You may have experienced this. You posted a job on Care.com and the floodgates opened! Before long, your inbox had 30 responses and you didn't know where to start.

I want you to know that at Care.com we consider ourselves a work in progress. We are always working to improve the user experience. However, until it's perfect, I want to give you a list of tips to navigate all the responses to your job post – so it's not as overwhelming of an experience.  Plus, we like to hope that with so many great applicants applying for your job, it's no doubt you're having trouble limiting it to just one.

1. Send Immediate 'No Thank You' notes

Once you're browsing applicants, do a gut-reaction to all your candidates. Maybe one charges too much, has drastic misspellings in her summary, doesn't sound engaging, or didn't include a picture. If someone doesn't meet your needs, click the Say "No Thanks" button. The site will immediately send them a "No thank you" response and your inbox will be a lot smaller.

2. Categorize Others as a Maybe or a Favorite

The two heart icons will help you tag the remaining applicants as a Maybe (half-heart) or a Favorite (full-heart). Scroll through and look for the qualities that most interest you: experience, cost, location, engaging cover letter… whatever it is, do another gut-check and mark the ideal people as a Favorite and the people you want to know a little more about as a Maybe. The rest can get the Say "No Thanks" button too.

3. Email Your Favorites

Write an email that says something like, "Hi. I'm so glad you responded to my job post. I would love to talk to you about your experience and interest in babysitting/nannying. Can you send me your number and a good time to call you?" Note: You will have to be a Premium Member to respond to your applicants.

4. Start Arranging Phone Interviews and In-person Meetings

Use our list of questions to interview applicants over the phone. Then, invite the people you like to meet for coffee. If for some reason your Favorites are no longer available, move on to your Maybe List. (Get a list of phone interview questions >>)

5. Call References and Run a Background Check

A lot of people don't think twice about paying their nanny, housekeeper, dog walker or babysitter with cash. Some families don't think of themselves as employers. And some don't know where to start setting up a household payroll.

But here's the truth: you are legally required to handle the household employment tax process (a.k.a. "the nanny taxes") for anyone you pay more than $1800 a year – and it's not as daunting as it seems.

Care.com has recently merged with Breedlove & Associates, a household payroll and tax service that eliminates all the work and worry for families, officially making Care.com a one-stop-shop for household care.

Our first mission? To clear up some of the myths out there surrounding nanny taxes. Here are the most common I've heard – and the truth behind them.

1. Nanny Taxes Will Cost Too Much Money

With Flexible Spending accounts and Childcare Tax Breaks, your out-of-pocket spending might be a lot less than you think. I urge you to use the Nanny Tax Calculator and learn the true cost of meeting legal expectations.  Most families are pleasantly surprised. Your nanny might even take a small pay cut to start getting paid "on the books," but the benefits will help her qualify for a loan as well as ensure that she receives critical financial protections, such as retirement income and unemployment benefits.

2. I Don't Have Full-time Help so I Don't Need to Pay Taxes

Don't you wish this were true? Instead, the law states that you have employment tax responsibilities if you pay an employee more than $1800 in a calendar year. Housekeeper comes once a week? You likely owe some employer taxes. Have a part-time nanny? Legally, you're responsible for her too.

3. How My Nanny Files Her Taxes is Not My Business

Unfortunately, it is. Your nanny will have to name her employer and that will drag you into her tax forms. A lot of families think nannies can be classified as independent contractors or "freelancers" and pay their own taxes. They might even fill out a 1099 for them. But this actually costs the nanny more money – and is illegal. If this was your plan, consult with a household tax expert.

4. I Can Pay a Household Employee on My Company Payroll 

Small business owners might think that they can add the nanny, dog walker and house cleaner to their company payroll, but that's a mistake that can be very expensive and time-consuming.  The IRS says these employees work for you, not for your company.  The solution is to just keep personal and business payroll separate.

5. Your Accountant Can Handle the Household Taxes

Your accountant might be an expert on state and federal Nanny Taxes, but most are not.  Additionally, most general tax professionals are not set up to manage payroll and guide you on labor law issues.  We encourage you to discuss this with your accountant during the hiring process (waiting until tax time is too late).  If your accountant doesn't have expertise in the specialized area of the tax and legal world, look to Care.com and Breedlove & Associates to make the process stress-free and risk-free.

