Going babysitting rate? (how much, home, neighborhood)

[kcp679]

Does anyone know what the going rate is for a babysitter in the evening on weekends? I am talking about a high school student who would be babysitting two children ages 3 1/2 and 18 months. We just moved to Morris county from upstate NY and I was not sure about the average rates here. Thanks for your help.

[regarese]

I paid my friend's teenage daughter $5/hr to watch my 2 year old. Will your sitter have to feed the kids? Will they be sleeping the majority of the time?

[juliann1977]

I pay $10/hr. for my two-year-old. If I had two kids, I'd do $12/hr.

[shannybannany]

Here in Cherry Hill. the going rate is $10 ph per child. We (as preschool teachers) get asked all the time to babysit. We add $2 per child after the first. That is standard here.

GL!
Shanny

[kcp679]

Thank you for the info. I am mostly looking at the rates for having a teenager in 10th grade babysit. It would be just an occasional thing. The kids would be fed before we left and would be going to bed withing 2 hours of the babysitter arriving. I thought that $8.00 an hour would be fair since it is still above minimum wage and would be "under the table."

[marye711]

I think that is fair........my son babysat last week foir an obnoxious 6 year old for 7 hours and got paid $20.........He should have asked how much up front I was furious becuase I had to take him there and wait for him to get home at 2 am, wasnt worth it if you ask me.

[tahiti]

Originally Posted by juliann1977

I pay $10/hr. for my two-year-old. If I had two kids, I'd do $12/hr.

$12hr is exactly what I was going to say. We pay $10/hr for my 2 10yr olds, but they are very self sufficient. A 3yr old and 18 mo old are a lot more work.

[njkate]

Originally Posted by tahiti

$12hr is exactly what I was going to say. We pay $10/hr for my 2 10yr olds, but they are very self sufficient. A 3yr old and 18 mo old are a lot more work.

For a high school kid??? wow my Karlee is getting grossly underpaid when she babysits

[tandcookies]

Originally Posted by njkate

For a high school kid??? wow my Karlee is getting grossly underpaid when she babysits

I think it depends on how competitive the area/neighborhood is. If there are a lot of kids in the neighborhood, the babysitter has the pick of choices. I know they book up fast in my sister's area and she could never pay less than $10 an hour and expect to find the ones she is willing to leave the kids with.

[kcp679]

Originally Posted by njkate

For a high school kid??? wow my Karlee is getting grossly underpaid when she babysits

I am so glad to hear you say that!! I thought it was just me thinking that $12/hr is a lot to pay a high school student who lives next door for babysitting for two kids who will be asleep within the 2 hours she arrives. (This is coming from someone who was a babysitter in high school and is now a teacher and understands fully the needs of kids).