Recently, my husband and I have decided to begin the process. We've been wanting to do this for awhile now, but were never "settled" enough to do it. Now that we've purchased a home and "laid down roots," we feel that we're more than ready.
We are currently pursuing a domestic adoption, which means we are adopting within the US. We are looking for an infant this time and are happy to have a baby of any race or gender.
Today we attended an adoption/foster care open house at Children's Home Society. They are a licensed agency, but have informed us that their infant placement rate is low. They placed two last year and none this year. However, they will do the homestudy for us and the post-placement once our baby is home. Their fee is $3,000. That is our first hurdle.
Next, we begin the process of agency selection. We've been warned against facilitators. Apparently there are agency-like programs that will advertise for you and find your child, but you still have to pay adoption agency fees on top of their fees. These are illegal in several states. We're considering:
--American Adoptions
--Independent Adoption Center
--The Gladney Center for Adoption
It seems as though agency fees run approximately $17,000-$40,000 for domestic infant adoptions.
With that much money on the line, we want to choose an agency that will be the best fit for us. It's very daunting to visit so many websites and not know which one is the best.
If you have been through this process, what agency did you use with great success? If you know of a reputable agency, please let us know.
Stay tuned... the journey has just begun and there will be much fun ahead! :)
2 comments:
Hi Stephanie,
You might want to take a look at the agency feedback thread on the forums at adoption.com:
http://forums.adoption.com/general-adoptive-parent-support/152762-agency-feedback-pm-list.html
Good luck!
Thanks! I will do that!
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