There has been a lot of interest in my post on Adoption Costs and Available Situations lately, and I'd like to clarify a couple of things.
First, I am an adoption consultant. My job is to help couples who are adopting to walk through the adoption process offering my assistance every step of the way. I serve as their advocate helping them adopt as quickly and as affordably as possible. I work to help them line up an agency to complete their home study and answer questions as they go through the home study process, I help to educated them about grants and loans, I prepare a profile about their family that they can send to agencies, and I make them aware of adoption situations in agencies as we learn about them. I walk with couples from start to finish in their adoption journey.
Secondly, I do not set prices for these situations. I only report what is out there, and make couples aware of adoption situations that are available. There are a lot of changes I would like to see in the adoption world. I am no way advocating the high cost of adoption. I am daily looking for agencies that are low cost agencies so that the couples I am working with do not have to pay nearly as much as some agencies require.
Please look closely at the cost for adoption, many of those cost are good and legitimate. Counseling for the birthmom, caring for the birthmom, medical costs for the baby and the birthmom, etc. Legal fees are unavoidable of course. And most home study costs are really realistic based on the service they are providing.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Adoption Costs
I've had a lot of people ask lately about why adoption is so expensive and why the prices vary so much. Here's some basic information on the costs of adoption.
Adoption costs vary on each individual situation, but in most cases there are general ranges that agencies adoption fees fall within. We believe that every child, regardless of ethnicity, is a gift from God.
Agencies have to lower fees on certain children because they are harder to place based on their ethnic background. Typically, couples that are adopting in the US are primarily Caucasian and they request Caucasian children. There are twice as many Caucasian couples trying to adopt as any other ethnicity. Therefore the demand is greater for Caucasian children. There is a great need for couples open to African American or Bi-Racial children. Again, we feel that every child is valuable and a precious gift from God.
Agency Fees- this is a big one and can vary so much depending on if the agency is large or small, profit or non-profit, along with other variable based on individual situations.
Typical agency fees include the following expenses:
• Application fee due upfront, prior to match
• Birth mother’s living expenses (rent, utilities, basic toiletries, maternity clothes, travel expenses, groceries, and basic linens)
• Social service fees (birth mother’s counseling, transporting the birth mother, etc.)
• Birth mother’s medical expenses (this is not required in cases where the birth mother is covered by Medicaid)
• The baby’s medical expenses (consult your health insurance company- many plans cover adopted children from birth) *make sure to acquire your temporary custody order from the agency
• Legal fees
• Administration and advertising fees
• Interstate compact fees
• Finalization fees (in most cases- check with your agency to find out if finalization is included in the agency fee.)
You will receive a written estimate of fees from your agency at time of contract and a complete fee discloser at finalization.
Additional fees to be considered include:
• Travel expenses
You should plan on an approximate stay, in the state, for 7-10 days for the Interstate Compact paperwork to be approved. This will allow you to cross state lines to travel home. The approximate stay may be longer if the child is born over a weekend.
• Home Study fees and post placement fees
Check with your home study agency for a schedule of fees due before and after placement. In most cases, you will need between 1-6 or more post placement visits which are not likely included in your initial home study.
• Finalization (if not included in agency fee)
Make sure to check with the agency, in regards to finalization and post placement visits. You will need to know if they will finalize your adoption, and how many post placement visits are required. If the agency does not finalize for you, you will need to finalize in your home state. Attorney fees for finalization can range from $750 - $3,000.
I encourage anyone who has a heart for adoption to not be put off by the costs, but to really seek the Lord for provision and to ask Him to make a way. His heart is for adoption! There are many grants, loans, tax credits, and fund raising opportunities out there to help off set the cost for you.
If your interested in reading more about how God provided for our adoption CLICK HERE.
Adoption costs vary on each individual situation, but in most cases there are general ranges that agencies adoption fees fall within. We believe that every child, regardless of ethnicity, is a gift from God.
