Own a Daycare Blog » Home daycare http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog Just another WordPress weblog Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:00:06 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 en hourly 1 Free Printable Daycare Forms and Preschool Forms http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/free-printable-daycare-forms-and-preschool-forms http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/free-printable-daycare-forms-and-preschool-forms#comments Wed, 18 Nov 2009 14:00:11 +0000 csnuggs http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/?p=1074 Related posts:]]> Home daycare providers can cut costs by finding daycare forms online. Contracts, policies, authorization forms, permission slips, daily reports, and other forms are critical to daycare business administration. Rather than creating forms from scratch, owners of child day care centers can print out important forms and customize them.

Consider the following resources for free and for cost daycare and preschool forms:

Free Daycare Forms

Supporting Providers:  Free forms, pintables, articles, and much more for your daycare business. Forms include business forms, registration forms, contracts, policies, reports, logs, health and medical forms, and authorization forms.

Step By Step Childcare: Step by Step Childcare provides free accident reports, accounting reports, sample brochures and flyers, business cards, contracts, daily reports, and daily schedules.

The Daycare Lady:   A wealth of free daycare business forms in Microsoft Word or PDF format, organized alphabetically.

Tiny Treasures Child Care: Here you will find a free financial contract, illness policy, discipline policy, daily schedule, notice of animals on premises, and character analysis record form.

Child Fun: Provides field trip permission slips, daily reports, medical forms, application form, and a sample contract.

Brown Bear Educare:  parent registration forms, medical forms, accident/incident reports, illness reports, baby and toddler daily reports, health care policy and disaster plan.

Child Care Lounge:  Great sample forms for daycare businesses such as permission to photograph, parent survey,” welcome to preschool” and  “please donate” letter, late payment notice, accident report, termination notice, and daily report sheets.

For Fee Daycare Forms

OwnADaycare: When you purchase Pro Package the you receive 40 custom daycare business forms that match the included website templates along with 10 additional commonly used daycare forms.

Child Care Village: With membership, you will receive access to 20 different customizable business forms. This includes introduction to new parents, enrollment forms, attendance forms, health and safety records, permission slips, and financial record keeping forms.

Daycare Hotline: For one low fee, you can purchase 34 important daycare forms including Attendance Forms, expense and income ledgers, mileage logs, statements, permission forms, daycare contracts, interview checklist, authorization forms, accident reports, announcement form letter, calendar template, daily schedule, meal planner, mission statement, and emergency authorization forms.

Child Care Paperwork: offers a survival package which includes daycare forms. When you purchase the package you will receive a Day Care Forms, Contracts and Policies Package. You will also receive five videos that show you how to fill in 12 forms that could be complicated. The package also includes a daycare business plan template.

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]]> http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/free-printable-daycare-forms-and-preschool-forms/feed 0 How to Create a Day Care or Child Care Contract Form http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/how-to-create-a-day-care-or-child-care-contract-form http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/how-to-create-a-day-care-or-child-care-contract-form#comments Mon, 19 Oct 2009 13:00:02 +0000 csnuggs http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/?p=1043 Related posts:]]> A child care contract assures that there are no misunderstandings between you and your clients. It also protects you and your business from potential litigation. The contract states requirements and policies that both you and your clients must follow. A daycare contract form should include at least the following:

Hours of Operation: List the days and hours your child care center will be open for business.  Also detail any holidays you will be closed or any other days that the child day care center will be closed, if applicable.

Fees and Payments:  State the fees per week or month. Be explicit about whether or not sick days, holidays and vacation days are paid days. Some things to consider and disclose: When are weekly and month fees due? What are the consequences if fees are unpaid? (Termination? Suspension? ) How much will you charge for returned checks? How many returned checks will you allow before the client must pay in cash?

Arrival and Pick-Up Policies:  State your cut-off times for pick-up. Establish your late fees for late pickups. Also explain that only pre-authorized persons may pick up a child and that verbal and written permission must be received before a child may be picked up by an unauthorized person.

