A good nanny is hard to find

[Anonymous]

OP. This feedback is useful. A couple of responses:

1) I don't care too much about market rate. This goes beyond trying to save a few bucks, I'm trying to find good sustainable childcare for my son and at this point that doesn't have a price. For those quoting DC living prices, this is not in DC, this is in silver spring, MD. So the wage is in fact fair. But again, that's not the point. I would be willing to pay for the right care.

2) of course I'm an overprotective mom. It's my first baby! I'm also generous, flexible, kind, and respectful of my nannies. And I'm a city girl so outings don't scare me and on the contrary I encourage them. So I don't think that's the issue.

3) the real question for me and motivation in posting in the first place is: even if you are willing to pay $$$ for the right fit, where do you look? Posting online leads mostly to randos which is why we have been through 6 nannies. One had a criminal background. One was moody (I posted about this on this forum a while back), one didn't want to be paid on the books, one went back to her country, and one was telling me that her dead mother was calling her on the phone. I figured that was grounds to say let's not see each other again.

Where are the good nannies at? The warm nurturing women who speak English fluently (whether native or not), take initiative, love your baby, and are just overall reliable, professional, and trustworthy?

[Anonymous]

You can still find a good nanny on care. Com but you need to raise your hourly salary to at least $20 an hour. And you need to be specific in your ad and weed through more carefully. You can also search yourself for available nannies and contact them.

Honestly, you are going on and on describing a problem that can be solved with money - that is all. Parents truly are paying upwards of $25 an hour now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP. This feedback is useful. A couple of responses:

1) I don't care too much about market rate. This goes beyond trying to save a few bucks, I'm trying to find good sustainable childcare for my son and at this point that doesn't have a price. For those quoting DC living prices, this is not in DC, this is in silver spring, MD. So the wage is in fact fair. But again, that's not the point. I would be willing to pay for the right care.

2) of course I'm an overprotective mom. It's my first baby! I'm also generous, flexible, kind, and respectful of my nannies. And I'm a city girl so outings don't scare me and on the contrary I encourage them. So I don't think that's the issue.

3) the real question for me and motivation in posting in the first place is: even if you are willing to pay $$$ for the right fit, where do you look? Posting online leads mostly to randos which is why we have been through 6 nannies. One had a criminal background. One was moody (I posted about this on this forum a while back), one didn't want to be paid on the books, one went back to her country, and one was telling me that her dead mother was calling her on the phone. I figured that was grounds to say let's not see each other again.

Where are the good nannies at? The warm nurturing women who speak English fluently (whether native or not), take initiative, love your baby, and are just overall reliable, professional, and trustworthy?

A good, reliable, experienced nanny here with glowing references and based on your first bullet I wouldn’t work for you. You dismiss what every poster here is saying and claim money isn’t an issue but also claim $15 is fair. Sorry but it’s not a fair wage anywhere in Montgomery County or DC. You get what you pay for and you see what $15 is giving you. If you want someone “good” for $15 then you will probably have to look at paying under the table and someone who’s English might not be the best. Any truly good nanny isn’t going to settle for $15hr or for a mom who thinks they know it all.

I’ve found my positions on this site and care.com (where I have 5 star reviews).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP. This feedback is useful. A couple of responses:

1) I don't care too much about market rate. This goes beyond trying to save a few bucks, I'm trying to find good sustainable childcare for my son and at this point that doesn't have a price. For those quoting DC living prices, this is not in DC, this is in silver spring, MD. So the wage is in fact fair. But again, that's not the point. I would be willing to pay for the right care.

2) of course I'm an overprotective mom. It's my first baby! I'm also generous, flexible, kind, and respectful of my nannies. And I'm a city girl so outings don't scare me and on the contrary I encourage them. So I don't think that's the issue.

3) the real question for me and motivation in posting in the first place is: even if you are willing to pay $$$ for the right fit, where do you look? Posting online leads mostly to randos which is why we have been through 6 nannies. One had a criminal background. One was moody (I posted about this on this forum a while back), one didn't want to be paid on the books, one went back to her country, and one was telling me that her dead mother was calling her on the phone. I figured that was grounds to say let's not see each other again.

