Question:
If my daughter charges $12 an hour for babysitting, there’s a family who is not is a good financial status and my daughter charges them $6 an hour. Does she have to take ma’aser from the $6 since she is already deducting 50% to help the family in need?
Thank you
Answer:
A person is allowed to give money to a poor person by giving them a discount and it is considered tzedakah and they can take it off their calculation for giving ma’aser?
The way it should be done is as follows. He should consider the entire regular price as earnings, and then deduct the amount that he gave a discount as tzedakah money. For example, your daughter did 10 hours of babysitting and the price should be $120. Therefore she should consider it as if she made $120 and add that amount to her “earnings”. Now she can deduct $60 from the overall amount that she has to give for the year. (Or in other words she can only consider 90% of the $60, from her earnings because the other 10% she would have anyways have to give to tzedakah.)
Sources:
Maharil Diskin 54 Mincha Yitzchok 5-34 (5), Kol Hat rah Boruch Tzedakah 11-102 in the name of R’ Nissin Karelitz shlit”a, See also Halachos from R’ S. Z. Auerbach in the back of the sefer – 9.
