What should my rate be?

[Anonymous]

I am a nanny with four years of experience. My first position lasted three years with a 2 y.o. and second lasted one year with a 1 y.o. Both kids transitioned to school/daycare. I am also helping my sister with her kids on weekends and evenings. I don't currently include personal references on my CV, though.

I have a degree in child psychology, CPR certification, and additional certification in positive discipline.

I am currently working on a certificate in child nutrition. I will not be a nutritionist which requires lots of college and addresses issues far more complex then diet and weight such as physiology, chemistry, body mechanics, etc. But I will be able to assess, plan, and prepare meal plans based on macro and micro nutrient content. In the next few months, I would like to study plant based nutrition (vegan and vegetarian diets). These are areas of personal interest so not doing it just to make more money as a nanny. Still, with so many parents concerned about childhood diabetes, obesity, and plant based nutrition, I would love to bring all of my personal assets into my work.

These are the basics. I know some people charge more for housekeeping, or pet care, or whatever else. I want to keep it to just those few things for now. Thoughts?

[Anonymous]

Also: I live in NE DC.

[Anonymous]

I'm an MB -- I think it's hard to set a "rate" without knowing the family. For instance, I wouldn't really value some of those things (degree in child psychology) and would knock off some points for your lack of experience, but I'd be pretty interested in the nutrition background. If you are looking for gigs around Capitol Hill, you could probably charge $15-18 for one kid.

[Anonymous]

I don't see anything in particular that would increase your rate. If you ran across the right family that has a child that has unique dietary needs you could spin your experience and background into asking them for more money (if they can afford it) but for a normal family childhood obesity isn't a concern if their kid isn't currently fat. Even if he is fat at the moment it's probably a family problem that you won't be able to fix anyways. Normal kids stay skinny by being kids. I think a fair rate for you would be $16 an hour based on your 4 years of experience.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't see anything in particular that would increase your rate. If you ran across the right family that has a child that has unique dietary needs you could spin your experience and background into asking them for more money (if they can afford it) but for a normal family childhood obesity isn't a concern if their kid isn't currently fat. Even if he is fat at the moment it's probably a family problem that you won't be able to fix anyways. Normal kids stay skinny by being kids. I think a fair rate for you would be $16 an hour based on your 4 years of experience.

Thanks. I agree that it would take the right family to value the nutrition background. Would you say the degree is value added? A bachelors is not worth much anymore so I would not be surprised if someone without it charged the same rate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm an MB -- I think it's hard to set a "rate" without knowing the family. For instance, I wouldn't really value some of those things (degree in child psychology) and would knock off some points for your lack of experience, but I'd be pretty interested in the nutrition background. If you are looking for gigs around Capitol Hill, you could probably charge $15-18 for one kid.

Thank you for your feedback. I am curious, is the degree less valuable because its unclear what skills it would yield? I studied attachment, learning, education, cognitive/brain development, some neuroscience, and disabilities and had several internships working with children with disabilities- basically the same ECE stuff but for the emphasis on standards and curriculum management.

[Anonymous]

I disagree with the MB responses you've gotten OP. The thing about this site is that it generally attracts a more educated, tech savvy kind of user. That means you have MBs that are smart enough to work the system and get what they want for a really good price. It also means you have more educated nannies posting here, who are smart enough to know their worth and negotiate a decent salary. This is where the disconnect on rates comes from.

I have a similar level of experience as you, and have not completed my degree. I charge $18/hour for one child, and I think you could make that or more in NE DC. MBs are always going to tell you that you are less valuable than you are. If you look around DC, most nannies are hardly able to carry on a conversation in English. By that fact alone you are above average, and don't let them convince you otherwise.

[Anonymous]

Depends on your refs and how you present yourself. Maybe $20/hr. in certain parts of NW.

[Anonymous]

$16 an hour. You are still a young nanny.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't see anything in particular that would increase your rate. If you ran across the right family that has a child that has unique dietary needs you could spin your experience and background into asking them for more money (if they can afford it) but for a normal family childhood obesity isn't a concern if their kid isn't currently fat. Even if he is fat at the moment it's probably a family problem that you won't be able to fix anyways. Normal kids stay skinny by being kids. I think a fair rate for you would be $16 an hour based on your 4 years of experience.

Thanks. I agree that it would take the right family to value the nutrition background. Would you say the degree is value added? A bachelors is not worth much anymore so I would not be surprised if someone without it charged the same rate.