Where are the good nannies at? The warm nurturing women who speak English fluently (whether native or not), take initiative, love your baby, and are just overall reliable, professional, and trustworthy?

They are earning *at least* $20/hour working for someone else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP. This feedback is useful. A couple of responses:

1) I don't care too much about market rate. This goes beyond trying to save a few bucks, I'm trying to find good sustainable childcare for my son and at this point that doesn't have a price. For those quoting DC living prices, this is not in DC, this is in silver spring, MD. So the wage is in fact fair. But again, that's not the point. I would be willing to pay for the right care.

2) of course I'm an overprotective mom. It's my first baby! I'm also generous, flexible, kind, and respectful of my nannies. And I'm a city girl so outings don't scare me and on the contrary I encourage them. So I don't think that's the issue.

3) the real question for me and motivation in posting in the first place is: even if you are willing to pay $$$ for the right fit, where do you look? Posting online leads mostly to randos which is why we have been through 6 nannies. One had a criminal background. One was moody (I posted about this on this forum a while back), one didn't want to be paid on the books, one went back to her country, and one was telling me that her dead mother was calling her on the phone. I figured that was grounds to say let's not see each other again.

Where are the good nannies at? The warm nurturing women who speak English fluently (whether native or not), take initiative, love your baby, and are just overall reliable, professional, and trustworthy?

A good, reliable, experienced nanny here with glowing references and based on your first bullet I wouldn’t work for you. You dismiss what every poster here is saying and claim money isn’t an issue but also claim $15 is fair. Sorry but it’s not a fair wage anywhere in Montgomery County or DC. You get what you pay for and you see what $15 is giving you. If you want someone “good” for $15 then you will probably have to look at paying under the table and someone who’s English might not be the best. Any truly good nanny isn’t going to settle for $15hr or for a mom who thinks they know it all.

I’ve found my positions on this site and care.com (where I have 5 star reviews).

Yes sorry OP but this is part of the problem. Raise your rate and then look for nannies who have glowing recommendations, written as well as over the phone references, word of mouth from other nanny employers etc. Websites like Care.com, Urbansitter are more of a base to start with. It's a major PIA but you're going to have to do your due diligence. Once you hire someone spend a day or two with them and see how they drive, interact with your children, discuss childcare philosophies. Trust your gut there's a reason you have one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP. This feedback is useful. A couple of responses:

1) I don't care too much about market rate. This goes beyond trying to save a few bucks, I'm trying to find good sustainable childcare for my son and at this point that doesn't have a price. For those quoting DC living prices, this is not in DC, this is in silver spring, MD. So the wage is in fact fair. But again, that's not the point. I would be willing to pay for the right care.

2) of course I'm an overprotective mom. It's my first baby! I'm also generous, flexible, kind, and respectful of my nannies. And I'm a city girl so outings don't scare me and on the contrary I encourage them. So I don't think that's the issue.

3) the real question for me and motivation in posting in the first place is: even if you are willing to pay $$$ for the right fit, where do you look? Posting online leads mostly to randos which is why we have been through 6 nannies. One had a criminal background. One was moody (I posted about this on this forum a while back), one didn't want to be paid on the books, one went back to her country, and one was telling me that her dead mother was calling her on the phone. I figured that was grounds to say let's not see each other again.

Where are the good nannies at? The warm nurturing women who speak English fluently (whether native or not), take initiative, love your baby, and are just overall reliable, professional, and trustworthy?

They are earning *at least* $20/hour working for someone else.

This. Career nanny here and the absolute minimum I would accept is $20 plus a good benefits package. I wouldn’t even see your ad if you’re advertising $15.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP. This feedback is useful. A couple of responses:

1) I don't care too much about market rate. This goes beyond trying to save a few bucks, I'm trying to find good sustainable childcare for my son and at this point that doesn't have a price. For those quoting DC living prices, this is not in DC, this is in silver spring, MD. So the wage is in fact fair. But again, that's not the point. I would be willing to pay for the right care.

