Angry And Hurt Right Now

[erinalexmom]

My husband gave me a wake up call that I didnt want to hear but I knew he was right whne he said "Daycare parents want cheap and reliable. Other than that they dont care of you sit them in front of the tv and feed them gummy bears all day" So sad, yet so true
Dont take it personal its just the nature of the biz. It was so hard for me at first to accept this. I just had to learn that I am giving good care for my own self esteem and for the children's sake.

[awestbrook713]

I just had mom number 2 call me about rates. I think I am just at my limits for what I can handle. I am beginning to think I am just not cut out for this. You all seem so together and sure of yourselves. I am going to bed and hoping tomorrow is a little better then today.

[mom2many]

I just had mom number 2 call me about rates. I think I am just at my limits for what I can handle. I am beginning to think I am just not cut out for this. You all seem so together and sure of yourselves. I am going to bed and hoping tomorrow is a little better then today.

I have only raised my rates once with existing clients for just this reason. Sometimes it's been hard, because I have had families for a number years and I have added the number of paid holidays I get or changed my hours to help compensate me.

It's tough for people to accept paying more...even though the cost of doing business increases and it is truly justified. Years ago, an agency that I use gave me a print out of what the lowest to highest rates were in my area and I realized my rates were way low...I hadn't raised them in awhile. I showed this to my current families and they all accepted the increase w/o any problems, because they realized what a great deal they'd been getting!

Wishing you the best of luck! They have been getting a crazy cheap deal and you deserve to get paid more!

[Mandy_Jane]

I have added in to my contract that I will review & adjust the weekly rates each October to reflect the rise in costs of living each year. So, I will notify the parents in October of the new rate increase if any, and then it takes effect in January of the new year. By adding this wording in your contract, parents will at least have an idea that it is coming and can plan for it.

[melskids]

i forget what part of NY you are in, but i am in NY too. i just received the new market rate summary (for the whole state), so if you need a copy, i can email it to you.

i would stand your ground. some may leave, and that may be hard financially at first, but then you can attract clients who care about quality and will respect you more.

a wise man (my FIL) once told me "never charge less then you deserve for the sake of good exposure. in the end, all you will attract is people who don't respect you for what you are truly worth."

[awestbrook713]

Mandy_jane: I have added into my contract for 2012 that I reserve the right to raise my rates once a year. I do not plan on raising my rates after this one for quite a while.

I'm from upstate melskids and that would be wonderful if you could email that to me. I think I have the new rates but I could be wrong. I would like as much information as possible.

[MommyofThree]

I can deff see how the dcm is up set. your going from 150 for two kids full day to 250 for two chilsren. That is a big price diff for familys. I would start out slow then move up. good luck

[awestbrook713]

200 not 250 they are only here 4 days a week. It is a big difference and I understand but I was not being fair to myself with the rates I was charging. I am giving them 2 months to decide and if they don't stay I will understand but I also know I will find families willing to pay what I am asking and they may be much better fits.

[Cat Herder]

You all seem so together and sure of yourselves. I am going to bed and hoping tomorrow is a little better then today.

I don't think anyone came into this field that way.

The only reason I got to that point is because I was stepped on so many times that a decision had to be made... Close or Get Tough Skin. I started with unicorns, ipops and stardust in my eyes...

I also am hoping today will be a better day for you.

[MommyofThree]

200 not 250 they are only here 4 days a week. It is a big difference and I understand but I was not being fair to myself with the rates I was charging. I am giving them 2 months to decide and if they don't stay I will understand but I also know I will find families willing to pay what I am asking and they may be much better fits.

I understand from a dc poiont of view but not as a parent. I charge the same as you and would love to raise my rates but I am not register because I only have two full timers and the rest brfore and after school children so all my parents would leave I which I had the guts to raise mine.

[awestbrook713]

I was the parent paying the daycare provider for a while and I would be upset to but this is my business and there are parents out there willing to pay these rates. I am still lower then the average and don't think my rates are unfair at all.

The more I think about this parent being upset the more I think how if they leave it may be best for everyone. I have gone through so much with this family, fighting to get paid, fleas (which I may have to get an exterminator if what I have done personally doesn't get rid of them), child messing on my floor daily until I said pull ups or she is not allowed here, parents bringing kids unannounced at 545 am, cancelling last minute constantly, picking up early constantly. Its just coming clear it isn't worth it. I love these kids but can't stand the parents if that makes sense.

The second mom that called is dependable and I am willing to work with.

I guess being a daycare provider just means picking and choosing your battles and I have choosen mine. I love reading all of your posts for experience I hope one day I am as brave and bold as all of you that have been doing this for a long time.

[erinalexmom]

I should add to my previous post that I did bring alot of boldness with me from my previous job as a nurse. I learned that "sweetness" wasnt doing my patients any favors if they couldnt hear the message behind the sweetness KWIM? Sometimes boldness is all some people are able to understand.
"Kindness" is great. "Niceness" doesnt do any one any favors not even the people you are being nice too. Because sometimes your firmness is what they need to face to mature a bit.
Think of it this way, this is just 1 family out of your whole group. Do you want to close your doors to all the nice families because this family needs a discount? Is this family worth closing over? Because thats what will happen if you cant make enough $ to make it worth your while KWIM?
Hope that doesnt sound harsh. My dh will tell you that I am too nice (to everyone but him!: So sometimes these things I say to you I have to say to myself when I change a policy.

[Unregistered]

200 not 250 they are only here 4 days a week. It is a big difference and I understand but I was not being fair to myself with the rates I was charging. I am giving them 2 months to decide and if they don't stay I will understand but I also know I will find families willing to pay what I am asking and they may be much better fits.

If I was you I would charge just a WEEKLY FLAT RATE therefore no confusion you are giving up to much income by doing day rates.

My WEEKLY rate is
125 a week for ages 6 weeks til age 5 and in school I dont do school age.

[awestbrook713]

That is what I am trying to do but the parents don't want to have to pay that much if there child only ends up here some of the days. They feel they are paying for something they aren't getting but what they don't understand is they are paying for there childs spot. Parents just don't get it.

[melskids]

lets see if this works......

https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=gmail&attid=0.1&thid=132d0dc54007d517&mt=application/pdf&url=https://mail.google.com/mail/?ui%3D2%26ik%3D6866f1e6bc%26view%3Datt%26th%3D132d0dc54007d517%26attid%3D0.1%26disp%3Dsafe%26zw&sig=AHIEtbSdhLKzxJn7wADeINjcHewCbavAiQ&pli=1