Pick-up/after school nanny, 15 hrs/week - doable or fantasy?

[Anonymous]

DC1 will start Pk3 this fall - exact school unknown. We're also expecting DC2 in June. We're exploring various childcare configurations including the possibility of a part-time, after school nanny. I know finding good part-time nanny help can be hard to do, so i wonder if experienced parents and nannies here can tell me if we are daydreaming or if this is doable.

Ideal scenario: Nanny works from 3pm to 6pm, 5 days/week. Picks up DC 1 from school and plays with DC1 at home for a few hours until parents arrive home with DC2 (picking up DC2 from daycare). We live in NW DC, EOTP. Hopefully school is walking distance from home, but maybe it wont be and we would need a nanny with a car. I imagine we would need to pay $20-$25/hr in order to appeal to nannnies.

Is it realistic to think we can find someone who could work on this part time basis? or is this really hard to find? I have only heard of one family that tried to hire for an afternoon schedule like this and it ended up falling apart in the first week.

Any advice out there?

[Anonymous]

Why not just hire a full time nanny to watch the younger child all day instead of daycare?

I think $20-25/hr is on the low end for such short hours.

[Anonymous]

Unfortunately, op, many qualified individuals simply cannot afford to work only part-time. I’m gonna second the question the pp asked because I’m thinking it would be way easier for you and your future nanny if you hired someone full-time instead of juggling a part-time nanny and daycare.

[Anonymous]

It’s doable.

Find a college student.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why not just hire a full time nanny to watch the younger child all day instead of daycare?

Yes, that.

[Anonymous]

OP here. having our own nanny who takes care of baby during the day then picks up DC1 in afternoon is certainly more convenient. But also more expensive. So that's why i'm trying to figure out if getting a nanny for afternoons-only is feasible.

I imagine that hiring an above-board nanny for 8am-6pm, 5 days per week, 50 hrs total, $20-$25/hr... then adding in taxes, health care, whatever... what is realistic? $1,250/week? more?

Cost of daycare + DC1 aftercare is $850/week, so a $400 jump (per week) is a lot and could be over $19,000 total added cost over the course of a year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. having our own nanny who takes care of baby during the day then picks up DC1 in afternoon is certainly more convenient. But also more expensive. So that's why i'm trying to figure out if getting a nanny for afternoons-only is feasible.

I imagine that hiring an above-board nanny for 8am-6pm, 5 days per week, 50 hrs total, $20-$25/hr... then adding in taxes, health care, whatever... what is realistic? $1,250/week? more?

Cost of daycare + DC1 aftercare is $850/week, so a $400 jump (per week) is a lot and could be over $19,000 total added cost over the course of a year.

OP again. just clarifying that our daycare option is $425/week and i'm estimating aftercare at around $425/week also - max. will depend on the school.

[Anonymous]

You won’t get a nanny but can get a few HS or college kids. They normally only last a couple of months though.

[Anonymous]

Room for an au pair?

[Anonymous]

No room for au pair.

[Anonymous]

Oh, I understand now, op.

I’m not sure about finding a part-time, fully qualified amazing nanny, but (as a pp said) you can certainly find a responsible student willing and able to work those hours, I think.

You’re going to be paying fairly so I’m sure some students will be all over that. You just have to screen them, that’s all. Not professional doesn’t mean not good

Keep hunting, you’ll find something!

[Anonymous]

We do live close to both Howard and Catholic University. I would be very happy to hire a college or grad student.

Has anyone had good luck tapping in to student communities in town? How would i get to their list serves or bulletin boards or something?

[Anonymous]

I concur that a young, college student may be interested in a position like this.

Someone close-by since it’s only a few hours per day.
Maybe a student who has a break in the afternoon between classes perhaps?

[Anonymous]

The pay that you're suggesting for a person to work three hrs/day 5 days/wk, plus daycare expenses and the pay that you're assuming it would cost to employ a full-time nanny are almost the same amount.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s doable.

Find a college student.

NP here. We did this last year and it is more like " find a new college student every three months". Very unreliable.