2) of course I'm an overprotective mom. It's my first baby! I'm also generous, flexible, kind, and respectful of my nannies. And I'm a city girl so outings don't scare me and on the contrary I encourage them. So I don't think that's the issue.

3) the real question for me and motivation in posting in the first place is: even if you are willing to pay $$$ for the right fit, where do you look? Posting online leads mostly to randos which is why we have been through 6 nannies. One had a criminal background. One was moody (I posted about this on this forum a while back), one didn't want to be paid on the books, one went back to her country, and one was telling me that her dead mother was calling her on the phone. I figured that was grounds to say let's not see each other again.

Where are the good nannies at? The warm nurturing women who speak English fluently (whether native or not), take initiative, love your baby, and are just overall reliable, professional, and trustworthy?

This is your problem right here. The fact that you dismiss paying a good wage, yet you think $15 is good enough. I would not want to work for someone who doesn’t care about market rate. It’s actually an essential when making a package. Rethink the rate. Since you claim you can afford it, then pay at least $20/h

[Anonymous]

The good nannies are earning between $20 and $28 an hour for a newborn, OP. They are not even seeing your ad as they are limiting their searches to $20 to $30 an hour.

[Anonymous]

I’m in silver spring and pay $19 on the books and generous vacation and bonuses. Lovely nanny, not fluent English but fluent in my native language which was important to us (not Spanish).
I interviewed 8 nannies and would have hired 3 of them. 2 has the native langueage and 1 was fluent in English only. Most wanted between 18-22 an hour and no one would work for $15 an hour.
How do you interview these nannies? I did 2 shadow days (paid) as well.
Silver spring has very robust and active moms groups and people are always posting for their nannies for Tate next job when their kid goes to preschool. That was one of my candidates.

[Anonymous]

Care.com is very popular, but its like online dating. You have to sift through mountains of people that are not the right fit to find the gems. I would look through profiles of nannies in your area that have several five star reviews on care.com and have whatever other qualifications you want and see what they list as rates. That should give you a good feel for what to offer. Then you can reach out to some of those nannies directly, and also post a job if you would like more candidates.

[Anonymous]

It’s not about where you find your nanny; it’s about your advertising and screening process.

If you post a job online with a $15 rate, you will attract $15 nannies, but you are telling us you want something better. As a nanny, if someone contacts me and their job posting says $15, even if they say in their message that they are willing to go higher, I am not interested because I want to work with someone who can comfortably afford my rate not someone who can only manage to scrimp together enough and feels that I am a luxury and will fire me if they hit a financial snag.

Second, if you are posting adds like your OP where you talk at length about how easy the job is, that’s a red flag to me as a nanny. “My kid is so cute/easy” is typically a sign of someone who won’t be appreciative of good work, because they think the nanny is just lucky to have their easy job.

So first off, instead of making an add that sounds like you think the job is easy enough that anybody could do it (and paying accordingly), post an add describing what you want that lists a professional compensation package and lists professional job expectations.

Then, assume two things: you will need to spend about 45 minutes at least every other day searching available nannies and messaging them (not just waiting for them to contact you), and even WITH that, about 80% of the people you interact with will be unacceptable for one reason or another. This means checking messages and doing a daily search for new candidates on sittercity.com and care.com and checking local parenting sites like this one and local mom’s clubs and listserves. <—and anyone who wonders what agencies do, a lot of it is that right there. It is a lot of work.

From that point, your screening breaks down to 4 steps:

1. Written correspondance (email or messaging through a site): you are mostly ruling out people who are functionally illiterate in English, who cannot or will not respond to your actual questions and those who are not a fit for the basic logistical profile of the job (e.g., they want part time, they want to bring their kid along, etc.) You will do these initial exchanges with 50-100 people

2. Phone interview: You are looking to get a sense of the person (lots of open-ended background questions, lots of specific “what would you do in hypothetical scenario” types of questions. And make sure to double check nuts and bolts (hours , pays, duties, location) are at least ballpark. If you have any specific dealbreakers, bring then up now. You should be doing phone interviews with about a dozen people.

3. In-person interview: This is where I get into more about childcare philosophy, how nanny fits into the family, etc. Listen more than talk, have another conversation confirming the same basic nuts and bolts. Ask a lot of questions about her previous employers and take notes so that you can have more productive reference checks. You should be meeting 4-8 people in-person.

