How much to pay 2 girls to water deck plants for a week?

[sam_gordon]

ETA: Thanks for the responses so far. Another question for those talking about a price per day per girl... Do I wait until I get back to find out how many days they came over (in case there were any days it rained and they didn't need to come), or do I just pay all 7 days worth and don't bother asking exactly how many days for fear of sounding petty?

My opinion... if you had told them how much you're going to pay them and you've budgeted how much you're going to pay them, pay them that amount. It shouldn't really matter to you, but do you really want to "short" them money because of something out of their control?

Now, I would wait to pay them until after you get back. Did they do the work? Did they do something extra?

 

[sam_gordon]

I just paid my daughter’s friends $500 for a week of dog sitting/watering (plus snacks) to divide up themselves. I also paid a dog walker $140 to come once a day (so the friends could decide if they wanted to walk her, we have a fenced in yard). I have no idea who did what.

That seems awfully high to me. How many times did you expect them to come by each day?

 

[kymom99]

My son was paid $12 a day to feed cats and get mail for a neighbor. It was plenty.

 

[mjkacmom]

That seems awfully high to me. How many times did you expect them to come by each day?

They were expected to feed her dinner at 5:30, breakfast around 6 am, and spend the night, plus let her out when they were here. I have 8 hanging baskets, plenty of potted plants, and 2 gardens. I kept in mind that when they committed, they gave up potential opportunities (lots have vacation homes here so these young adults get some nice invitations last minute). I’ve known these girls since kindergarten, they are 19. I saw some photos of my dog on some local hikes. I would never board her (she’s 11 and a nervous nelly) and doesn’t do well with other dogs so I can’t send her to someone’s home with a dog.

 

[TwoMisfits]

I would like to ask two sisters (ages 12 and 14) one street over from us to come water our plants that are outside on the deck for a week while we’re on vacation. There are 5 plants in medium and large pots and 2 in small pots). I’m friendly with the mom, and I’ve gotten the opportunity to know both the girls well when they participated as helpers in a special needs classroom where I work… they’re very kind and responsible girls who have a great relationship with each other, that’s why I was thinking of offering the job to both of them as sort of a team effort (but also leaving it open to it just being one of them, if they prefer).

I’m stumped about how much to offer them, though! I’ve done a quick search online but got such a huge range of answers it didn’t help much. Factors to think about:

- I want to make it worth their while, but also don’t want to break the bank.

- It most likely will be both of them, so the amount each gets would be lower than if just one did all the work. I’m thinking to offer x amount per kid, but if they decide for only one to do it then that kid would get double x amount… does that sound reasonable?

- Some of the larger pots may not need water every day, but the small ones probably would on hot days (doesn’t take much for them to dry out), so they’d still need to come over anyway at least for those. If it’s a rainy day they wouldn’t need to come. Not sure how to take all this into account for how much I offer them.

Any suggestions?

ETA: Thanks for the responses so far. Another question for those talking about a price per day per girl... Do I wait until I get back to find out how many days they came over (in case there were any days it rained and they didn't need to come), or do I just pay all 7 days worth and don't bother asking exactly how many days for fear of sounding petty?

On the 2nd answer, pay for all days. You can have them take photos and send them to you when they pop over (which would mean sticking to the $70/week paradigm) b/c even if they don't water every day, they have to check. They might take photos anyway to prove they did it in case the plants don't thrive for some unknown reason. I know my cat sitter takes photos every day when he comes over, and it does give us relief.

And yes, pay when they get back...and think of a small tip/treat. I tend to tip my pet sitter one extra day's wages if we get all the photos...

 

[Pea-n-Me]

They were expected to feed her dinner at 5:30, breakfast around 6 am, and spend the night, plus let her out when they were here. I have 8 hanging baskets, plenty of potted plants, and 2 gardens. I kept in mind that when they committed, they gave up potential opportunities (lots have vacation homes here so these young adults get some nice invitations last minute). I’ve known these girls since kindergarten, they are 19. I saw some photos of my dog on some local hikes. I would never board her (she’s 11 and a nervous nelly) and doesn’t do well with other dogs so I can’t send her to someone’s home with a dog.

That’s a good amount of work. A lady I’m friends with who is a pet sitter would only take $20/day from me for two days coming twice a day just to feed and let out one dog. Was glad I brought her a nice gift from our trip, too.

