I'm seriously considering opening an in home daycare when we move towards the end of this month. I've already looked into licensing requirements for my state, and fully plan on doing all of that, so I am already prepared there.

What else should I know? How can I make this run smoothly? What sort of contract/guidelines should I have established? How do I set my hours/price?

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

We had Madelynn in an in-home daycare for awhile. The lady we went to charged $75 a week if that helps. It was the same for full time or part time, since she could only have a certain amount of kids. She was open set hours, I think 7 to 6. We had to bring a snack each week that would last the week for all of the kids. We were required to give 2 weeks notice if we were leaving too. I think Kris looked into it in and she's in MI too. Maybe you want to PM her? Her username is Kris.

I hope that helps!

you need to find out what the going rate is in your area because it really varies. my in home daycare is considered extremely cheap at $30 per day per kid but as you can see, Hilary's was half that. also, we pay if our kids are there or not, including when we are on vacation.

you'll need to be open early. i drop my kids before 7am and couldn't consider anyplace that couldn't take them at that time. due to the lengthy commute times here most places open at 6:30am.

my dcp also provides all meals and snacks, which is a huge bonus for me. i just bring diapers (and formula when gianna was on it). i literally drop my kids as is, no bags, nothing. their spare clothes are kept at the daycare, if they need a change, she washes the soiled clothes and that outfit becomes the spare.

i love my dcp :nod:.

Yes, definitely check the rates in your area. See if you can find a contract. our DCP has a contract with all the specifics:
rates listed in age groups
late-pick-up policy and fees
holidays observed (days she is closed)
how many weeks of vacation she is taking. We pay half rate when she is on vacation and we can take two weeks ourselves for half-rate.
Sick policy
besides her regular hours, she offers care outside those hours for an extra charge per hour
also think of a cancellation policy and by when they have to pay you and a policy if they don't pay
our DCP also has something in there when she can cancel the contract
you'll need emergency contact and somthing that allows you to get the child treated at a hospital if necessary
medication form

Our DCP's regular hours are from 7am to 6pm.
She provides all the meals and snacks except diapers, wipes, formula, and baby food
Like Kim's, our DCP throws our DS dirty clothes' in the washing machine quite often and it is clean or dry when we come to pick him up.
We need to bring spare clothes, house shoes, sheet and blanket, potty

Karly~ I found some other threads for you

http://www.onceuponalife.com/forums/showthread.php?t=10037

http://www.onceuponalife.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8487

And This might be helpful :

http://www.childcareservices.com/

I had a hard time finding info on line

My in-home DCP charges $150 a week. We pay for her two weeks vacation and if we are on vacation we still pay full price. She doesn't allow part-time unless it works with another family to share the spot. She does supply food and snacks each day. Diapers, baby food or formula was up to us. Alex has his own cubby and we leave a few changes of clothes there just in case.

She is very successful in our area. I think the big bonus is that her basement is the daycare. It has a separate entrance and a huge playyard that looks like a park. Her house remains her house and she doesn't have kids running all over.

Here's how our the two DCP's we've used ran. Both were run out their houses the first one we used was a bit bigger because she had two women employed under her so she could have more kids. Our current one is smaller and it is only her with her MIL coming in to help out.

Contract: Our first DCP had a several page contract written up explaining everything: rates, hours, vacation policies, and even a returned check policy. They also required us to fill out information about Victoria - her likes, dislikes, allergies, medical problems, emergency contact info and who was authorized to pick her up. (They would not release Victoria unless they were listed on the sheet and they had to show photo ID when they picked her up.) Our current provider only required us to give her an index card with contact numbers and any other important info to have (allergies, etc).

Hours: The first provider was open from 6AM to 6PM. Our current provider opens around 7AM and my kids are the last to be picked up and that's usually by 5:15 at the latest.

Rates: Our first DCP charged $4 per hour per kid but offered us a 10% discount if we had two kids there. Our current DCP charges $4.50 per hour for the first kid, $6 per hour for two kids and she came up with $7 per hour for three kids (this is the first time she's had three siblings at once and is a VERY good price for our area).

Vacations and days off: Our first DCP required us to pay for all holidays Victoria wasn't there (Thanksgiving, Good Friday, etc) including the two weeks they took off in the summer. The only time we didn't have to pay if she wasn't there was if they had a problem and closed like when their power went out after an ice storm. For the two weeks off they took off in the summer, we were required to pay for those two weeks on the last day they worked so we had to pay for three weeks at once; or they allowed the parents to use a payment plan starting a couple months before to cover those two weeks. Our current provider does NOT expect us to pay for holidays or any time she takes off. If we take a vacation all she asks is that we give her at least two weeks notice that the kids won't be there. She told us she feels it's not fair to the parents to pay for services that aren't available (like when she takes time off) plus have they pay for someone else to watch our kids for those days.

Meals: Both DCP we've used required us to pack a lunch each day for the kids. That may also help determine what you charge too. If you do provide lunches a weekly menu would be good to think about so the parents know if you plan on serving something their child may not like or is allergic to.

Activities: To have things run smoothly I would have a schedule of activities. Our DCP has certain days where they play with different toys and do different activites with the kids just to keep things interesting. In the morning she does have the TV on and they watch Sesame Street (or something similar) while the other kids arrive. Once all the kids are there she turns the TV off.

Help: I would also have a back-up person you could call in should you need some help or have an emergency. Like I mentioned above, our current DCP has her MIL come to help out.

Miscellaneous thoughts:
Storage is another thing to consider for diapers wipes, spare clothes, etc. The first DCP we used had a separate bathroom set up for all the kids items with shelves set up and each kid had a tupperware box for their clothes. In her garage she had little cubbies for spare snow boots, snow pants, and winter coat since they took the kids out to play in the snow. I'm not too sure how our current DCP has things set up but I know she has a spare bedroom she uses for naps so I'm sure everything it in there. In the morning she takes out each kid's wipes and a few diapers and lines them up on her kitchen table so they are readily available.

Okay, now that I'm rambled on and on....

Dawn

Oh my goodness! Thank you all for your help and suggestions! There were so many things here that I hadn't even thought about! You guys are great. Keep the suggestions coming!