I hope this helps straighten out any confusion you've had around paying taxes for any of your household helpers. If you have specific questions, visit Breedlove & Associates online. We also have a whole tax and finance advice section on our site>>

So tell me, what has been your biggest question or stress about paying taxes for your nanny?

* The tax information contained in this article should not be used for any actual nanny relationship without the advice and guidance of a professional tax advisor who is familiar with all the relevant facts. The information contained herein is general in nature and is not intended as legal, tax or investment advice. Furthermore, the information contained herein may not be applicable to or suitable for your specific circumstances and may require consideration of other matters.

This is a really busy time for parents. The summer is winding down and back to school season is looming. You're trying to get all your memorable summer moments into the last few weeks while also buying school supplies and planning car pools, after-school activities and creating an after school care plan.

My son hasn't picked up a book all summer, so of course there's also that last-minute cramming, too!

These days are also really busy for Care.com. With so many new and returning members coming to find babysitters, nannies and part-time nannies to help make the school year flow as fluidly as possible, it occurred to me that it might help to learn some tricks to finding the perfect care match.  We've been around for almost 6 years now, and getting better with age. So here is what we have found are the most common mistakes made when finding a caregiver, especially if you only want to go through this process once!

Not making a detailed job post.

I often tell people that a job post might take a few days to draft. This is the chance to really explain the exact candidate you want. What his or her personality should be (neat-freaks only, please!), the interests and skills (must play soccer, be crafty and speak Spanish), the experience level, age, access to a car, etc. Take a day or more to write down what your ideal candidate would be like. Then include this description in your job post. This way, applicants with these traits should only apply.

I also suggest you share a little about your family. Maybe even upload a picture of yourself. Talk about your interests as a family (hiking, reading, singing), the ages of your children, what they like to do for fun, what skills and activities you're trying to encourage. What your challenges are. This way, the best applicants will respond directly to what you're aiming for. Is one child learning to read? One candidate might explain her teaching process in her response. The more you give, the more the sitters can connect with you in their response.

Using the wrong job title.

Often we like to think of our after-school childcare support as babysitters. It might be because they're only needed part-time, or because a nanny sounds like Mary Poppins. Who knows? But as I mentioned in a previous blog, sometimes using the term Part-time Nanny can get you more qualified job applicants. If you are looking for someone on a regular basis, with set hours you can always rely on, who can challenge, teach, tutor and plan fun activities with your children, try posting an ad for a part-time nanny instead of a babysitter.

Looking for the wrong qualities.

Sometimes applicants look great on paper. The resume is outstanding, the education is exactly what you want, the experience is perfect. But after you hire her, you realize she isn't organized. Or, she isn't silly with the kids. Or, she's a Type-A personality like yourself. And these things keep nagging at you. She just isn't the perfect fit. She isn't doing what you'd be doing if you were home with the kids. She isn't leaving the toy room pristine and teaching the kids to clean up after themselves.

Remember, if this person is going to be in place of you, you want him or her to share the same qualities – and doing similar things (if not cooler things!) while you're not there.

Not calling references.

Make sure you call past employers, whether your candidate worked for a family or at a business – and dig! Ask about strengths as well as weaknesses. Ask if the reference would hire her again. Ask her to explain their relationship. Look for details and examples of why the candidate is responsible, mature, quick on her feet, fun, a healthy cook… whatever is important to you.

And don't just call the references the candidate provides. Ask for a former coach, neighbor, boss from a job outside of the nanny industry. If your candidate can't provide more than 3 references, it's probably a bad sign.

Trying to be too flexible.

Sometimes when we are looking for an ideal person – and think we've found her – we'll try to fit our lives around her schedule. I've seen it before with parents who hire college students and suddenly they are trying to change their work schedule to fit around the nanny's classes. Don't get me wrong, I love college students as nannies, but don't rearrange your life around your nanny's schedule. Ask your college caregiver to commit to a predictable schedule, and if not, just keep looking. The right person will come along.

I'd love to hear from you as well. What are the tricks you've learned to hiring the right nanny or babysitter for your family? What have you learned the hard way?


See a full list of the most common mistakes made on Care.com >>