如果家庭想要自己DIY互惠生的话，恭喜你，你确实可以省一笔钱。
作为一个从业十余年的互惠生中介，我也愿意跟你分享我的一点经验，希望能帮你避坑。
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1-绝不要提前汇款。
由于没有国内中介和海外中介把关，一般来华互惠生的机票、签证费用需要自行垫付，这也是国际惯例。（走机构会不一样。）
家庭和互惠生面试的第一步就要明确。
如果一个互惠生想要来中国体验，但是机票、签证的费用都没有的话，我会建议这个人选暂时也先别出国了。呆在自己国家更合适。
如果在面试后办理过程中，互惠生突然告知自己没钱了，这个时候我建议你拉黑这个人！骗子会利用你的沉默成本，甚至不停催促机票马上涨价了之类的说辞。
2-增强联系。
一般通过中介找互惠生的家庭和互惠生之间都是弱联系。
如果你是DIY的话，利用自己的语言优势，增强与互惠生的联系，甚至可以连她的父母都联系上，一般来说，这是观察人最好的方式。
3-相信直觉。
相信直觉，不要随便将就。
如果一瞬间你觉得不合适，放心，勉强匹配了到了家里只会更麻烦！
4-找互惠生是来陪孩子玩的。
以我十多年的经验，互惠生和孩子关系不好，一般都是家庭让互惠生扮演“家庭教师”的职责。
没有小朋友会想要一个老师在家一直黏着自己。
其次，家庭也不要过高要求互惠生的水平，我们觉得基本上“和小朋友玩的来”就是个好互惠生。
5-太优秀的人选没有！
有的家庭找互惠生，动辄要求大学在QS排名前十，成绩全优的人选。
但是以我十余年的经验，互惠生一般都是普通的孩子居多，能找到QS前100的人选都很难的。
对哦，如果他们那么优秀的话，你需要考虑几个问题：为什么他/她会做互惠生？为什么会选择你家？这不就是骗子吗？
6-做好送走的准备。
面试挑选一个互惠生，达成意向，才开始万里长征第一部，办理签证，机票等等。
没有一个年轻人愿意浪费时间跋山涉水，计划安排几个月的时间来到你家！
要相信大家都是抱着好的希望和目的的！但是总有不合适的时候，这个时候不妨直接沟通，我们建议对于DIY家庭，出一张机票钱让互惠生回家也是可取的。第三者视角，互惠生确实属于弱势方。作为理智大方的中国家庭，不欺少年穷，好聚好散。
相信有得必有失，如果所有好事你都占尽，那么考虑下自己失去了什么。
If a family wants to arrange an au pair on their own, congratulations! You can indeed save some money.
As an au pair agency operator with over ten years of experience, I’d like to share some of my insights with you, hoping to help you avoid potential pitfalls.
Never remit money in advance.
Since there are no domestic or overseas agencies to oversee the process, generally, the au pair coming to China needs to pay for their own air tickets and visa fees upfront, which is also an international practice. (It’s different when going through an agency.)
The first step of the interview between the family and the au pair should be made clear.
If an au pair wants to experience life in China but doesn’t have the money for air tickets and visas, I would suggest that this candidate might as well stay in their own country for the time being. It would be more appropriate for them to stay put.
If during the process after the interview, the au pair suddenly informs you that they have no money left, at this time, I suggest you block this person! Scammers will take advantage of your sunk costs and even keep urging you with excuses like air ticket prices are going to rise soon.
Strengthen communication.
Generally, the connection between families who find au pairs through agencies and the au pairs themselves is rather weak.
If you are doing it on your own, take advantage of your language skills to strengthen the connection with the au pair. You can even get in touch with their parents. Generally speaking, this is the best way to observe a person.
Trust your intuition.
Trust your intuition and don’t settle for just anything.
If you feel something is not right in an instant, don’t worry. Forcing a match and having them come to your home will only cause more trouble!
The au pair is here to play with the kids.
From my over ten years of experience, when the relationship between the au pair and the kids is not good, it’s usually because the family asks the au pair to take on the role of a “home tutor”.
No kid would want a teacher sticking around them all the time at home.
Secondly, families should not set overly high requirements for the au pair’s capabilities. We think that basically, an au pair who can “get along well with the kids” is a good one.
There are no “super excellent” candidates!
Some families looking for au pairs often demand candidates whose universities are ranked in the top ten of the QS rankings and have excellent academic records.
However, from my over ten years of experience, most au pairs are ordinary kids. It’s even difficult to find candidates from universities ranked in the top 100 of the QS rankings.
By the way, if they are that excellent, you need to consider a few questions: Why would he/she become an au pair? Why would they choose your home? Isn’t that a scammer?
Be prepared to send them back.
Interviewing and selecting an au pair and reaching an agreement is just the first step of a long journey, followed by handling visas, air tickets, etc.
No young person would be willing to waste time traveling long distances and planning for months to come to your home!
Believe that everyone comes with good hopes and intentions! But there will always be times when it doesn’t work out. At this time, it’s advisable to communicate directly. For DIY families, we suggest that paying for an air ticket to send the au pair back home is also a viable option. From a third-party perspective, the au pair is indeed the vulnerable party. As rational and generous Chinese families, we should not take advantage of the young and poor. Let’s part on good terms.
Believe that there is always a trade-off. If you have all the good things, then consider what you might have lost.
