In my recent blog post, I mentioned how accessible the au pair program actually is. What I really mean by accessible is affordable. My early misconceptions regarding au pair care, probably stemmed from my days as a nanny- to a rather wealthy family. I automatically assumed full-time, live-in childcare was a luxury service-- reserved for the upper class. Now that I am “all grown up” and have had to take a hard look at finances surrounding childcare, I realize the au pair program is not what I first thought. Hiring an au pair turns out to be more affordable than many other options.
Childcare costs are a source of concern for families for a variety of reasons, not least among them is the magnitude and suddenness of these costs. While most parents are prepared for hospital bills and the cost of all the equipment associated with child bearing and rearing, childcare costs often comes as a surprise. The National Association of Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies found in a recent study that the average annual cost for center-based care for an infant was higher than a year’s tuition and related fees at a four-year public college. The NACCRRA also found that center-based child care costs for two children (an infant and a 4-year-old) exceeded annual average rent payments. While planning, grants, scholarships, loans and assistance exists for College tuition, this level of planning is not normally associated with childcare expenses. No wonder families struggle to meet these needs.
Accordingly, families rely on a variety of options, extended family, day care centers, independent childcare providers, nannies and babysitters and increasingly, au pairs. Because of our collective national tendency to relocate and our ageing populace, reliance on extended family to cover childcare needs is a diminishing alternative. Parents turn to independent childcare providers or day care centers and successfully depend on this childcare option. The costs, however, as identified above, can be staggering. Additionally, there are a few drawbacks that need to be navigated, sick days (yours and your child‘s) for one. For employment choices that require business travel, late nights at the office, extended shifts or alternating schedules, traditional childcare options pose significant challenges. It is at this juncture, that combination childcare alternatives begin to be considered. Unorthodox schedules lead to creative combinations and to parents shuttling children from one childcare provider to another. Given this schedule-bending alternative, a live-in childcare provider appears like a possible option. Average nanny salaries average up to $700 per week -- which is comparable to some daycare costs for families with more than one child. Average weekly au pair costs come in around half the rate, or $350 per week. As you can see, au pairs provide the flexibility of a living childcare option at a lower cost -- a surprising alternative.
