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Daycare Center and Family Home Forum>How Do Home Providers Afford to Pay an Assistant?
LITTLESTARS 07:48 AM 05-03-2019
How do you guys get to pay these assistants and how much do you pay .
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Cat Herder 10:02 AM 05-03-2019
Group homes. More space. Larger ratios.

It is not even an option in my state anymore. We only have four licensing structures now.

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BumbleBee 10:51 AM 05-03-2019
Currently pay minimum wage when hired. After 1 year of employment annual raise, after 2 years of employment quarterly bonuses, after 3 years of employment paid time off at a rate of 1 hour of PTO per 35 hours worked.

Group home, 12 children can be in attendance at one time, anything over 6 children I am required to have an assistant.

When I was licensed for 6 (no assistant) business maxed out at $22k gross. Licensed for 12, with an assistant, business brought in $46k gross. After payroll the business grossed $34k.

Aside from the money, I do better with another adult here. My anxiety and depression is much less and I don't feel burned out as often.
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Blackcat31 11:00 AM 05-03-2019
Originally Posted by Cat Herder:
Group homes. More space. Larger ratios.

It is not even an option in my state anymore. We only have four licensing structures now.
  • Family Learning Home - Licensed, 6 kids max.
  • Center - Licensed, number dependant on space and staff.
  • Legally unlicensed - No more than two kids for pay (related or unrelated.
  • Illegal - Unlicensed, More than two kids for pay
I am licensed as "group family care" (I have 12 kids) and am not required to have an assistant.

It's a good thing because there is no way I'd be able to afford one. Even with 12 full time kids.

Having to pay min wage and pay employee/employer tax stuff makes it impossible. Half my income would go to an employee and if I only wanted income for 6 kids, I'd opt to downsize and have a smaller group.
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Mom2Two 11:40 AM 05-03-2019
Originally Posted by Cat Herder:
Group homes. More space. Larger ratios.

It is not even an option in my state anymore. We only have four licensing structures now.
  • Family Learning Home - Licensed, 6 kids max.
  • Center - Licensed, number dependant on space and staff.
  • Legally unlicensed - No more than two kids for pay (related or unrelated.
  • Illegal - Unlicensed, More than two kids for pay
Wow, only two for legally unlicensed? At that rate, it would never be worth it for a legally unlicensed provider to take part-time family, unless they charged a huge amount of $ for pt time.

Just curious...are there any states with stricter rules than your state that you are aware of?
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Jupadia 11:46 AM 05-03-2019
Where I am I max out at 5 kids and cant do more.
If I was licensed there would be an opportunity to have 10 kids, but both providers are then run by an agency. The agency also handles payments and such from kids taking a percentage (around 30%), from whatvive been told.

I
My coverage for appointments and such is my MIL and she refuses any payment.
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Mom2Two 11:53 AM 05-03-2019
Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
I am licensed as "group family care" (I have 12 kids) and am not required to have an assistant.

It's a good thing because there is no way I'd be able to afford one. Even with 12 full time kids.

Having to pay min wage and pay employee/employer tax stuff makes it impossible. Half my income would go to an employee and if I only wanted income for 6 kids, I'd opt to downsize and have a smaller group.
12 kids and no assistant! It's amazing the differences from state to state.

My city won't let me have more than 8, which is also the max I can have licensed without an assistant.

But I rarely run full, by choice. But even if I wanted to run full, it would be so expensive to have an assistant. It would be nice though... There would be so many things that would be easier with an assistant.
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Mom2Two 12:03 PM 05-03-2019
Originally Posted by Jupadia:
Where I am I max out at 5 kids and cant do more.
If I was licensed there would be an opportunity to have 10 kids, but both providers are then run by an agency. The agency also handles payments and such from kids taking a percentage (around 30%), from whatvive been told.

I
My coverage for appointments and such is my MIL and she refuses any payment.

Wait...do you mean that you are required to let the govt handle your payments then they take 30%? I wasn't sure if I understood.
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sahm1225 12:16 PM 05-03-2019
Originally Posted by LITTLESTARS:
How do you guys get to pay these assistants and how much do you pay .
I have an assistant and pay is really city specific so saying what I pay in a big city isn’t the same that our next town over would need to pay. I increased my capacity so that helps pay for the assistant. Plus, I have a daughter with a compromised immune system and I wouldn’t be able to do daycare if I had to close for every specialist appointment. For me, I would probably make about the same if I lowered my capacity and didn’t have an assistant, but I need someone to work with me or I go stir crazy!
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Cat Herder 12:30 PM 05-03-2019
Originally Posted by Mom2Two:
Wow, only two for legally unlicensed? At that rate, it would never be worth it for a legally unlicensed provider to take part-time family, unless they charged a huge amount of $ for pt time.