I think you are looking at it the wrong way, your degree doesn't add value when a family can only afford to pay $14 an hour. What it does is let you interview with more families who may only want to look at nannies with degrees and may be willing to offer something more like $18 an hour. I personally think it is a bad idea to go in and try to negotiate with families. They usually offer what they feel comfortable with.

[Anonymous]

$17-20 depending on the job.

[Anonymous]

I think $16-18 is most likely but in a few more years think you could easily command more. Agree with pp to find a family offering the rate you want rather than trying to negotiate too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think $16-18 is most likely but in a few more years think you could easily command more. Agree with pp to find a family offering the rate you want rather than trying to negotiate too.

I don't negotiate with parents who have a set budget. However, some families will ask you what your rates are and begin to negotiate themselves. Its perfectly legit to respond with your own offer in that case. Plus, many people have a salary range in mind rather then a particular rate. It makes sense to have an idea how much your various talents are worth in order to offer a customized service to suit that individual family. Maybe they want the help with meal planning but don't use the positive discipline approach. Maybe they have adopted and could really use your knowledge of attachment theory to help with bonding with their baby. You are right to be asking this question. I hope you find good answers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't see anything in particular that would increase your rate. If you ran across the right family that has a child that has unique dietary needs you could spin your experience and background into asking them for more money (if they can afford it) but for a normal family childhood obesity isn't a concern if their kid isn't currently fat. Even if he is fat at the moment it's probably a family problem that you won't be able to fix anyways. Normal kids stay skinny by being kids. I think a fair rate for you would be $16 an hour based on your 4 years of experience.

Thanks. I agree that it would take the right family to value the nutrition background. Would you say the degree is value added? A bachelors is not worth much anymore so I would not be surprised if someone without it charged the same rate.

I think you are looking at it the wrong way, your degree doesn't add value when a family can only afford to pay $14 an hour. What it does is let you interview with more families who may only want to look at nannies with degrees and may be willing to offer something more like $18 an hour. I personally think it is a bad idea to go in and try to negotiate with families. They usually offer what they feel comfortable with.

I hope a family would not waste her time with such a low offer after seeing all of her accomplishments. When you interview a bunch of people it should be obvious that candidates with more training will command higher pay. Would you really offer her $14 after looking at her resumé, pp? She never said anything about hustling needy families either. I think you are looking at this the wrong way. You are assuming OP will go in and demand a ridiculous rate, parents needs be damned.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't see anything in particular that would increase your rate. If you ran across the right family that has a child that has unique dietary needs you could spin your experience and background into asking them for more money (if they can afford it) but for a normal family childhood obesity isn't a concern if their kid isn't currently fat. Even if he is fat at the moment it's probably a family problem that you won't be able to fix anyways. Normal kids stay skinny by being kids. I think a fair rate for you would be $16 an hour based on your 4 years of experience.

Thanks. I agree that it would take the right family to value the nutrition background. Would you say the degree is value added? A bachelors is not worth much anymore so I would not be surprised if someone without it charged the same rate.

I think you are looking at it the wrong way, your degree doesn't add value when a family can only afford to pay $14 an hour. What it does is let you interview with more families who may only want to look at nannies with degrees and may be willing to offer something more like $18 an hour. I personally think it is a bad idea to go in and try to negotiate with families. They usually offer what they feel comfortable with.

I hope a family would not waste her time with such a low offer after seeing all of her accomplishments. When you interview a bunch of people it should be obvious that candidates with more training will command higher pay. Would you really offer her $14 after looking at her resumé, pp? She never said anything about hustling needy families either. I think you are looking at this the wrong way. You are assuming OP will go in and demand a ridiculous rate, parents needs be damned.

If I aaas looking for a $14/hr nanny and wrote that where ever she found my job posted and she applied, she would likely be my best candidate and I might offer her the job. She can decline is she wants more but just because she has a degree and some random fluff doesn't mean I would consider stretching my budget beyond the comfort zone for her.

Again like I said if she only wants a certain minimum rate then having a degree and that stuff lets her browse through listings that offer a higher rate of pay or like I said before maybe search for or advertise herself as a nutrition expert for a family with a unique food need and be able to get the pay rate she is looking for. But I was just trying to say to her to not get caught up in thinking she was only "worth" a certain amount, because like another PP said it's only worth it to certain families that want those qualifications. And the one family that might like everything you've got to offer and be willing to pay $22 an hour might be a pain in the ass to work for and you have to end up passing on them based on things you say in your interview and you're back down to $17 an hour with a different family.

So basically it's just not very feasible to say "My rate is $X, take it or leave it." If you want above a certain amount only apply to job who posted that amount and hope they like you.