If that is the case, then I would think a more established agency would be a better fit. This one is brand new, does not have much of a track record and young, inexperienced owner.

We all know how many business can't survive the first few years. I wouldn't want to pay all those fees and then if something went wrong, they are not around anymore to help. And you are out a whole lot of money!

If an agency is important, I'd stick with those already established, OP. Personally, I've done it myself and been lucky because I did my due diligence.

Anonymous wrote:I agree with you PP on the value of an agency to save time, but please don't act like the parents can't possibly understand the process of how to find someone that they are comfortable with.

It's not like landscaping.

I work with newborns so I deal with first time parents all the time and they often do not have a good idea of what they need. Yes, anyone can fine "someone they are comfortable with," but a good agency will be helping parents to think through how their needs will change over time (even though your newborn doesn't need to play outside, if you want an active toddler 9 months from now, you need to hire an active nanny), what communication styles they need and how to make the transition to being an employer often for the first time and especially for the first time in your own home. If you don't know much about the proccess, it is easy to underestimate what is involved.

I agree with you PP on the value of an agency to save time, but please don't act like the parents can't possibly understand the process of how to find someone that they are comfortable with.

It's not like landscaping.

It is true that no agency is working with a magic alternate group of nannies that are only available through them. You are paying for the time they spent tracking down those nannies and sifting through the many many many candidates available on sites like care.com and sitter city.com Who are not suitable candidates. You're also paying for the time they spent interviewing each candidate and interviewing all of the candidates references and the money they spend on background checks. Finally, you are paying for the expertise of someone who has worked in the field for a long time and may have A better idea of what kind of nanny is going to be best for you and you are paying for their guidance in creating an appropriate set of expectations through a mutually beneficial contract. If you feel confident that your own time and expertise are up to the task then you should not pay for an agency, but to imply that agencies do very little is rather silly. It is a bit like implying that landscaping services don't do anything because your neighbor mows their own lawn and it looks just fine.

My neighbor got the same candidates from them that she found herself on care dot com! She was not impressed with the employee pool It's a lot of fees to pay just for a screening you can easily do. Be wary of no reviews!

I think most of the agencies are the same same, though. We ultimately went with au pair and that has been a great choice for our family. Good luck, OP! It's such a difficult task.

Has anyone hired through Capital City Nannies? My contact with them has been very professional but I have not been able to find any reviews.