Can I afford a nanny?

[HouseofHills]

I’m currently pregnant with my first DC and trying to plan how we’ll manage childcare when my 12 months mat leave ends.

Our combined net pay is £8300 per month. We have a mortgage of £3500 per month. We live in a 3-story Victorian house with high heating costs and very limited savings as we recently moved and poured all our savings into the deposit and renovations for our house.

I have the option of dropping down to 3 days per week at work which will mean our income will go down to circa £7000 per month. I have the option of working from home for 2 of those days but my job is demanding and I generally work 8:00-18:00.

I’d prefer a nanny to nursery for various reasons but I’m not sure we would be able to afford a nanny for those three days considering on costs etc? I’m also considering working 4 days. My mum is a 45 minute drive away and is happy to help out with childcare 1-2 days per week but it can take a lot longer during rush hour and I don’t think it‘s fair for her to come to my house so early to help with childcare.

I’d love to hear your advice on the best way of managing childcare and from people with a nanny on how affordable it is and any additional costs.

Thanks in advance!

Thank you for this! Do we you know if we both have to earn under 100k for tax fee childcare? I do but DH doesn’t so not sure if we could get this?

Yes you both have to earn under £100k

we had a similar salary to you 18 years ago when DS1 was a baby and we used a child minder. Any reason you would not do similar? It cost about £1,000 a month in those days

If one of you earns over £100k you won’t get tax free childcare, or the full 30 funded hours once 3 either.

@HouseofHills unless dh puts more into his pension to get income under £100k

OP if your mum is happy to help with childcare for two days a week then I'd do as someone else suggested upthread and stay at your mums house for the childcare and then work from home for those two days

Then I'd use a childminder for the third day. There are so many amazing ones around.

Your mortgage is pretty high so I'd minimise childcare costs if you have the option to do so, which it sounds like you do.

Good luck!

I was going to suggest that perhaps your mum could come through the day before and stay overnight but you going to her with the baby could work well too.

How will your husband being doing his half of the childcare?

In my area, fewer days are easier to fill! And I live in a popular area for nannies.

In Manchester you won't be paying £16ph. It'll be a lot less.

I live near to Manchester in a more rural area and the nanny rate is £15 per hour so disagree with above poster .
The other thing is a nanny share if you know of another family who would want a nanny . Even if your hours are not the same . The times you both employ her you could pay a lower rate (at least minimum wage ) this can save you a little bit .

I find the childcare.co.uk tool a good indicator. I live in a more expensive area and £15 is only now becoming more normal down here. With COL much less in Manchester, it tends to be cheaper for a nanny. Obviously there are exceptions to the rule as is with everything!

What a ridiculous thing to say 🤣. If he’s working 2 days more than me it isn’t really feasible or reasonable for him to do 50% of the childcare. He’s a surgeon, he can’t exactly take the baby to work… He wants to work full-time and that works well for us financially. I don’t want to work for full-time initially and so we will make that work too.

I said in a previous comment it’s something we’re going to look into childminders. I imagine 18 years ago on this income you could easily afford a nanny, why did you choose a childminder? My preference is for a nanny for a number of reasons - the one-on-one care, the fact a nanny can work from our home which means DC can stay in a familiar environment, the level of flexibility if I finish work late or DC is sick, the quality of care etc.

We didn't even consider a Nanny tbh.

We wanted our DC to spend their time in a family environment and we had flexible jobs which didn't require us to work late on the whole.

Cover for illness would have been useful though

I’m a childminder now and have been a nanny.
i think if you can afford it go for the nanny. As a nanny I did all the children’s laundry and cleaned their rooms , changed their beds once a week. Cleaned and kept playroom tidy . I cooked all meals from fresh (still do as a childminder ) but also batch cooked so family had baby /toddler meals on my days off. I looked after and occasionally walked the dog. I took parcels in and to the post office . I also kept kitchen tidy and did dishwasher etc.
But the biggest advantage I like after children when they were sick . I worked all through Covid and home schooled too (which I loved !)
i Love childminding and the children get excellent care 1:2-3 and we probably do more activities to be fair as I’m set up like a mini nursery. But I don’t care for sick children as I can’t risk spreading infection to my family and the other children I care for .. plus germs would be in my home .
So ho for a nanny

Manchester is an expensive area! I think Southerners think anywhere in the North is cheap, when we were buying a house my friends were shocked that house prices in South Manchester are the same as Maidenhead where they live and higher than Kent where our other friends live! It’s a lower COL than London but it’s definitely not cheap!

Just an FYI I'm not a southerner and I have never lived in London!

Manchester is higher the. Kent for houses ?

Never

You could consider a nanny with own child, which generally means a discount of 20%. I've always had nanny with child and it's not sole care but it's got a nice family feel and my children are very well socialised and good sharers. Nannies with kids are very engaged IME.

You work 2 hours longer than the 9-5 - over three days that’s nearly a full day!

Could you ask for 3 days conferenced hours so paid for 4? Give you a day with the baby, one with you mum and 2 with a nanny?

If you are dead set on a nanny, then you probably could do it, if you used your nanny to relieve nanny on one day and then your mum looks after on the other. Or could do four shorter days, which would perhaps mean a mum with older kids would offer a better rate or a nanny share where someone needs kids picked up could be had.

(Do consider NWOC also).

You also need to think about what you want in the longer term. Obviously, lots of people choose to have another child at around the time older child goes to preschool, but if you are not, then the period for which you need a nanny 3 days might be shorter if you want to send your daughter to preschool.

Have you looked into a nanny share? That is what we have done for the last 5 years and you get a nanny but share with another family which is nice for the kids to have someone to play with and the cost is split 50/50 making it a lot more affordable and at par with a nursery. Our recent nanny was about 20 an hour (gross) and that was split 50/50.

Have you considered an au pair? If you have a spare room. They live with you for 6 months and get board and food in exchange for babysitting and pocket money. It’s not full time hours, maybe 20 or 25 a week. I’m not sure how much they get in the uk. We had one in Australia for a short while. They are usually 19-20ish year olds having a gap year and wanting to travel.

In your situation I would drop down to 3 days, use your Mum for one day a week and 2 days in nursery.