I have a young friend I am trying to help out. I am making her car payments to make sure they get paid on time since I co-signed(never again) then she pays me. $180.00 per month. She is struggling for money as she just had a baby. I want to help help because she has been a life long friend but I am not giving handouts, I want her to learn and earn her way especially now that she has her baby. I have seen much improvement in her arttitude and actions lately. I believe strongly in "I will gladly help you if I see you helping yourself"!!
I have offered to let her work some of the car payment down (not all) by doing some house cleaning for me.
My question is how much should the cleaning be worth in this case? Should she earn by hour or task? I don't want to end up paying 2 hours for a clean bath tub. I want to sit down with her and work out a clean clear cut earning schedule that we are both happy with so that we are in any misunderstandings.
We are in the midwest. Any ideas?
2006-12-09 01:29:30 · 3 answers · asked by Laura G 3 in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Other - Pregnancy & Parenting
Does she have any family that would be willing to help watch the baby? She could work 3rd shift. Maybe her mom could take the baby 3 nights a week, you could take the baby 1, and someone else could take the baby another. That would probably do more for her self esteem that cleaning you house. That may make her feel degraded, embarrassed; having to work for you. If the people in her life would rally with her she could get a steady job. If this idea is something that just wouldn't work, I'd pay her 8 dollars an hour, or more depending on how you feel about it. Make it clear that cleaning the tub shouldn't take 2 hours. Dusting, polishing furniture, cleaning woodwork, baseboards, vacuuming. The kitchen and bathrooms are the most work and will take the longest time. Give her like 5 to 6 hours to thoroughly clean your entire house. Depending on the size, it may take longer. You could also have a cleaning service come in and give you an estimate of how much they would charge on a weekly basis.
2006-12-09 03:57:41 · answer #1 · answered by bellbottombleus 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
What a true friend in every sense of the word. It is good toknow that there are still people like you out there and I will bet dollars to doughnuts that you are from rich in cash but very rich in spirit. I would discuss an dhourly wage and tell her howlong it shoudl take to do the tasks that you are giving her to do. You have done them and soyou know how long it should take. If she ahs the baby with her then it might take allittle longer but explain you will pay by the hourt but not past x amount of hours for the work . any employer willnot pay any different. Best of luck to all of you and May the Lord smile on you Merry Christmas.
2006-12-10 09:54:45 · answer #2 · answered by wolfy1 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The best idea would be to give her a list of things you'd like to do and negotiate the price, rather than paying her by the hour or by the chore itself. Of course you'll want to set a time limit, provided that someone can look after the baby while she's doing the chores for you. She is so lucky to have a friend like you; I wish that when I was a single young mother someone as understanding and helpful as you are could be there for me. I think you're not only helping her but you're also giving her motivation to help herself. No one can ever set a price on that!
2006-12-09 09:34:20 · answer #3 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