Illness Policies: Your contract should include a statement that explains when a child is too sick to attend daycare and how long the child must be symptom free before returning to daycare. Also detail your procedures for your course of action when a child becomes sick in daycare. You will also need to have a separate medical consent form in place. Also note what by time the parents must notify you if their child will not be attending daycare due to illness.

Withdrawal and Termination: What are the grounds for termination? What type and length of notice do you require for withdrawal from your daycare center? List that information in this section.

Damages: Sometimes children purposely break household items, toys, and other child care equipment. Who will pay for damages beyond the normal everyday wear and tear (when a child purposes to cause damages)? Your contract should be explicit about who will shoulder the burden of damages and repairs.

Toy Policies: Are children allowed to bring their own toys to your daycare center? What about other personal items of comfort like pillows or stuffed animals? State your policy here.

Potty Training and Diapering Policies:  In this section, detail whether or not you potty train and what your potty training philosophy might be. Do you supply diapers or pull-ups? Is there an extra fees associated with potty training? Do you allow cloth diapers?

Subsidies:  Does your childcare center participate in federal government programs that offer daycare subsidies? If so, state that any fees that are not covered by the subsidy are the parents’ responsibility and that fees are payable in advance on the first of day of the month.

The client (parent or guardian) and the childcare provider must sign and date the form.  Give a copy to the client and keep copy for yourself.

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]]> http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/how-to-create-a-day-care-or-child-care-contract-form/feed 0 Reduce Child Care Costs with Child Care Co-Ops http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/reduce-child-care-costs-with-child-care-co-ops http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/reduce-child-care-costs-with-child-care-co-ops#comments Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:00:08 +0000 csnuggs http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/?p=903 In today’s economic climate, finding quality childcare at a low price is a necessity, but it is also a challenge. For single parents and families in which both parents work, childcare is a necessity. But what do you do if you’re unemployed or can’t afford child care services? A childcare co-op is a good, affordable alternative to sending your child to a child care center or hiring a daycare provider.

What is a Child Care Co-op?

Child care or babysitting co-ops (cooperatives) are alternative child care situations in which participants exchange time and services rather than money. Some child care co-ops are formed from small groups of friends or neighbors, or some may be organized by groups of families that are unfamiliar with each other.

Some child care co-ops use a point system. Members start with a set amount of points and then points are deducted or added based upon your use or contribution. For example, your co-op system may decide that one point is equal to 30 minutes of child care per child. Your co-op may start with 50 points. When your child uses the service points are deducted. Likewise, when you take care of a child, points are added to your total.

How to Organize a Child Care Co-Op

To begin setting up a co-op, first talk to family and neighbors to see who has children and who would be interested in participating in the child care co-op. Once you have established a member’s list, hold a meeting to find out what hours people are available and their expectations of the co-op. The most important thing to consider when setting up a child care co-op is establishing leadership and setting up a clear agreement that everyone follows. One person should be the secretary or secretary duties should be rotated to manage scheduling and keep track of hours and points.

Little and Galik in their article titled “Child Care Co-op: An Alternative for At-home Mothers” [Children Today, 1984] suggests that by asking the following questions, your co-op will run smoothly and more effectively:

  • What will you expect from a care provider?
  • May parents bring along children of friends who are not members?
  • What is the policy for cancellations?
  • What rule violations will constitute grounds for being expelled from the co-op?
  • How will rules be established and changed?
  • How many children may a caregiver manage at once?
  • Should sitters be able to shop or run errands with the children?
  • How many hours (or points) in debt may a member be before being refused a caregiver? They suggest that any member who does not use the co-op for three months should drop out. Many co-ops have a long waiting list.
  • Are child care hours limited to daytime? Or are evening, overnight and weekend hours permitted?
  • What hours are off-limits for telephone calls?
  • How often will members have group meetings?

As your child care co-op becomes more established you will lose and gain members over time. Be sure to continually advertise your child care co-op the same way you would a child daycare center in your local community in order to sustain an abundant waiting list and keep enrollment steady. This is an excellent child care solution during tough economic times.

