Daycare just raised prices AGAIN

Dec 111 min read

We're paying $2,400/month for one kid in the Seattle area. They just announced a 12% increase effective next month. That's basically another car payment. My wife makes less than what we're paying in daycare. Like genuinely considering if she should just stay home at this point but she doesn't want to do that.

We're not wealthy enough to not care about this but apparently too wealthy to get any assistance. This system is broken.

11 comments465 views

Comments(11)

RRussell D.RegularDec 12

Seattle daycare prices are insane. We're at $2,100 and they just raised theirs too. A 12% increase in one year is genuinely criminal. Have you looked at other places or are they all the same?

PPete L.RegularDec 13

The "it's another car payment" comparison is so accurate it hurts. That's basically what's keeping us from having a second kid honestly.

FFrank D.RegularDec 12

Is it just one kid right now or do you have multiple in there? Because if you're thinking about more kids this basically becomes the decision-maker.

JJoel F.RegularDec 13

If your wife makes less than daycare costs that's genuinely the time to think about whether one of you staying home makes more financial sense. I know that's not a choice everyone has but the math breaks at a certain point.

FFred V.RegularDec 14

This is the conversation nobody wants to have but if childcare is costing you $28k a year before taxes, your actual take-home from that second income might be basically nothing. Worth doing the real math.

DDale A.RegularDec 13

I'm in the Bay and dealing with the same thing. The "good" places know they have waiting lists a mile long so they just raise prices and nobody leaves because the alternatives are somehow worse. Total system failure.

MMarcus W.RegularDec 13

Seattle daycare prices are absolutely insane. $2,400/month for ONE kid? That's wild. And a 12% increase is basically saying "we know you have no choice so we're taking more." Have you looked into co-op daycare situations at all?

LLou P.RegularDec 13

lol "another car payment" is the perfect way to describe it. It IS another car payment and that's without having an actual car payment.

AAaron W.RegularDec 12

The "we know you have no choice" thing is exactly right. They have families that will pay it because what else are you gonna do, work from home with a toddler? 12% annual increases should be illegal.

KKent R.RegularDec 14

That math hit different when you realize your wife's salary minus daycare leaves almost nothing. I feel this in my soul.

OOscar D.New DadDec 14

Real talk: did the daycare give any explanation or just straight up announced it? Because I feel like they know we're trapped and keep pushing.