Just curious...are there any states with stricter rules than your state that you are aware of?
I am not sure. Atlanta kind of likes to be the gatekeeper of all the money, so..... It is the angry blue heart of a deeply red state. Few rules seem to be based on the best interests of kids and families, here. It is mostly about the federal dollars coming in.

When I opened I was allowed 12 kids, ten years in they cut it to half. Now, the list of politically and religiously exempt programs has doubled, go figure.
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Rockgirl 12:32 PM 05-03-2019
Originally Posted by Mom2Two:
Wow, only two for legally unlicensed? At that rate, it would never be worth it for a legally unlicensed provider to take part-time family, unless they charged a huge amount of $ for pt time.

Just curious...are there any states with stricter rules than your state that you are aware of?
In Texas, there’s no such thing as legally unlicensed. You can’t even care for one unrelated child for pay in your home without being either: listed, registered, or licensed.
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Jupadia 01:24 PM 05-03-2019
Originally Posted by Mom2Two:
Wait...do you mean that you are required to let the govt handle your payments then they take 30%? I wasn't sure if I understood.
It's not even the government, it's a private agency.
To be licensed in Ontario you have to go through a provite agency (that the Gov dose gove person to to license home daycares). The agency then ends up getting you kids but take up to 30% (depending on agency) per child. Parents pay agency and agency pays you. So you are a provite home daycare who ends up working for an agency. As well you get monthly inspections done by them, and a yearly done by the ministry of education (who in charge of daycare linces here). They also supplie things like daily and monthly schedules for provider or can lend equipment like pack n plays. There are also rules and regulations you have to follow aside from ratios.
For most home providers expessially those with experience it's not worth it to get licensed. Since unlinced providers have no rules and regulations to follow all I have to worry about is ratios. (Though I do more and run it much the way a licensed provider would).
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Mom2Two 01:31 PM 05-03-2019
Originally Posted by Rockgirl:
In Texas, there’s no such thing as legally unlicensed. You can’t even care for one unrelated child for pay in your home without being either: listed, registered, or licensed.
When I started to read, I thought you were going to say that anything goes in Texas. I kinda wish it did! lol
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Mom2Two 01:36 PM 05-03-2019
Not sure if this will work...
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Mom2Two 01:36 PM 05-03-2019
Trying to upload gif but not working...
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Rockgirl 02:27 PM 05-03-2019
Originally Posted by Mom2Two:
When I started to read, I thought you were going to say that anything goes in Texas. I kinda wish it did! lol
Lol!
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Ariana 06:08 PM 05-03-2019
Originally Posted by Jupadia:
It's not even the government, it's a private agency.
To be licensed in Ontario you have to go through a provite agency (that the Gov dose gove person to to license home daycares). The agency then ends up getting you kids but take up to 30% (depending on agency) per child. Parents pay agency and agency pays you. So you are a provite home daycare who ends up working for an agency. As well you get monthly inspections done by them, and a yearly done by the ministry of education (who in charge of daycare linces here). They also supplie things like daily and monthly schedules for provider or can lend equipment like pack n plays. There are also rules and regulations you have to follow aside from ratios.
For most home providers expessially those with experience it's not worth it to get licensed. Since unlinced providers have no rules and regulations to follow all I have to worry about is ratios. (Though I do more and run it much the way a licensed provider would).
Apparently these rules are changing. Many licensing agencies are now going with an “administrative model” where the provider has all of the control they would have without a license. They want more of us to become licensed so they are realizing they need to make it work for us. I am an ECE and even with the administrative model they won’t allow you to take more kids and I would get inspected by an ECE. Does not make any sense!
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LysesKids 06:42 AM 05-05-2019
Originally Posted by Mom2Two:
Wow, only two for legally unlicensed? At that rate, it would never be worth it for a legally unlicensed provider to take part-time family, unless they charged a huge amount of $ for pt time.

Just curious...are there any states with stricter rules than your state that you are aware of?
I know of a few where you can't take any kids at all before you are fully licensed, Inc MD where I grew up
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Sunchimes 01:35 PM 05-05-2019
Originally Posted by Rockgirl:
In Texas, there’s no such thing as legally unlicensed. You can’t even care for one unrelated child for pay in your home without being either: listed, registered, or licensed.
If I remember, a listed home can have 3 unrelated kids, but you can have up to 12 if they are related to you. So, if I could round up enough grandkids, nieces, nephews, cousins, I could have 12 kids. Makes no sense. Do they think I will lower my care standards if they are family?
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