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]]> http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/reduce-child-care-costs-with-child-care-co-ops/feed 0 What You Need to Consider for your Home Day Care http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/what-you-need-to-consider-for-your-home-day-care http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/what-you-need-to-consider-for-your-home-day-care#comments Tue, 04 Aug 2009 00:07:33 +0000 Mary http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/?p=770 Related posts:]]> One of the seemingly easy ways to gain additional income is by opening your own home day care center. With home day care, you only need your own house as the center for kids and some tools needed for caring toddlers and kids. Though it appears so easy, home day care business can be difficult or easy depending on how you set it up. To guide you in establishing this kind of business, here are some of the things you need to consider:

Competitive advantage – Nowadays, a number of childcare services are closing in the first year of their operation due to rules and regulations they did not followed. That is why if you’re planning to start up this kind of business, make sure that you understand all the rules and regulations set for proper and safe child care. Also, find ways how to have an edge and advantage over your competitors to be on the top of the game. Think of nice publicity stunts and catchy advertisements in promoting your business and make sure you have all the knowledge you need to run your business.

The number of children you will take care of. Even if more number of children in your home care center would mean bigger income for you, you still have to consider the available space you have in your home to occupy a specific number of children. Usually, there are laws set on the number of children you can take care of in you home day care. Make sure that you follow all of those rules to ensure the safety and welfare of the children you’re taking care of, and to avoid future legal complications.

The materials you will need in your home day care. In creating a home day care business, you must decide what type of toys, books, and learning materials you will need to keep the children busy. To know this, you need first to decide what range of age of children you would want to take care. Since the toys and materials you will need are based on the age of the children you will be taking care of, the learning activities and plays and games you will provide for the children should also complement their age.

Additional help. If you see that the number of children you’re taking care of is increasing but still following the limit set by the law, you might decide to get an extra help. Since children need much attention during their playtime and outdoor activities, you may consider hiring additional employee to help you watching out the children. By this way, you will not only assure that all the kids under your care are safe, you will also be eased of the load of taking care of a number of children in your home day care.

See: How to start a home daycare

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]]> http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/what-you-need-to-consider-for-your-home-day-care/feed 0 The Easy Way to Grow Your Home Daycare Business With An Annual Marketing Calendar http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/the-easy-way-to-grow-your-home-daycare-business-with-an-annual-marketing-calendar http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/the-easy-way-to-grow-your-home-daycare-business-with-an-annual-marketing-calendar#comments Thu, 07 May 2009 00:52:19 +0000 Mary http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/?p=497 Related posts:]]> Having a home day care of your own and operating it as a business isn’t easy. Most of the time you find yourself wearing many hats: nurse, chef, chauffeur, teacher, mediator, counselor, bookkeeper, referee… and that’s all before morning snack!

So we can imagine that running your own marketing campaign is enough to make your head spin.

With all the crazy schedules, meetings and the balancing act for the many roles you are playing, it’s all too easy to allow marketing to slip to the bottom of your to-do list. But let me tell you as early as now that this is one of the biggest mistakes you can ever make when running your own daycare business.

Addressing the Problem of Marketing

Here’s where creating an Annual Marketing Calendar to map out your activities for the year will help. It ensures that you’re able to launch your marketing strategies in a way that is organized and manageable.

This calendar may serve as your road map for the year and allows you to take advantage of Seasonal Marketing Peaks. Identifying peak times of the year to launch special campaigns would do a lot of good for your home daycare.

You will really develop your chances of success by simply linking your marketing activities to a time of year when prospective clients are most likely to be in need of your services. Thus, making great plans for your daycare is a perfect solution.

Here is an example of a marketing calendar that you can use. Just modify or adjust it to suit the needs of the community or clientele you serve.

January –Prepare for an online daycare directories and launch your own website

February –Write for a press release article, great network, volunteer, and sponsor

March – Spring time and make order for T-shirts

April – Plan to create, order and repair yard sign

May – Make further postings for Summer Camp Enrollment

June – Network updates, list volunteer, sponsor, press release or fundraiser

July – Make early announcement to notify Child Care Resource & Referral of any upcoming openings

August – Have announcements in preparation for Fall Enrollment

September – Design and Order business cards for October

October – Gimmick for Trick-or-Treat packs (biz card-candy-snack bag)

November – Shop services for Christmas

December – New Years Eve bash services

With the help of the MS Word or Excel Program you make a simple Annual Marketing Calendar.