Agencies have to lower fees on certain children because they are harder to place based on their ethnic background. Typically, couples that are adopting in the US are primarily Caucasian and they request Caucasian children. There are twice as many Caucasian couples trying to adopt as any other ethnicity. Therefore the demand is greater for Caucasian children. There is a great need for couples open to African American or Bi-Racial children. Again, we feel that every child is valuable and a precious gift from God.
Agency Fees- this is a big one and can vary so much depending on if the agency is large or small, profit or non-profit, along with other variable based on individual situations.
Typical agency fees include the following expenses:
• Application fee due upfront, prior to match
• Birth mother’s living expenses (rent, utilities, basic toiletries, maternity clothes, travel expenses, groceries, and basic linens)
• Social service fees (birth mother’s counseling, transporting the birth mother, etc.)
• Birth mother’s medical expenses (this is not required in cases where the birth mother is covered by Medicaid)
• The baby’s medical expenses (consult your health insurance company- many plans cover adopted children from birth) *make sure to acquire your temporary custody order from the agency
• Legal fees
• Administration and advertising fees
• Interstate compact fees
• Finalization fees (in most cases- check with your agency to find out if finalization is included in the agency fee.)
You will receive a written estimate of fees from your agency at time of contract and a complete fee discloser at finalization.
Additional fees to be considered include:
• Travel expenses
You should plan on an approximate stay, in the state, for 7-10 days for the Interstate Compact paperwork to be approved. This will allow you to cross state lines to travel home. The approximate stay may be longer if the child is born over a weekend.
• Home Study fees and post placement fees
Check with your home study agency for a schedule of fees due before and after placement. In most cases, you will need between 1-6 or more post placement visits which are not likely included in your initial home study.
• Finalization (if not included in agency fee)
Make sure to check with the agency, in regards to finalization and post placement visits. You will need to know if they will finalize your adoption, and how many post placement visits are required. If the agency does not finalize for you, you will need to finalize in your home state. Attorney fees for finalization can range from $750 - $3,000.
I encourage anyone who has a heart for adoption to not be put off by the costs, but to really seek the Lord for provision and to ask Him to make a way. His heart is for adoption! There are many grants, loans, tax credits, and fund raising opportunities out there to help off set the cost for you.
If your interested in reading more about how God provided for our adoption CLICK HERE.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Additional New Situations with Our Agencies
Caucasian: Girl, Will be born in VA, State to govern adoption will be FL, Due date June, $35-37K, BM social/medical background reported to be clean
African-American: Sex Unknown, Will be born in MO, state to govern adoption will be MO, Due date is May, Agency fees will be around $7,500+$2K in assistance to mother+legal fees, BM social/medical background reported to be clean
Native American: Sex Unknown, Will give birth in WY, state to govern adoption will be WY, Due Date July, Agency fee around $12K+$3K in living+legal fees, BM social/medical background reported to be clean
Caucasian: Sex Unknown, will be born in FL, state to govern adoption will be FL, Due April 7, Agency fee $20K + $8K in assistance to mother + legal fees, BM social/medical background reported to be clean
African-American: Sex Unknown, Will be born in MO, state to govern adoption will be MO, Due date is May, Agency fees will be around $7,500+$2K in assistance to mother+legal fees, BM social/medical background reported to be clean
Native American: Sex Unknown, Will give birth in WY, state to govern adoption will be WY, Due Date July, Agency fee around $12K+$3K in living+legal fees, BM social/medical background reported to be clean
Caucasian: Sex Unknown, will be born in FL, state to govern adoption will be FL, Due April 7, Agency fee $20K + $8K in assistance to mother + legal fees, BM social/medical background reported to be clean
Friday, March 7, 2008
ONE YEAR AGO!
Just one year ago our beautiful baby girl was born!
To hear our adoption story visit my HOME blog and click on the adoption link in the side bar under blog topics.
To hear our adoption story visit my HOME blog and click on the adoption link in the side bar under blog topics.
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