There's no harm in having brief phone interviews just so you have the full picture but I would cast as wide a net as possible and spend the time on Facebook or care.com. So many great nannies don't take the time to register with an agency because they don't have to. The demand is so high that they'll get good jobs by word of mouth or websites.

I agree with you 100% that you should feel good about the person in your home for 40 hours a week..

I didn't hire one. None of them stood out from the ones I found myself, no matter what their rate was.

That being said, if I was desperate, I might have chosen one and I'm sure it would have been fine just more expensive.

I manage a nanny agency.

Have you talked to your agent about this? They should know their candidates well and be able to run through why they think each would be a good possible fit for your family.

I get it, OP. For $30+ an hour, plus agency fees, I would also want to feel strongly about the person I'm hiring. That said, people are often very different in person than on paper (for better or for worse!). I'd interview the ones you feel on the fence about, and have very specific questions about the areas where you have concerns.

Unfortunately the bar for nanny quality around here is extremely low because there are so many desperate parents.

You are being too picky. No one is perfect. Every candidate will have something wrong with them. Some might be super fun and creative but not so tidy. Others might be really good at discipline but less good at arts and crafts. They are human.

Also, you aren't going to be spending 50 hours a week with them, your kids will be. Do they seem competent? Dedicated? This isn't choosing a life partner.

We’re expecting kid #2 and definitely need a nanny. (Kid #1 has been in daycare and will transition to full day preschool.). We signed up with an agency that seems to have really good recommendations and have started getting resumes/profiles of candidates, but I’m finding things I don’t like in all of them - 4 so far. Am I being ridiculous? Nothing is like a glaring issue (like a safety concern or bad recommendation or anything) and I’m sure they are all very nice people and could be a good fit for someone, but I don’t get a “yes I could see this person in our home 40-50 hours a week” feeling when I look at the profiles/experience. Should I just interview anyways? How did you pick your nanny?? I definitely still want to go the agency route because we do not have time to sift through care.com or Facebook groups and do our own background checks etc. We are also offering to pay what I think is reasonable ($30/hr, will be 1 kid 90% of the time) but willing to go higher if quality of candidates will be better - thoughts on if we are too low?