You can make Annual Marketing Calendar any time of the year. Always look forward with the step of creating your marketing goals and work your way towards it.

See: How to start a home daycare business

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]]> http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/the-easy-way-to-grow-your-home-daycare-business-with-an-annual-marketing-calendar/feed 0 Scheduling For Your Home Daycare Business http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/scheduling-for-your-home-daycare-business http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/scheduling-for-your-home-daycare-business#comments Fri, 20 Mar 2009 02:03:09 +0000 Mary http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/?p=366 Related posts:]]> One tough choice you have to put together when starting a home daycare industry is what your daily agenda will look like. What hours must you be open? When must you serve snacks and meals? How should you construct your day? These can be hard questions, but this guide can help you think through the factor that should affect these decisions and assist you to establish the right timetable for your method of care.

The first choice you need to create before getting started is what hours you will care for kids. There are some factors that should influence this decision. You must think the needs of your relatives as well as the desires of the families you will care for. If you have your own kids that are of school age, this choice becomes a little more intricate. You need to think whether you drop off and/or pick up your children from school, the before and after school activities of your children, the assignments schedules of your kids, how far the bus stop is from your house, and the school agenda.

If you need to be obtainable to drop off and/or pick up your own kids from school or from additional activities, you need to take this into deliberation when establishing your hours for daycare. If you have a big vehicle with plenty of seat belts and you get parental authorization, you can take the daycare kids with you to do this running around. Some parents don’t want you driving their kids around, so this may border the clientele you take in.

You must have a seat belt for every child you bring in your car and they are not allowed to ride in the front seat. You also require to get a written parental permission to transfer children from other families. If you aren’t going to be able to bring the daycare children, you will need to have other whereabouts worked out for your own children. Maybe a friend can take them to school or other activities, or they could tour the school bus.

If you need to go together with your children to the bus stop, take into consideration the distance of the bus stop from your house. You will need to carry not only your children to the bus stop, but also all of the kids you care for. If you have to stroll more than a block or two to get to the bus stop, this can be a massive task. If you are caring for elder children, ages 3 and up, walking that space won’t be too hard.

However, if you are caring for one or more infants or toddlers, this could be a large issue. Consider the weather in your area. Does is snow there and get fairly cold? Do you have a bundle of rain? Does it get extremely hot? You will have to be taking out these little ones daily to the bus stop in all sorts of climate. In my case, the bus stop was about ¼ of a mile from our house. I knew that I couldn’t get the kids there every day. So I called our bus barn and requested that they put in one more bus stop at the end of my driveway.

Will they have sufficient time to do homework once the children leave? Will you have enough power to help them? The final thought is the school schedule itself. You need to judge school vacations and how that will affect the number of children in your house. Remember, a licensed supplier can only have six full time children and two before and after school children. The infrequent day off of school probably won’t matter. But times like Winter Break and Spring Break can turn into a larger issue.

The other thought for your hours of process is the needs of the families you will care for. What hours do you need to be open in order to accommodate the schedules of the parents? What hours are you willing to be open? To give you an instance, I live in a rural community. The large city where most of my child care parents worked is at least 40 minutes away. So I needed to take into thought not only the hours my daycare parents worked, but their travel times as well. Since this is the case, I had a long daycare day. For a little time I began care at 6:00 a.m. and completed my day at 6:00 p.m.

This accommodated numerous different families with dissimilar schedules. Nevertheless, it was really rough on my own family. My children woke up early on by the noise of the daycare families, and when they returned from school they still had two or further hours of time with the daycare kids there. After much consideration, I cut my hours and moved to a day from 6:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. I did lose one daycare family because of my change of hours, but it was what my family needed. Bear in mind that some parents work very odd schedules. Nurses, doctors, firefighters, police officers, etc. have dissimilar hours than the 9-5 job. You will need to make a decision whether you can contain these schedule requests.

