5 Ideas For Finding Affordable Day Care For Your Kids

5 Ideas For Finding Affordable Day Care For Your Kids

Having a child at home has been a big challenge for me as a single parent for almost six years.

Paying bills, groceries, gas and gymnastics levies is pretty bad - but it can be a huge hassle to end up with hundreds (or even thousands) of dollars a day in massive day care tuition.

Penny Hoarder recently surveyed 2,000 parents across the country on childcare costs. Half reported spending at least 25% of their income on childcare, and 44% spend $ 1,000 or more a month to pay for it.

Too often, parents (especially single parents) are so anxious about daycare that they will settle for any name that calls itself a "licensed" setter. Even with a thorough background check, finding the right setter for your most valuable cargo can be a daunting task.

Here are five places that you might not have thought of when looking for affordable daycare cost near me for your kids.

5 Ideas for Finding Affordable Day Care

1. Check out your local Boys & Girls Club.

With the support of Congress and partial funding, the Boys and Girls Club of America has been around for over a century, with thousands of chapters throughout North America.

Boys and girls club tuition is stolen: At one point, I paid only $ 50 for the entire school year. Facilities can be upgraded a bit, but my kids are safe, have a good time and are staff friendly.

The Boys and Girls Club in my area also operates from 2 to 8 p.m. during the school year. This gives me plenty of time to come home from work and pick up my kids without having to deal with late charges.

2. Investigate licensed and unlicensed daycare providers in your state.

Parents are anxious to leave their children with either John or Jane Doe. If there are rules for people sitting in your state, you can see for yourself.

I've found a ton of so-called "licensed" sitters on the Craigslist that weren't in the daycare registry. Check out the social services website for your state - you can type in your city, whether you just want daycare providers or facilities in a licensed home or both, and a list will be ready.

For licensed in-house providers, you should be able to see any complaints they have received in previous years, as well as if they have been addressed. I find that in-house day care providers are more willing to work with you on prices and flexibility, which saves you money in the long run.

I had to sit in a house that ran occasional specials, like seeing one child for the full price and the other for free.

3. Get to know other parents at your child's school.

Children's schedules can be found as busy movie stars. Only other parents can be your best ally for after school activities, sports, dancing and more.

If you are a working parent, you may meet parents living at home who look after other children for extra income.

Don't be afraid to ask other parents how they manage help - and even ask them for help. You will be able to return the favor one day.

4. Research prices through your city.

The city government offers the cheapest prices for pre- and post-school and all-day care in my area. For one week, your toddler can get full day care for just $ 89. I remember when my kids were younger I paid more than $ 100 in day care for just one child.

One of my kids is in the pre-school program and the other is in the after school program. I pay only $ 93 a week. I pay a total of $ 372 per month in daycare and, with the average monthly daycare cost in Virginia over $ 500, I enjoy saving about $ 200 a month.

Another thing I like about city programs is the extra services, such as the occasional field trip, holiday celebrations and parental nights that come free of charge.

Unfortunately, this can be bypassed-but only if you're an expert techie. The following six steps will help you begin the mediation preparation process.

Monica is a former assistant to the penny hoarder in the left.

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