The night is the hardest part. We keep watch so you can sleep.
Nightwatch Care matches Bay Area families with overnight caregivers vetted the slow way — background check, references called, interviewed in person. Night nannies who tend your newborn through every feeding, and overnight companions who stay with your parent through sundowning, wandering, and 2 a.m. wake-ups.
Overnight help for the two hardest transitions in family life
A brand-new baby, and a parent who can no longer be alone at night. Different needs, same problem: somebody trustworthy has to be awake. That's the whole business.
Night Nannies for Newborns
For new parents in the first weeks & months
Your night nanny arrives in the evening and takes the night shift — feedings, burping, diaper changes, soothing back to sleep — so you get real, unbroken rest and wake up to a rested baby and a written log of the night.
- All overnight feedings — bottle, or baby brought to you for nursing
- Safe-sleep practices, swaddling, and settling routines
- Gentle sleep shaping as baby grows (not sleep training by force)
- Bottles washed, nursery tidied, feeding log by morning
- Experience with twins, preemies, and reflux on request
Overnight Senior Support
For families caring for an aging parent — including dementia
An awake overnight companion in your parent's home: there for sundowning and confusion, bathroom trips that risk a fall, wandering, and the anxiety that peaks at 3 a.m. You sleep knowing someone calm is already there.
- Awake overnight presence — not a sleeper who hopes for the best
- Dementia-informed care: sundowning, redirection, reassurance
- Safe assistance with bathroom trips, transfers, and mobility
- Medication reminders and a written morning report for family
- Immediate call to you if anything changes overnight
From first call to first quiet night
You're the employer of record for your caregiver; we're the people who find, vet, and stand behind the match.
Tell us about your nights
Fill in the request form below — who needs care, where, which nights, and what keeps you up worrying. Two minutes.
Meet your matches
We send a short list of vetted caregivers whose experience fits — newborn specialists, dementia-experienced companions — with profiles and references up front.
Interview & trial night
You interview the caregiver yourself, then book a trial night before committing to a schedule. Chemistry matters at 2 a.m.
Sleep — we've got the watch
Agree the caregiver's rate directly with them. If a caregiver ever can't make a night, we work our roster for a vetted substitute.
Nobody sets foot in your home at night on a résumé alone
Placing a stranger alone overnight with a newborn or a parent with dementia is the whole ballgame. No caregiver takes a first night until they clear all six steps — no exceptions, no fast-tracking.
Identity verified
Government ID checked in person, and legal authorization to work in the U.S. confirmed before anything else happens.
Background check
A third-party background check covering criminal history and driving record, refreshed periodically while a caregiver is on the roster.
References called, not collected
At least three prior families or employers, spoken to directly by us — and available to you before you hire.
In-person interview
Scenario-based: an inconsolable baby at 3 a.m., a confused parent trying to leave the house. We listen for calm, judgment, and honesty about limits.
Real overnight experience
A minimum of two years of relevant paid experience — newborn nights or senior/dementia care — verified through those references.
Health & safety basics
Current CPR/first-aid certification for night nannies, up-to-date vaccinations, and non-smokers only.
One referral fee. No nightly markup, ever.
Traditional agencies charge thousands per placement or bill you a marked-up hourly rate forever. We charge once, when your caregiver starts — then the relationship is yours.
What things cost
| Nightwatch Care | Typical agency | |
|---|---|---|
| Referral fee | 10% of the placement’s total cost, one-time | 18–35% of annual pay |
| Typical Nightwatch fee | ≈ $1,000–$3,000, depending on engagement length | Often $6,000–$16,000+ |
| Caregiver's pay | Paid 100% to your caregiver | Agency keeps a markup |
| Night nanny market rate (Bay Area) | ≈ $60/hr, set by the caregiver | |
| Senior overnight market rate | $350–$450/night via agencies | |
Your referral fee is 10% of the total cost of the placement you book, quoted in writing before you interview anyone. A deposit of $250–$500 starts the search and is credited toward the fee; the balance is due when your caregiver starts. Under our Replacement Referral Commitment, if a placement ends within the first 90 days we’ll work to refer a substitute at no additional fee — and if we can’t refer a qualified substitute, your agreement provides for a refund of the referral fee.
Estimate your engagement
An estimate, not a quote — caregivers set their own rates, and your exact fee (10% of the placement’s total cost) is fixed in writing before you commit. Pay goes directly to your caregiver; the referral fee is the only money Nightwatch Care charges.
Now matching our first Bay Area families
Nightwatch Care is newly launched and deliberately small — every match is made by hand, every caregiver personally interviewed. Founding families get founding attention: direct access to us throughout your first month, and first call on substitute referrals when plans change.
Tell us about your nights
Fill in the form and use the button to draft your request as an email — review it, hit send in your mail app, and we'll reply with next steps and available caregivers. Caregivers: use the second tab to apply for the roster.
Asked by every family, answered straight
Is Nightwatch Care an agency? Who employs the caregiver?
Nightwatch Care is a referral agency — not the employer. We find, interview, and vet caregivers, then introduce them; your family engages and pays the caregiver directly, and your family may be the caregiver’s employer under tax and labor law. That distinction is why there’s no agency markup inflating your nightly cost — and why our referral fee is one-time. Nightwatch Care is operated by BLUE MOLE, LLC.
Why not just find someone on a Facebook group or a big platform?
You can — families do it every day, and it's how most overnight care is still arranged. What you're paying us for is the part that's hard to DIY at 2 a.m. stakes: an in-person interview, a real background check, three references actually called, and a roster we can pull a vetted substitute from when your caregiver gets sick. The list is easy. The trust is the product.
How fast can a caregiver start?
It depends on the roster and how specialized your need is. Straightforward night-nanny matches can move in days; dementia-experienced companions take longer to match well, and we'd rather tell you that than rush the wrong person into your parent's home. Send the request form and we'll give you an honest timeline in our first reply.
What if it doesn’t work out with our caregiver?
Interview first, trial night second — most mismatches surface there. If it still doesn’t work, our Replacement Referral Commitment applies: if a placement ends within the first 90 days, we’ll work to refer a substitute from the roster at no additional referral fee — and if we can’t refer a qualified substitute, your agreement provides for a refund of the referral fee. We can’t guarantee a caregiver’s attendance or performance — no honest service can — but you’ll never be left holding the fee for a match that didn’t happen. After a placement, you’re free to keep working with your caregiver indefinitely with nothing further owed to us.
Do night nannies sleep while the baby sleeps?
That depends on the arrangement you agree with your caregiver — some families book an awake-all-night nanny, others are fine with a caregiver who rests between feedings. We'll flag which candidates work which way, and it will be explicit in your agreement before the first night.
Can an overnight companion help with dementia behaviors?
Yes — non-medical dementia support is a core part of the senior roster: sundowning, exit-seeking, nighttime anxiety, and repeated wake-ups, handled with redirection and calm routine. Our caregivers don't provide medical or nursing care (no injections, wound care, or medication administration) — if your parent needs that level of care overnight, we'll say so honestly and point you toward licensed home-health options.
What areas do you serve?
The San Francisco Bay Area: San Francisco, the Peninsula, the East Bay, and the South Bay. If you're just outside, ask anyway — caregivers set their own travel ranges and some go further.
What does the caregiver get paid, and who handles taxes?
You and your caregiver agree the rate directly, and 100% of it goes to them. Because the caregiver works in your home, household-employment tax rules can apply to your family — we'll share plain-English pointers and the names of payroll services families commonly use, but we're not tax advisors.