Nanny Shares: Save up to $25,000/year!

Hi everyone! It’s Laura back with my next video.

We all know that inflation is making our everyday expenses cost more. But how can you save money on childcare which can be a huge monthly expense? Consider a nanny share which can save you thousands of dollars in childcare costs annually.

First, what is a nanny share?

A nanny share is when two or more families that live in roughly the same neighborhood decide to hire a nanny to care for their children. In most nanny shares, the families switch off on hosting duties where one family will host all of the children and nanny for one week and then the hosting duties will switch to the other family for the following week.

Currently, it is costing the average family who lives in a large city in the United States about $22-$27/hr to hire a nanny to care for one child. And the rates go up from there if you have two or more children.

With a nanny share, you can expect to pay about 33% less for childcare or about $16-$20/hr per family for one child. As you can see, the nanny’s hourly rate is split between two families instead of in a traditional nanny relationship where one family is responsible for the nanny’s entire hourly rate.

In today’s video, I discuss:

– What Is a nanny share?

– Why choose a nanny share?

– How much does each family pay in a nanny share?

– How do you find a nanny share nanny?

– Should you find a nanny or a family to partner with first?

– The pros and cons of nanny shares

Click Here To Watch!

A transcript of the video can be found below: 

Hi everyone, Laura from Nanny Parent Connection here. Today I’m going to talk about how to save money on childcare by starting or joining a nanny share.

First, What Is a Nanny Share?

A nanny share is when two families partner together to find a nanny to care for both of their children at the same time. A nanny share is not a nanny bringing their own child along.

Why Do People Choose Nanny Shares?

Well, there are a lot of reasons, but the top three tend to be affordability, access to care, and socialization opportunities.

Affordability

A nanny share will cost you about two-thirds of the cost of single-family nanny care or about 33% less.

And if you haven’t already seen it, check out my “How Much Does Nanny Care Truly Cost” video. It can be a really helpful video to figure out budgeting for either a nanny share or “traditional” nanny care. Click here to check that out.

Access to Care

Some families turn to nanny shares if they are not able to get a spot in a care center, and now with COVID, many families are opting to keep their child out of a group care setting in favor of keeping a smaller bubble.

Socialization Opportunities

Some families who haven’t enrolled their child in a care center yet, or haven’t enrolled in preschool yet, seek out nanny shares so that their child can have a buddy or a playmate and get access to those really wonderful socialization opportunities that come through nanny shares.

How Much Does Each Family Pay in a Nanny Share?

As I mentioned before, a nanny share is going to cost each family about two-thirds the amount of regular single-family nanny care.

I’m currently seeing rates between $16 and $20 dollars per hour per family for a nanny share nanny in most major cities across the U.S.

And don’t forget, it’s not just about the hourly rate for the nanny, any nanny who has the skill-set and experience required in order to be a nanny share nanny will also look for the following nanny industry-standard benefits:

Guaranteed hours, paid time off, accrued paid sick time paid, holidays, mileage reimbursement for any use of their personal vehicle for driving on the job, and also possibly even a health care stipend.

How Do You Find a Nanny Share Nanny?

Well, I recommend giving yourself at least two months for your search.

You can use social media sites such as Nextdoor, Facebook, or local care sites such as Nanny Parent Connection if you are in the Seattle area.

And if you haven’t already seen it, check out my “Working With A Nanny From A to Z” video series, where I walk you through each step of working with a nanny including how to run a nanny search.

Remember, the most important thing is to make sure your compensation package reflects the skill-set and the experience level you want to attract in your nanny.

So, to attract a very experienced nanny who has the skill-set to manage two infants or two toddlers at a time, you’re going to want to be in that $16 to $20 per hour per family range. The per family pay rate might be even a bit higher depending on where you live.

Remember, if all of this seems overwhelming, I get it, I’ve been there before. If you would prefer to have our team handle the nanny search and vetting process for you, we can help through our Concierge Service. Click here to learn more.

How Do You Find a Nanny Share Famiy?

You’re going to approach your nanny share family search much in the same way you’re approaching your nanny search.

First of all give yourself ample time. Next you’re going to want to utilize social media groups such as Nextdoor, Facebook, or any local care sites.

And again if you’re in the Seattle area check out nannyparentconnection.com, we have several tools available to help you find other families to partner up with.

Other great places to find nanny share partners can be in your own neighborhood. Chat with your neighbors, you never know who’s looking.

Your PEPS groups, your childbirth classes, and any of those are all great places for networking. Remember, nanny shares typically work best if the families are in close proximity and if the children are within several months of each other’s ages. Also, you’re going to want to ensure that your parenting philosophies match up with the other family.

Should You Find a Nanny or a Family to Partner With First?

Ideally, you want to find a family to partner with first, because then you can share the cost and the time that is required for a nanny search. You can also make sure you both agree on the nanny you select for your share.

In a perfect world, you’ll find your family first, but ultimately you need care when you need care. So if the date that you need care is approaching and you haven’t found a family yet, make sure you cover your own care needs first.

This might mean starting with a nanny who you’ve already met and begun to get to know.

The only challenge with this route is that you may need to pay your nanny a higher fee initially as you don’t have the other share family in place yet.

So, just keep in mind that can be one challenge of starting nanny care without having a share family in place.

Pro Tip for a Nanny Share

Payroll for nanny shares can be a little bit more complex. So for this reason, I do recommend enlisting the help of a payroll company.

Nanny Parent Connection has partnered with a fantastic payroll company which can help you with nanny share payroll no matter where you live in the United States. Click here to learn more.

The Pros and Cons of Nanny Shares

Pros:

A nanny share is less expensive than single-family nanny care. You will save about 33% on nanny costs by going with a share instead of single-family nanny care.

A nanny share provides great socialization opportunities for your child.

A nanny share might be more accessible than finding a spot in a daycare depending on where you live.

Cons:

Payroll can be trickier to navigate with a nanny share involving two families versus single-family care.

A nanny share might be more difficult to navigate as far as communication is involved.

Remember you’re keeping up to five people (two sets of parents plus a nanny) happy in a nanny share situation.

Good communication is extremely important for a nanny share to run effectively and smoothly.

Alright everyone, that’s it for “Is A Nanny Share Right For You?”.

I hope this video was helpful. Please click the like button, subscribe, and ring the bell so that you can be alerted when more of these videos come out next time.

Thanks everyone, bye!