 

[LuvOrlando]

I'd do $20 each a week to water plants so they always say yes when you ask, and will actually do it to get paid next time. If you don't pay well you run a risk of hearing no in the future, but if you pay well you have about 10 years of little helpers for random stuff I see people asking on Nextdoor all the time. Even if it's probably a bit high for the task IMO it's an investment in future help, I'd bring them candy or some other small token when I get back too again I see it as an investment in a partnership.

 

[mumto3girls]

I usually give the neighbor girl about $50 a week to water plants—I have large hanging baskets and barrels on my deck that only need watering a few times a week unless it is super hot with no rain. That said, it probably takes 30 minutes or so when they do need to be watered. I don’t check to see if she needed to water or not (not checking the forecast while I am gone to see how hot it was or how much rain we got). I will add a bit more if she feeds the fish, brings in packages or takes the trash bins to the curb, but I don’t usually ask her to do those things unless we are gone longer than a week. We have a pool and I usually tell them to feel free to use the pool while we are away as well. Same girl will take care of the dog on a weekend trip and I pay her about $20 per day to walk the dog 3x per day and feed her 1x per day plus water. On a longer trip the dog goes to my sister’s so isn’t home.

 

[cvjw]

I pay my neighbor $100 a week to water my plants, get my mail and feed my outdoor cat. We are going away for 10 days next month, and I am going to give her $200 to take care of the house. I am giving extra since she will need to water more since it is so hot. I usually also bring her back a souvenir from our trips. She loves Disney and we normally do Disney cruises, so she is easy to buy for.

I pay upfront. I would never ask how many days she came over and put her on the spot. I want to keep her watching my house when we are away!

 

[Carol_]

My gut reaction was $50 for the week and they split it how they want. Assuming "a week" is 7 days, that would be just over $7/day, guessing it would be about 30 minutes/day, so the equivalent of about $14/hour.

My gut reaction was in my neighborhood kids get $20/hr for babysitting, so $20/day. (Horrifying, I know… but if it keeps my little snowflake alive, I’ll pay it.) Anyway, my rate is much higher if you want me to watch your kids your plants your Bugatti or your Camry.
Sam’s reasoning seems much more logical.

 

[Deb]

I think $10 a day is fine. My neighbor pays my daughters $350 a week to water her plants, unfortunately this year none of my daughters are available and I don’t trust my sons (she loves her plants).

extra zero, I hope?

 

[anniemae]

I would give them $20 each when you return. I would also get them a small gift, some chocolates would be nice.

 

[Ms Bibbidi]

.

 

[starry_solo]

I think it all depends on where you are.

 

[Ms Bibbidi]

.

 

[TLSnell1981]

I would consider their travel time plus how long it takes to water the plants. Decide on an hourly wage, prorate it appropriately and pad it a bit.

 

[Ms Bibbidi]

.

 

[mjkacmom]

extra zero, I hope?

Nope! It started 10+ years ago when my oldest worked at a local garden center when she was 14 and agreed to water. When she was paid she tried to give some back, the woman refused and said she’d like to hire her the following year. Now my youngest is 19 and has been working at the same garden center since she was 14. It’s either do it and take the money or someone else would be hired. I’m guessing their interaction at the garden center also has something to do with the high pay.

 

[mjkacmom]

US employers do not pay for travel to the job and I would not pad it, but your other ideas have merit. Part of the idea of employing young people is so they can realize some realistic work experience. So, if it takes 15 minutes a day for about 8 trips (7 days plus 1 for orientation) at minimum wage rates of $15/hr, then $30 total for the whole job would be fine. Make the payment in $5 bills x 6 with the envelope addressed to both of them and leave it to their partnership as to how to divide it. Pay after the job is done. Offer a reference letter if they did an excellent job.

I pay by hour minimum. If it takes an hour you get paid for an hour, if it takes 15 I pay for an hour. I once had a young teen come to my house after school while my twins were sleeping to sit on my couch while I picked others up at school. It took about 20 minutes but I’m not paying her $5 a day to keep every afternoon free for me.

 

[jo-jo]

Nope! It started 10+ years ago when my oldest worked at a local garden center when she was 14 and agreed to water. When she was paid she tried to give some back, the woman refused and said she’d like to hire her the following year. Now my youngest is 19 and has been working at the same garden center since she was 14. It’s either do it and take the money or someone else would be hired. I’m guessing their interaction at the garden center also has something to do with the high pay.

How many plants are there? Are we talking a dozen on a porch or porch plants, indoor plants, and a dozen flower/veggies beds?