Prepay Tuition? Or Do You Get Paid At The End Of The Week?

[MyKzooFamily]

Do you have your parents prepay their weekly tuition? Or do they pay at the end of the week?

I have personally always HATED prepaying for daycare. I felt like I had to work before I got my paycheck, so it seemed weird to me to pay them ahead of time. However... you could have parents that only enroll their children for a week and then disappear.

I'm considering having the first week prepaid, and then having them pay at the end of the week. In the 'payment' section of my handbook, I will write that late payments are NOT allowed, and if a payment is not made on time, I will immediately discontinue childcare for their children at that time. That way they know my demands and expectations are high. Instead of writing about late payment fees and such. Of course if someone did pay late, I might let it go.

But I have always felt that the more firm you are from the beginning, the easier it makes it down the road. When you leave room for flexibility or laziness on a parents part, it seems to happen WAY more often.

[familyschoolcare]

my policy is that if you whant to pay after the fact then you pay the daily drop in rate. If you whant the lower weekly rate payment is due friday the week before.

[DaisyMamma]

prepay, no later than drop off on first day of care for the week.

[Mary Poppins]

Prepay here. Due Friday by the end of the day or there is a $25 late fee Monday morning and the child can not attend until both are paid. I also require a written schedule for the following week with payment, too. No guilt whatsoever, dc is one of the top professions for getting burned or having to file in small claims in order to get your $$.

I explain to my parents that the chances of ME bailing on them is slim compared to the chances of one of them bailing on me. Plus, I tell them I use the tuition to buy food and supplies on the weekend for the upcoming week. They all seem understanding and have had no issue pre-paying. I only had one take issue with the giving me a schedule thing so I offered her drop-in care. She felt that was "inflexible" so I termed her.

I made it easier by adding a PayPal button to my website (with an added convenience fee!) and they've all been using it.

[bice99]

Prepay monthly a set tuition amount based on their contracted days/hours.

[Breezy]

I have parents prepay. I'm paranoid I will someday have someone that is here for a week and never to be seen again!

[Blackcat31]

Pre-paid ONLY.

No Pay=No Stay.

Here is a poll to what others do https://www.daycare.com/forum/showthread.php?t=33530

[laundrymom]

my policy is that if you whant to pay after the fact then you pay the daily drop in rate. If you whant the lower weekly rate payment is due friday the week before.

Effective immediadely, this is my new policy!!!!

[Mary Poppins]

Pre-paid ONLY.

No Pay=No Stay.

Here is a poll to what others do https://www.daycare.com/forum/showthread.php?t=33530

Yay, I'm in the majority! ::

[MyKzooFamily]

When I finally get a website up and running, I am definitely doing paypal! I am also thinking of getting their email addresses so I can invoice them, if that is easier. I know that would have been awesome when I was working, I would have loved it!

I have also thought about having parents pay the normal rate prepaying, but if they want to pay at the end of the week, it's the drop-in rate or 1/5 higher. Average home daycare rates around here are $100/week. I am hoping to get $120 per child, and I'm only taking full-timers, 1st shift to start. I am thinking of offering $120/wk if they prepay, or $145 per week if they want to pay at the end of the week. That way they feel they have the option to pay later, but it will end up giving me more money if they choose to go that route.

I'm also going to be very selective with families, making sure it seems like a very good fit from the beginning. All of the parents that I have had pay late or not pay at all, I pretty much got the feeling it could happen when I first interviewed with them.

[Blackcat31]

When I finally get a website up and running, I am definitely doing paypal! I am also thinking of getting their email addresses so I can invoice them, if that is easier. I know that would have been awesome when I was working, I would have loved it! .

If you use MMK for your accounting and/or food program needs, they have an option on there for parents to pay automatically like paypal.

[MyKzooFamily]

If you use MMK for your accounting and/or food program needs, they have an option on there for parents to pay automatically like paypal.

What is MMK? I'm just starting up my daycare, and we have a few months before I get that all set up. I will definitely want to have an accounting program to keep everything documented, but was just going to use Excel. I also plan to do a food program, once I get licensed and can set that all up!

[kidkair]

I have them prepay now too. The way I look at is the parents have to trust me a lot for them to leave their kid here but that doesn't mean I have to trust them at all. When they prepay then I have been paid and have no need to fret over whether they'll remember on Friday or not.

As a side note: If you are going to be writing it out in your handbook that you'll quit services if they forget to pay then be expected to hold them to it. You shouldn't write something in your policies that you will not be holding to 100% of the time. I state that payment is due first day of care for the week which lets me be forgiving when they forget in the morning because I don't feel like it's too far to let it slide to the evening some times and if they forget then the next morning payment has to be in my hand before their child's coat comes off or they go back out the door. Most of my parents I actually do trust enough to let them slide the first day because they've proven they are trustworthy. The first few months of a new client though I try to withhold trust and demand they do as I ask in my policies. I started prepay because of some clients that were always late and so mad when I turned them away for nonpayment that I never got payment at all. Now if they get mad and walk away midweek I still have been paid and don't need to go chasing them down.

[daycare]

Pre-paid ONLY.

No Pay=No Stay.

Here is a poll to what others do https://www.daycare.com/forum/showthread.php?t=33530

This exactly.

[Blackcat31]

What is MMK? I'm just starting up my daycare, and we have a few months before I get that all set up. I will definitely want to have an accounting program to keep everything documented, but was just going to use Excel. I also plan to do a food program, once I get licensed and can set that all up!

Minute Menu Kids

I got the software free from my food program....it is AWESOME!!!

http://www.minutemenu.com/web/mmhx.html