nannies in tampa?
 

Hi Everyone,
Posted a while back as we are moving to Tampa with my husbands business.
We have now bought a property in Cobbs Landing on Lake Tarpon, Palm Harbor and we get possession of it on Jan 10th 2006. I have 2 boys 18m and 5yrs.
Will need some childcare, maybe a part time nanny or at least a baby sitter plus a cleaner. Any ideas on where I should start looking? or advertising? do you have any local publications that are particularly good for this type of thing?
Ive heard cleaning is mega expensive there? My husbands business partner pays 100 dollars for 4 hrs? is this normal??
Think it will be really hard to try and trust a stranger with the kids as have only ever had family here in the uk. But think I will need some help, especially whilst trying to unpack all our boxes etc., buying a load of new stuff and trying to find my feet (and my way around - i have no sense of direction!!)
Im dreaming about a 'Mrs Doubtfire' type lady, who is maybe a bit older and wants to mother us all... but im sure everyone is looking for that!!
Any helpful pointers in the right direction would be much much appreciated!!
Thank you.
And Happy Christmas to all of you. The threads on this site have been so helpful and enlightening!!!
Sara ;)

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

Give her a call.

http://www.smh.com.au/ffximage/2005/...b__200x316.jpg

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

You want an old cross-dresser as a nannie??

Have you tried Google? Seem to be more than a few agencies. And yes- 100$ for 4 hours seems ludicrous.

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&r...+nanny&spell=1

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

For $25 an hour... I'll even do your ironing ...and your not far from me...
Somebody is being well caught...
Most cleaners get under $10 an hour ... same for a baby sitter ...

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

Wish I could get a house cleaner for $10 an hour! Wow.
Here in Ohio, they pay by the job. An average house would be $65-$85, but that wouldn't include windows.

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

But that would be a cleaning company ..who have all the eqipment and provide their own chemicals ...

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

Yeah... in Tampa, I am sure there are plenty of women named Maria or Guadalupe who would work well for the $10 rate.

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

I will get Joycee down there part time ...

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

Will do ;)

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

I hear Louise Woodward isn't doing much these days ;)

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

Nope, that's for an independent local woman.

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

Florida is a poorer paying state than most ..

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

Where?? ????

The going rate in Tampa for a cleaning person is around $100 - $110 for 4 hrs, and every cleaner I know provides their own equipment and products. But good luck in finding someone reliable. Most don't even bother to arrive after a while and don't call to let you know, especially if you have small children. Most that do that type of cleaning would rather deal with the snowbird types. Commercial cleaning is very profitable over here, so most people will rather do that than clean people's homes.

As to a nannie, you'll pay a fortune. We don't have the Californian/Texan 'cheap labor' pool.

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

The lady who comes in .. rarely supply there own
I pay $60 for the cleaning of our 4 bed rentals ... and $50 for the 3 bed ..
must be you rich city people ..

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

You're getting a bargain there.

Sara B,

As to babysitting, why not ask your business partner if he knows a trusted teenager that is willing to babysit for you. They will come to the house and take care of your kids for a few hrs. Many folk do that. They pay around 9 - 10/hr.

Btw, wonderful that you found a home out there. I'd live in that area in a heartbeat if my husband didn't have his office on the opposite side of town! One of my favorite places in the entire area :)

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

I know several Spanish girls (18-20 something) that have come to the US as AuPairs (live-in) for as little as 500-800 a month....for what basically amounts to slave labor (not all...a few were quite happy with their 'families).

I suggested to Cathy that I would not be against getting one...but she thought we really didn't need any 20 yr old nenas wandering around our house in pyjamas. *sniff* :(

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

generally speaking Ray you'll be hard put to find a babysitter for under $10 an hour :(

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

And how long have you lived in Florida ...

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

I think babysitters are universal :D

smart ass....did you get my card yet? :)

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

Most certainly not ..Their value is what the market will bear..

no

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

Well, thanks guys for your comments. Not that encouraging though!! I think its the same anywhere - if you find somebody good - you are very lucky.
Nice to know, somebody with a lot more knowledge than us about the area, likes Cobbs Landing, Lake Tarpon area (thanks Izibear)!!
We thought it seemed a nice neighbourhood and obviously lovely position to be on a lake. Hopefully, I will meet some nice people there! Apparently, there are a lot of children on our street so that can only be a good thing for my two little ones.
Okay, will check out google now.
Thanks again.
Sara

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

If you go the au-pair route you will need to be very, very careful; many of the au-pairs are sold on the idea that they're coming over to stay in the US to have fun and get paid for it.....they often get passed from one failed assignment with one family to the next..

If you have time, read this thread I originally posted a couple of weeks ago:

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=342418

(Update: my friend's mum is now coming over from Oz until a suitable nanny can be recruited...still looking for an English or Irish one, but there may be some leads).

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

Glad you found a nice area -- Lake Tarpon is gorgeous! We used to go boating out there all the time before we had our little ones! Anyway, this article was in the local paper a couple of weeks ago and might help you out as it is about the local nanny business:

http://sptimes.com/2005/12/16/Northo...ysitters.shtml

BTW, I pay $75 for 4 hours cleaning and I provide all the cleaning supplies, but only because I want to ensure "green" products are used.

Good luck with your move!
Karen

Re: nannies in tampa?
 

Oy, you're not too far from the mall. What's not to like!..:D