Personally, I served breakfast between 7:15 a.m. and 7:45 a.m. I told parents that if they required their child to eat mealtime at my house they had to be there by 7:30 at the latest. Choose a time for morning snack that is about midway among breakfast and lunch. I served lunch between 12 and 12:30, so I served morning snack at about 10:00. I ended up serving afternoon snack twice each day. I served the younger kids between 3 and 3:30, and I served the school age kids at about 4:15. You will most likely need to have at most one nap time during the day. If you have infants you may have two or three nap times. Plan these at a time when you can remain any kids who aren’t napping engaged in a quiet action.

See: How to start a home daycare business

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]]> http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/scheduling-for-your-home-daycare-business/feed 0 Daycare Home Business: Regulating Your IRS http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/daycare-home-business-regulating-your-irs http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/daycare-home-business-regulating-your-irs#comments Mon, 02 Mar 2009 00:36:12 +0000 Mary http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/?p=304 Related posts:]]> Every individual who is able to spend one whole day with not just one child but several of them can definitely be considered to have a pretty brave soul. Even more, those people who decide on starting this type of business is even more worth commending and acknowledging. Although a daycare business is pretty much reputable, what do you think does the IRS think of such type of small business? The IRS looks at daycares as potential cash cows, as how they do with other small businesses out there.

In this type of industry, it tends to become very difficult to trust anyone. Many daycares are owned by partners and as an IRS-Hitman it is definitely easy to see one person running away with the money while leaving the other owner with nothing but a huge tax debt and no cash on hand. Even if the tax debt would be assessed on the business so technically you and your former partner would both be liable for the debt, you are still left with the bigger problem since you do not have any money with you to keep your daycare business running. So what now can you actually do?

What you can do is simply use your hardship to your actually benefit. You can decrease the amount of your debt to the IRS due to that unfortunate event. If your small business happens to be the victim of theft or embezzlement you can get the IRS to remove any penalties assessed on the debt. But since the penalties only cover between 20-30% of the debt you would still need to find another way such as a payment plan to take care of the rest of your IRS tax debt.

Looking ahead could definitely work to your advantage. There are some things that you can do in order for you to prevent tax debts in the future. There are a number of deductions you can claim when you run a home based business. Not only can you deduct the usual business expenses such as materials, equipment, etc. There are some specific costs that are unique to home based daycare businesses.

You can get the most out of your home. Since you use your home as your primary place of small business you can claim part of your mortgage, utilities, even food as business expenses. But how much can you claim? It’s pretty simple to know and determine.

Take the square foot of your home that you use for your daycare activities and use this to figure out how much of your rent or utilities can you actually claim as deductions on your taxes. Divide it by the total square footage of your home and that will give you the percentage you can claim.

For example, you have a 2000 square foot home. You use half of it, 1000 square feet, for your daycare. So you would divide 1000 by 2000 to get 50%. That means you can claim 50% of your mortgage and utilities as business deductions. And that can be pretty helpful when trying to lessen your tax debts.

See: Home to start a daycare home business

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]]> http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/daycare-home-business-regulating-your-irs/feed 0 Home Daycare Provider Activities http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/home-daycare-provider-activities http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/home-daycare-provider-activities#comments Tue, 17 Feb 2009 23:57:33 +0000 Mary http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/?p=264 Related posts:]]> Crafts and games for children in home daycare that will teach the skills they need for school.

Home daycare activities are necessary in keeping your home daycare running smoothly as well as in ensuring that you are able to educate the children as well as give them a fun time they could definitely enjoy. There are countless ideas when it comes to various daycare activities you can provide your children with and here are some that have be successfully tried out and have created successful impact to children.

Finger painting although it can be considered fun is also a great deal messy so in order for you to enjoy this type of activity, you might want to consider using cotton balls or cotton swabs instead of using your children’s hands. Using finger paints helps eliminate some of the mess, since it is thicker than water colors or tempura. You can create your own finger paints by making a medium white sauce (use water instead of milk) and adding food color or tempura (this works well at Easter to color eggs with).

