Anyone use sittercity.com?

[janinegirly]

I finally looked at this site -- looks interesting, but I was just browsing for fun, so am curious if anyone has actually used it? Seems to be a hefty fee, is it worth it? And of course I''m curious if the people on it are as solid as the site claims.

I''d prefer word of mouth of course, but sometimes need to cast a wider net.

 

[vespergirl]

Yes, I have used it, and found several fabulous sitters on there. We live very far from family, and none of our other friends had kids when we did, so I had seen sittercity on the Today Show, and decided to check it out. I found two women who were professional nannies in my area who were available for babysitting on nights/weekends, which is what we were looking for. I had the background checks done on each of them, and also called and spoke to their employers for references.

My son LOVES both of these women so much, that two years later, they are both still watching him. In fact, they both came over about a week before the first time I wanted them to babysit, so that I could watch them interact with my son, and they both brought copies of their resumes, references, and their IDs. So, I felt very comfortable using them, and they have proven themselves to be caring and trustworthy.

I didn''t think that the website fees were high, but the hourly fees for a qualified sitter in my area are - I pay about $15 per hour to watch my son. However, these women have degrees in early childhood education, and are also infant CPR certified, so they have higher qualifications than your average teenager down the block.

Overall, I highly recommend the service.

 

[janinegirly]

I think the fee was around 39.95 if you take a monthly subsription (plus 9.99 each month) and 99.95 for yearly. I thought it was hefty in case I end up checking it out and don''t use it for more than one month,etc.

thanks for your feedback though, sounds like it''s been a success for you and likely worth it!

 

[vespergirl]

Ah, I think it was a little cheaper two years ago when I was using it.

 

[MustangGal]

I haven''t used that site, but I did use care.com to find my daycare provider. There were lots of sitters on there too, and the rates were much less than the ones you quoted.

 

[blushingbride]

Hi Janinegirly! My co-worker was just talking about this site to me the other day (I had never heard of it). She uses it all the time and has friends who use it too. She highly recommended it (she''s also a lawyer and has done lots of research on it).

 

[megumic]

Another one that may be resourceful is greataupair.com.

 

[Nanny1234]

No; but I have used Care4hire.com. I was referred by a friend that used them and they thought they were much better than Sittercity and they are cheaper as well.