nannies, have you ever thought of switching to preschool teacher job to get 401K

[Anonymous]

I am a nanny who is nearing retirement with very limited retirement savings. I know for a fact that most preschools and even daycare centers have employer sponsored 401K. I am thinking of switching to preschool or daycare teacher jobs just to use this benefit of employer matched contribution. Teachers, can you tell me how much a year you are able to save using employer matched contributions, and maybe you can even advise which preschools/centers offer best retirement benefits?

[Anonymous]

Preschools don’t pay as much as nannies make. You’re better off saving on your own or get a Roth account

[Anonymous]

My sister is a preschool teacher and makes $19.50/hr.

$35 as a nanny and opening your own Roth is way better.

[Anonymous]

no way, $19.50 in DMV? Sometimes there is health insurance, add another $400 a month, and if you take max employer matched contributions, that is $400 more or so a month, so maybe she has those benefits?

[Anonymous]

Preschool and daycare are frequently jump off points before switching to nannying. The people with the longest longevity in those positions are doing it for religious reasons or they don't want to work in someone else's home.

[Anonymous]

You should talk to a financial planner. The main benefit of retirement savings comes from saving early and letting the sims grow over time. If you are nearing retirement age, you are probably better off going with whatever job pays you the most (whether in salary or employer matching) and aggressively saving towards retirement. Note that as a nanny, you can put aside a certain amount each year for retirement and possibly defer some taxes on your salary until retirement. Talk to your CPA or financial planner.

[Anonymous]

if I get a job at a private school similar to Rochambeau, do you think they have a good employer matching plan there?

[Anonymous]

It is scary to be a nanny with no retirement savings. And sad too! Afraid this is reality for many of us.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:if I get a job at a private school similar to Rochambeau, do you think they have a good employer matching plan there?

A typical employer match is between 2% and 4%. I’d say a 6% match would be very nice. So if you make $50k and they match 6%, that’s $3k in employer contributions. Nice, but $3k isn’t getting you anywhere anytime soon. You need that type of employer match over, say, 30 years, compounding annually.

This is also why it’s important for nannies to be paid above the table, if this is their long term career (versus say a college student “nannying” in the summer). In order to get social security in retirement, you need to have paid into the system over the years and have paid taxes. Even if you didn’t save for retirement, at least you have your social security IF you were paid legally and reported the income.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Preschool and daycare are frequently jump off points before switching to nannying. The people with the longest longevity in those positions are doing it for religious reasons or they don't want to work in someone else's home.

What kind of religious reasons

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Preschools don’t pay as much as nannies make. You’re better off saving on your own or get a Roth account

And nannies wouldn't be able to throw fits and call all the shots like the average forum nanny here lol

[Anonymous]

PP, do you mean, if nannies go to work at preschool, then they would not be throwing fits?
I agree about nannies having fits on this forum, I just did not get your logic.

[Anonymous]

How much do you make currently as a nanny per week ?

Do you have a Roth IRA ? I’ve maxed mine out every year since I started working 20 plus years ago and I’m not worried at all about retirement. If you don’t have a lot of time before retirement I’d focus on growing your income and cutting expenses.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My sister is a preschool teacher and makes $19.50/hr.

$35 as a nanny and opening your own Roth is way better.

Yes, def a way better. Couldn’t see myself working as a teacher after the pandemic and make more than ever before working as travel nanny.

[Anonymous]

OP here, I do work on the books making about $1300 a week, about $1025 after taxes, and was able to save roughly 5K a year for the last 5-6 yrs but that is so little. I am an immigrant who came (legally) in my mid 40s, so I did not have a chance to work for 20-30 yrs but will qualify for social security albeit very low. This is really worrying me since I anticipate big expenses such as dental which can be thousands. Wish Medicare would cover dental work.