You have a pile of sewing and the kids are cooped up inside. Have them play dress up with the clothes. You can for the most part do the hand sewing while it is on them. They enjoy the pretending to be a mannequin, gives you some one on one time with each child and gets your mending done.

Teach your children the value and importance of cleaning. Put an old sock that is damp on their hands and let them help wipe doors, doorknobs, and shelves that they can reach, while you get the top shelves, and knick-knacks.

Sort socks together, they will learn valuable skills for matching, color, and best of all your socks will be matched.

Have a tea party/picnic at meal times occasionally. You can use this activity to teach manners, and more formal behavior. They will think it is wonderful and amazingly enough they will usually carry the manners they learn over to a few more meals.

Gardening can be a wonderful activity for little ones. Let them plant a few carrot, radish, or lettuce seeds in a flower pot. Check on them daily and water. When they grow and become edible they will have learned many things about plants and food.

Need a rainy day activity to use up some extra energy? try making bread with them. The kneading process is a great energy depleter for children, and then they get to eat the results. Talking about how bread is made and what makes it rise is a science lesson that has practical applications.

Make sugar cookies and then have them frost them. These make great gifts for mothers day/fathers day etc. They will enjoy the cutting out and baking, the frosting of the cookies, and the sampling of the finished product.

Play I spy and use the letters of the alphabet, for example, “I spy something that starts with the letter B, Buh, Buh” They will learn the alphabet and the sounds associated with each letter.

Use your imagination, enjoy the children, and try to look at the world from their point of view. Everything is new and wonderful, so make a game out of it and they will learn so much it might scare you.

See: How to start a home daycare center

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]]> http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/home-daycare-provider-activities/feed 0 The Truth About Home Daycare Tax http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/the-truth-about-home-daycare-tax http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/the-truth-about-home-daycare-tax#comments Tue, 03 Feb 2009 15:48:49 +0000 Mary http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/?p=204 Related posts:]]> Truth is, deducting some portion of your home as business expenditure is an extremely difficult process to do since this is normally being challenged by the IRS. Among the aspects being determined by the IRS in order to assess that a certain house can be employed as a business expense is the fact that a certain room within the house is “entirely and solely” employed for the business purpose only. This is something that is very difficult for every homeowner to establish.

But you should not fret a lot since the IRS gave an exception to this annoying rule which lead home day care providers to be able to look for means which will give them the ability to easily deduct a part of the house as a home office despite the fact that the room is not exclusively for day care purposes only. For instance, a room can be employed as a living room during night time and it can also be employed as a playroom by day. In case the day care is operated regularly then this room can now be regarded as a business/personal environment.

If you are wondering how exactly you will be able to calculate the amount of home expenses that will be deducted as a business expense then this is through the time/space percentage wherein time is multiplied by the area of the house which is employed for the operation of the business. You could include the area which is used as a place to keep children’s toys or wash your clothes in order to deduct the portion used in your day care business.

Furthermore, taxes and mortgage interest are deductible if only you are able to effectively itemize your deductions. Some of the other expenses that would give you the ability to lessen your tax would comprise of utilities, insurance premiums, condo fees, and business telephone lines.

There are other questions that you should bring up when talking to your tax advisor so you would be guided properly in terms of tax exemptions issues. Be sensitive about every aspect of your business so you would be guided well. As much as possible, be organized with every aspect of your business. Keep receipt at the right place so you could show them right ahead when the time comes when your accountant is in need of them.

Moreover, you should ensure the credibility of your accountant. Go for those who possess a good experience and background when it comes to business exemptions rather than an eager novice, because the former will give you more chance to obtain tax deductions. You can also ask around from your fellow home day care owners so you would understand their claims and for you to be able to assess how your business is working. Also, it would help a lot if you can have the necessary information about tax deduction by your own. Attend seminars and lectures about the subject for better understanding.

