Daycare costs tend to drop when you don't have a job.
I also wonder if the recent layoffs have affected the market for childcare. I definitely know some tech folks who are at home with their kids now.
Perhaps that’s because we live in SV, where housing is expensive, but I’d again assert that “most” daycares do not cost more than the rent/mortgage payments of the families that go there.
Our base rate (in Menlo Park) was around $1,500/mo, but if you added extra hours (past 1 or 2p) then it was more. Presumably someone who is laid off and wants to hold their spot would stick to the minimum hours both for cost reasons and so they could spend more time with their baby/kid.
Out of curiosity, what do mortgages cost for families who attend these daycares?