4. Reference Checks: Ask for written proof of CPR/First Aid and other certifications. Google each candidate. Run a criminal background check or ask to see one from a reputable company. Ask for her DMV records if applicable. Go in deep with each reference. Ask what they would change about her. If they praise a positive attribute, ask for a specific example. Make sure their details match up with nanny’s stories about them. At least 4 references.

If you do all that and still can’t find a good candidate then you need to work with an agency or a consultant to figure out why your position is undesirable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP. This feedback is useful. A couple of responses:

1) I don't care too much about market rate. This goes beyond trying to save a few bucks, I'm trying to find good sustainable childcare for my son and at this point that doesn't have a price. For those quoting DC living prices, this is not in DC, this is in silver spring, MD. So the wage is in fact fair. But again, that's not the point. I would be willing to pay for the right care.

2) of course I'm an overprotective mom. It's my first baby! I'm also generous, flexible, kind, and respectful of my nannies. And I'm a city girl so outings don't scare me and on the contrary I encourage them. So I don't think that's the issue.

3) the real question for me and motivation in posting in the first place is: even if you are willing to pay $$$ for the right fit, where do you look? Posting online leads mostly to randos which is why we have been through 6 nannies. One had a criminal background. One was moody (I posted about this on this forum a while back), one didn't want to be paid on the books, one went back to her country, and one was telling me that her dead mother was calling her on the phone. I figured that was grounds to say let's not see each other again.

Where are the good nannies at? The warm nurturing women who speak English fluently (whether native or not), take initiative, love your baby, and are just overall reliable, professional, and trustworthy?

They are earning *at least* $20/hour working for someone else.

No, they're not. I have done 10 different nanny reference calls and many were making below $20/hour, especially if in the 40-55 hours/week full-time zone.

Now parttime, 4-5 hours for $100 was common.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You are paying too low to find a good nanny, OP.

Try daycare.

she is paying $15*40 + $22.5*10 = $825 gross for 1 baby.

might even be all-cash.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP. This feedback is useful. A couple of responses:

1) I don't care too much about market rate. This goes beyond trying to save a few bucks, I'm trying to find good sustainable childcare for my son and at this point that doesn't have a price. For those quoting DC living prices, this is not in DC, this is in silver spring, MD. So the wage is in fact fair. But again, that's not the point. I would be willing to pay for the right care.

2) of course I'm an overprotective mom. It's my first baby! I'm also generous, flexible, kind, and respectful of my nannies. And I'm a city girl so outings don't scare me and on the contrary I encourage them. So I don't think that's the issue.

3) the real question for me and motivation in posting in the first place is: even if you are willing to pay $$$ for the right fit, where do you look? Posting online leads mostly to randos which is why we have been through 6 nannies. One had a criminal background. One was moody (I posted about this on this forum a while back), one didn't want to be paid on the books, one went back to her country, and one was telling me that her dead mother was calling her on the phone. I figured that was grounds to say let's not see each other again.

Where are the good nannies at? The warm nurturing women who speak English fluently (whether native or not), take initiative, love your baby, and are just overall reliable, professional, and trustworthy?

They are earning *at least* $20/hour working for someone else.

No, they're not. I have done 10 different nanny reference calls and many were making below $20/hour, especially if in the 40-55 hours/week full-time zone.

Now parttime, 4-5 hours for $100 was common.

They weren’t that good of a nanny. They were average nannies who took whatever job was offered to them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m in silver spring and pay $19 on the books and generous vacation and bonuses. Lovely nanny, not fluent English but fluent in my native language which was important to us (not Spanish).
I interviewed 8 nannies and would have hired 3 of them. 2 has the native langueage and 1 was fluent in English only. Most wanted between 18-22 an hour and no one would work for $15 an hour.
How do you interview these nannies? I did 2 shadow days (paid) as well.
Silver spring has very robust and active moms groups and people are always posting for their nannies for Tate next job when their kid goes to preschool. That was one of my candidates.

$19 on the books is $17 cash.