See: How to start a home daycare center

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]]> http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/the-truth-about-home-daycare-tax/feed 0 Home Daycare And Child Care Providers Deals With Tax Deductions http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/home-daycare-and-child-care-providers-deals-with-tax-deductions http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/home-daycare-and-child-care-providers-deals-with-tax-deductions#comments Tue, 03 Feb 2009 15:20:35 +0000 Mary http://www.ownadaycare.com/blog/?p=202 Related posts:]]> When talking about tax, most business owners would run away from the issue as much as possible. If ever you had your own home based child care business in the year 2007 then you may feel overwhelmed about your taxes hence it is important for you to understand all the facts that you have to deal with when it comes to tax payment. Despite the fact that you have someone who complete your taxes or if you are doing all the process by yourself, there are a lot of things that you must be aware of in order to go through the process as smooth as possible.

* The very first thing that could pop up into your mind is the question of whether it would be nice to have someone who can prepare the papers for you or if you just have to do all the complicated by your own. As a rule of thumb, nothing beats doing the process by yourself since you can get rid of professional fees or any other cost that may arise from hiring a professional.

* However, it would be wise to attend first a seminar so you could understand all the rules that is available in any tax filing. Look for seminars that deal with taxes for child care business or you could simply ask the help of an government agency to teach you the methods that you have to learn. Further, it would also help if you can check with other local community colleges, daycare providers, or child care organizations so you could ask them about the critical issues that you have to understand in terms of tax collection. Gear yourself with a lot of patience since you will need a lot of it in order to get through the process.

* However, there will be times when it would be wiser to seek the help of a professional in order to complete your taxes, particularly during those moments when you are not fully aware of the items that you have to be addressed. Also, seeking for their help may also open the probability of more deductions that could create a big difference on your budget. After then, you may want to go back to the process of doing everything by yourself.

* Another question to mull about is the list of deductions that you should be claiming. One of the best claims that you could incorporate to save on your money is the claim for mileage. Keep in mind that a home daycare provider is given the ability to claim for mileage for any kind of trip by which the child care business has done. This would even include the simple trip into the grocery store during those times when you have to buy food for the daycare. You could even incorporate all of those trips that you do in order to buy art supplies or toys. Even those trips to the bank so you could deposit child care income should be included.

* Furthermore, one deduction that you could claim is the cost of food and supplies that you use for your child care. As simple as it may sound, this is considerably among the biggest tax deduction that you could claim!

* There are basically two methods that you can follow in keeping track with this aspect. First, you can shop separately for the entire list of foods which is needed by the daycare and your family. And secondly, you can shop for both at the same time, wherein you could just separate items that are used for your daycare later on your receipt.

* There are other claims for deduction that you can place, hence it is highly needed if you can ask around or perform your research first so you will have a full understanding of all your rights and privileges when it comes to tax deductions. For sure, some other daycare owners in your locality will be more than happy to cooperate with you when it comes to tax issues, thus you don’t have to feel dubious in asking around.

* Now, if you like to have a professional to complete your taxes, you should ensure that you possess all the necessary information with you during your initial meeting. This is because of the fact that doing this process will in fact help you to save a big portion of your money in terms of tax preparation fees since you wont have to meet the accountant every now and then. In fact, there are a lot of accountants who would charge less in case they had less work to do. With this, it is wise to prepare most of the information that will be needed along the way before meeting with them.

* Furthermore, you can bring a sheet that gives a calculation of your time-space formula, the total amount of income that your business is making, a mileage log, a complete list of all the expenses, and various other vital informations which are somewhat relevant to the business like your tax id for example. You should also see to it that you will be able to back up the entire list of information that you give with receipts so you will have something to show just in case your accountant wants to see them. In case you do not possess everything that the accountant wants then you don’t have to worry at all since you can always get them later if necessary. But it will always be nice if you can be as prepared as you can since this will lead you to a cheaper result!

You see, being aware of every expense that your company would make is a vital move to ensure that you will be paying lesser than the amount that you expect in your business tax. With this, it is helpful if you can be as organized as much as possible. Keep all the receipts and maintain a list of expenses.

See: How to start a childcare business

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