Question About Rates

[ihop]

The area I live in is saturated with daycares. You can have three children besides your own if you are not licensed, 10 if you are, and 13 if you are certified. All home based daycares whether licensed, unlicensed, or certified all charge 125/week for children over two. A few charge less and a few charge more. Even a few name your own price(but they are never full).

So I don't have much choice in what I charge. When I started my program, I started with 125/week and people loved it, but with everyone charging that price I feel like I get lost in the crowd. I won't undermine my work by charging less.

What I am wondering is if I were to raise my prices, do you think it would help me stand out? I know I'd have to offer something extra to make it worth it to parents but I feel like they see that price and assume I am just as qualified as an unlicensed daycare. I am only 40% full and I really need to bring in more children but with my costs being what they are, I cannot expand my program if I lower my rates at all.

Maybe some input from people who charge more then other daycares in your are?

[Annalee]

The area I live in is saturated with daycares. You can have three children besides your own if you are not licensed, 10 if you are, and 13 if you are certified. All home based daycares whether licensed, unlicensed, or certified all charge 125/week for children over two. A few charge less and a few charge more. Even a few name your own price(but they are never full).

So I don't have much choice in what I charge. When I started my program, I started with 125/week and people loved it, but with everyone charging that price I feel like I get lost in the crowd. I won't undermine my work by charging less.

What I am wondering is if I were to raise my prices, do you think it would help me stand out? I know I'd have to offer something extra to make it worth it to parents but I feel like they see that price and assume I am just as qualified as an unlicensed daycare. I am only 40% full and I really need to bring in more children but with my costs being what they are, I cannot expand my program if I lower my rates at all.

Maybe some input from people who charge more then other daycares in your are?

I understand where you are coming from wanting clients to "realize" what you have to offer children. I guess that frustrates me the most because the average parent is only in our facilities due to what we charge and how long they can stay. I have some families that I feel are in my dc because of what I offer but I feel there are some that would leave for a $1 less and a minute longer. So NO, I do not think you should raise rates just to make you stand out, but if you want to raise because it is the right thing to do for your program then that is a good professional move.

[ihop]

Ill add that I would only raise it for new clients. I know I offer a good program. I have one family buying a house 30miles away and close to her work. There are 100 or so daycares closer to her and a lot of cheaper ones by work and she is staying here.

[melilley]

Where I am at, there are a million licensed/registered daycare's and a ton of illegal daycare's. When I first opened, I researched around to see what other licensed dc's charged and went in in the middle/lower rate. Now that I've been open a year, I did more research and realized that there were people charging less and people charging more than me. I decided to raise my rates $10 a week and haven't had a problem. Well I only had one opening, but I filled it with an infant at the new higher price without the parents even batting an eye. I raised them because I know I'm worth it (I've seen some of these ads on CL and that's why I know I'm worth it). I wouldn't do it to stand out, but if you feel you are worth it, go for it! You could always try and if you don't get anyone, go back down. It's so hard nowadays because families generally don't want to see what your dc is like first, but go on price, but like others have said before, those clients aren't worth it anyways.

[Leigh]

The average in my area is $90/week. I get $125. There are plenty around her charging $50, $60, $75...they're always BEGGING for kids. It seems that the higher priced daycares in my area are always full with wait lists (I am far from the highest in my area-a few that I know are getting $175/week). I based my fee on what I HAD to have, and thought about what I'd LIKE to have, and then decided on a number in the middle that I could live with.

[TwinKristi]

My rates are about average for our area. I know a couple who charge more, but only by $3/day for infants. I tried upping my rate a little last year for interviewing clients and none of them bit. Two claimed it was someone closer to their home but she was probably cheaper than me but a few dollars a day as well.
I have gone back to my 3 days/wk rate ($50/day) and 4 days/wk rate ($45/day) which seems to work well when I explain that's a discounted rate based on their weekly attendance. If they only need 1-2 days a week it's $55/day and not really what I'm looking to fill. I also live in a highly saturated area and there's lots of people with openings. I have gotten a LOT of calls in the last month so that's awesome. 1 started last week and I have another interview tomorrow. I just have 1 spot left to fill but could legally take more if the right fit came along.