not the static I'm getting.
Are these 52 licensed childcares? If not how did you find out that number? How big of an area are we talking about when you say a neighborhood. I'm actually shocked at that number also! Wow, I panicked when I found out we had 16 in about a 5 mile radius. It is still hard to get kids even with that number I can't imagine 52. I don't think our whole town has that many and we have about 25,000 people,.
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flightlessbird11 01:31 PM 07-18-2011
Originally Posted by Country Kids:
Are these 52 licensed childcares? If not how did you find out that number? How big of an area are we talking about when you say a neighborhood. I'm actually shocked at that number also! Wow, I panicked when I found out we had 16 in about a 5 mile radius. It is still hard to get kids even with that number I can't imagine 52. I don't think our whole town has that many and we have about 25,000 people,.
Yes that's 52 LICENSED daycares within a 2 mile radius from my house. My county has a tool on it's website where you can do a search. These are cold hard facts. And that's 33 new since I was licensed 2 years ago.
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PeanutsGalore 02:32 PM 07-18-2011
Originally Posted by momwith4:
Yes that's 52 LICENSED daycares within a 2 mile radius from my house. My county has a tool on it's website where you can do a search. These are cold hard facts. And that's 33 new since I was licensed 2 years ago.
Well good lord--no wonder it's hard to drum up business. The fly-by-nights must be offering care for almost free! But like we've all said, this too shall pass. The clients who are attracted to you will be the ones you want, not the ones looking for cheap care.

Just for that different perspective, I'm a SAHM who started this year and almost quit after finding out how hard this is. But I didn't, and I'm raising my rates to attract the quality of client I want. I'm in it for the long haul as well. I've looked into licensing, but I have a small home, so my numbers are limited by the environment whether I'm licensed or not. And the number of kids I can take in without hiring an assistant wouldn't be much more if I were licensed, so I'm not going to spend the money. It just doesn't make sense for me, and I'm sure a lot of people who are just starting up crunch the numbers the same way.

Maybe your license will pay off with the food program? Don't know; just throwing that out there.
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nannyde 05:17 PM 07-18-2011
Originally Posted by momwith4:
Yes that's 52 LICENSED daycares within a 2 mile radius from my house. My county has a tool on it's website where you can do a search. These are cold hard facts. And that's 33 new since I was licensed 2 years ago.
My state has a locator on it to find child care. With 2.5 miles of my house there are 100 providers that my state KNOWS about. The locator only goes to 100. We allow a provider to have five under five (including her own under five) without registration. That is supposed to change in a couple of years but we shall see.

So there is more likely at least 200 providers within two miles of my home. There are four just on my block.

One of the things you have to understand about doing child care is that the laws are designed to allow such ease of entry into the profession for a REASON. The truth is that there is a market for "fly by night" short term SAHM's. There's value in having providers coming and going doing short term stints and then blowing out of the market.

There are parents that just want inexperienced uneducated and cheap care for long hours with no rules. There are parents who can only afford that. The State knows that. That's why they allow providers into the biz legally or don't pursue ones doing it illegally. It's for the parents who make too much money to get assistance but not enough to pay for child care AND for the parents who just want cheap.

There are WAY more people looking for cheap day care for long hours and no rules than there are people looking for quality they will pay for.

I would LOVE to have your situation of only fifty within two miles. You have it really good. You have to think of it in terms that the first thru fourteenth providers before you would have preferred to not have you enter the market just as you would prefer those that came after you NOT to enter the market.

You have joined a profession with a declaration to be in it for the long haul. My guess is that the thirty five providers after you would say the same thing. If you are really going to make it for the long haul you have to accept that the ease of you entering the profession IS what makes the profession so easily entered for everyone else. When you have a job that can be done by many then many will do it. If you want an exclusive position you can't enter a profession that allows low education, low training, low start up costs, and low experience.

You have to accept that there will always be a ton of competition.
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permanentvacation 07:41 PM 07-18-2011
Where I live, us licensed daycare providers can't stand illegal babysitters! We turn them in all the time! They can get a fine of over $1000 and possible jail time if they don't stop babysitting illegally! The last lady I turned in was actually one of my past clients. She got fired from her job and I was nice enough to watch her child for 2 weeks for free while she tried to get a new job. She couldn't get anyone to hire her, so she gave up and I stopped watching her child. Next thing I knew, she was advertising illegal childcare in her home! So, since I had all of her information on my paperwork from her having her child enrolled in my daycare, it was very easy for me to turn her in! Yeah around here, we do have plenty of licensed daycare -and we don't mind competition from legal daycare providers and centers. It's the ones who decide to babysit illegally because no one else will hire them that we can't stand!
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