It’s 10 pm. You have a load of laundry yet to start, the kitchen is a mess, dinner was an hour late tonight which meant the kids didn’t get to bed until late, and you completely forgot that you committed to baking cookies for the bake sale at school tomorrow. Sound familiar? It might just be time to hire a domestic worker to help you out. Whether you decide to hire a housekeeper, an in-home cook to prepare and freeze some weekly meals, a nanny, or another domestic worker to help with chores or yard work, finding the right one can be difficult. Where do you even start to find the right person to fit your lifestyle and family?

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Ask around. See if your friends and family use a housekeeper or nanny that they love. If you’re looking to have a housekeeper stop by once a week, multiple families often share a housekeeper, and this can be a great way to find someone you trust. If it’s a nanny you’re looking for, consider a nanny share or see if a friend’s nanny has a recommendation of someone who is trustworthy and great with kids.

Hire legally. It can be easy to want to pay under the table, but when it comes to the safety of your family, it’s necessary to be above board. Meeting legal obligations is absolutely necessary though, especially when the person may be working with your children on a daily basis. Additionally, take the time to properly look into what taxes you need to be paying or withholding from the domestic worker.

There are a few ways to hire someone to help around your house. Either hire a person directly or by using a hiring company. Going through a hiring agency helps when you need to look into the potential employee’s references and run a background check. If you go through a hiring agency, make sure that they also check to ensure the person has appropriate insurance for things like property damage. By hiring the person directly, whether it be as a legal contractor or employee, you will save money, but going through a hiring agency ensures that the company takes care of the details that you might otherwise overlook. They will save you time, but it is more expensive to go that route. If you do hire directly, don’t overlook things like background checks, and driving records, specifically if it’s a nanny you are hiring.

Consider a nanny cam. Even if you do feel comfortable with the person working in your home, whether it be a cook that prepares weekly meals for your family or a nanny who watches your child each day, you may want to consider installing a nanny cam. If you’re looking to use a hidden nanny cam, do so responsibly, and avoid installing it in any room where a reasonable amount of privacy is expected.

By researching a potential employee and hiring legally, you can be well on your way to having a clean house with dinner on the table right at six, even if you do still have to bake cookies for the bake sale tomorrow.