Babysitting

**ktsmama** · 02-10-2011, 04:08 PM

My DD has just been asked to her first babysitting job (outside of family).

I am sure the mother will ask how much she charges, but I don't have a clue how to help my DD figure this out. It has been such a long time since I babysat. The child is 2 and will be in the bed asleep for 2 of the 3 hours my DD will be there.

My question is, does anyone here hire sitters and how much do you generally pay? I was thinking somewhere along the lines of $4 or $5 per hour.

**AliMac** · 02-10-2011, 04:41 PM

I've had a hard time with this one too, but I think $4-$5 sounds fair...

**krbshappy71** · 02-10-2011, 04:56 PM

My daughters let the parent decide what is fair. So far the parents have always been very generous and often times gave a "raise" after a few times of babysitting for them. They averaged $4-5 on a new job and upwards towards $8 or more if there was more than 2 children or if it was very young children or an infant.

Has your daughter attended any First Aid classes? Our local hospital offers "Safe Sitting" class for a small fee. It included CPR, First Aid, and also safety about being alone in someone else's house. My daughters made sure their parents knew they had extra training to set them at ease. (It set me at ease as well)

**lisaflex** · 02-10-2011, 07:16 PM

i say 5 or 6/hr is fair.

i pay college girls 10/hr..they drive here...
if i were lucky enough to find a highschooler, i would pay between 6 - 8/hr....

**JessieMom** · 02-11-2011, 12:01 AM

when I still needed a sitter for dd I pd $5/hr for teens, $10/hr for the college age that use to bring her to & from dance. Emmie is still new at sitting, she basically lets the parents decide what is fair but if asked she charges $3/hr per child.

**mauimagic** · 02-11-2011, 02:15 AM

Interesting direction your DD is expanding into - good for her. I think $5 hourly is fair for both sides. I don't think it matters if the child is sleeping or not during this time, the important thing is that there is a responsible sitter there. Please tell us how it goes!!

**ktsmama** · 02-11-2011, 10:03 AM

Originally Posted by krbshappy71

My daughters let the parent decide what is fair. So far the parents have always been very generous and often times gave a "raise" after a few times of babysitting for them. They averaged $4-5 on a new job and upwards towards $8 or more if there was more than 2 children or if it was very young children or an infant.

Has your daughter attended any First Aid classes? Our local hospital offers "Safe Sitting" class for a small fee. It included CPR, First Aid, and also safety about being alone in someone else's house. My daughters made sure their parents knew they had extra training to set them at ease. (It set me at ease as well)

Thanks for reminding me, I need to get her signed up for the next class offered at the hospital.