where to begin?

[Anonymous]

hi,
i am just beginning to search for a nanny for my 2 month old for when i return to work. i am new to this "nanny" concept as i am a new mother and i'm looking for all the advice i can get on where to begin my search for a nanny, pay scale, taxes?, how to do background checks, etc.
advice is welcome this way.
thank you in advance.
*new mamma

[Anonymous]

OP, I would suggest you do a few searches on here to find answers to most of these questions, as they've been asked numerous times in the past, creating lots of threads on these exact topics.

[Anonymous]

Important things to think about:
schedule - how many hours per week will you need a nanny? 30 hours? 40? 50? Many (if not most) full time employers guarantee a nanny's pay.
Think about it in this situation: You have the nanny scheduled from 8am-5pm, Mon-Fri (45 hours/week). One day, you decide to come home early. You let the nanny go home. If you're guaranteeing pay, the nanny will still get paid until 5pm, even though she got to go home early.

Do you want a nanny all to yourself, or do you want to participate in a nanny share?
Pay will depend on how many children, location, and how many hours you need a nanny.
When interviewing, I think it's better to find nannies nearby. If your nanny has a long commute, you could run into issues with traffic delays, inclement weather delays, etc.
Will either parent be working from home?
Do you have any pets?
Do you want a nanny who drives (while it might not seem important in the beginning, think about later on down the road if you want a long term nanny. Parks, playgrounds, libraries, etc)?

I'll try to remember to come back with more suggestions. Good luck, OP!

[Anonymous]

The best way to find a nanny is to reach out to your friends/neighbors/colleagues.

You will feel MUCH better if you hire a nanny who comes highly recommended by someone you know.

Consider installing a nanny cam for your own peace of mind.

If you want to save money and have the space consider hiring a live in nanny.

[Anonymous]

If you post an ad on sites like care.com or sittercity.com specify if you want nanny to do any cleaning such has baby laundry, babies room etc plus the items pp mentioned if you want more cleaning done say so in the beginning also expect to pay more for additional cleaning such as bathrooms Eric that are not the child's. Most nannies automatically do baby related cleaning but won't do deep cleaning etc unless compensated for it.

Check out Breedlove.com for taxes and such.

[Anonymous]

If you need to install a nanny cam then go with a daycare since you obviously don't trust a nanny