Can anyone give me some advise on adoption? I don't have thousands of $ to pay an adoption agency.?

Question

My husband and I want to adopt, but when we researched adoption agencies, we were blown away at how expensive it is to adopt. Any advice on a practical way for normal everyday couple to adopt?

Answer 1

Tiffany,
My heart goes out to you. I've been there and fully understand the situation. The good news is that after the adoption, you are entitled to a tax credit through the IRS on your income taxes. You may also be entitled to some county funds that are available for adoption expenses after the adoption takes place.

Another option for you is to contact your local Dept of Human Services, Children & Youth Program. The fees for foster/adopt programs are typically less than going through an agency.

Good luck to you.

Answer 2

No matter what specifics you decide upon, adoption is expensive. Public domestic adoptions may not be as expensive as an international adoption, but the cost still averages between $10,000 and $15,000. Some insurance will cover expenses, though few will cover all the costs and many will cover none, so it’s important that you know ahead of time where that money is going to come from. Savings, credit cards, loans—however you intend to pay, make sure that those funds are accessible when you need them.

Answer 3

Adopt through your local county. The children will come from foster care. They probably had difficult childhoods. Some will be over 3 years old. BUT...You can sometimes get children under 3, AND the county will pay for all the adoption costs plus living expenses for the child(ren) up to age 18, including health care! (through a federal law called AAP, Aid to Adoptive Placement). Check it out! It usually takes about 9 months to go through the entire process, sometimes a little shorter.

Answer 4

You might want to look into something other than an agency. Have you thought about foster to adopt situations? There are many children out there in the foster care system who would love to have you as parents and its alot cheaper and easier to adopt that way. You can also go through non-profit places that help match birthmothers with adoptive couples. The one I went through was Link adoptions. They are great and have helped so many couples all over the U.S. Good luck to you,

Answer 5

Is your heart set on adopting an infant, or are you open to an older child? Adopting a child out of foster care is MUCH less expensive, and typically doesn't take as long. http://www.fosterparenting.com/foster-care/foster-adoption.html

If you really want an infant, you can cut some of the cost by connecting with a birthmother yourself, rather than having the agency charge you for making the match. http://www.parentprofiles.com/ might help.

There is no cheap way to do an international adoption, so stay domestic.
Whatever ends up happening, I wish you and your family the best!
<3 Kelsey

Answer 6

If you can afford a private agency or attorney, then go to one.

If you cannot, then:

Network through your church, doctor, or put newspaper ads in various papers. But this adoption may also involve:
Paying for the birthmother's/baby's doctors and hospital, housing, groceries, clothing, etc., as well as all the legal work for the birthfather and birthmother. All this can total 5K to 20K. And if she decides to parent, unless you are with an agency, you are out that money. Period.

Then of course, you can adopt through the county, state, or an agency who contracts through them. These total fees may be 3K to ??? Some work on a sliding scale.

Then after you adopt, you have to finalize the adoption, which can cost 1K-3K. And, of course, before you adopt, you have to have an adoption homestudy -- those fees can be $500 - 1200.

Good luck to you!!!

Answer 7

One thing I want to tell you not to do is...use what is called an adoption facilitator. My husband and I are unable to have children, and adoption was our answer! We were very excited about it until we did our research and realized how much money it was going to cost. So we signed up with an adoption facilitator who required money up front (we had no idea what we were getting into). Long story short, not only did they take $5000 from us, they also put us on an emotional rollercoater matching us with over 22 babies in less than a year. After looking into it, they had done this to many different families over the years, but they lead you to believe that you will have a baby through them...when in all actuallity they only promise to "show your case file" for the time frame of your cantract through them. When it is all said and done, the money you pay in adoption is worth it all because signing on with a true agency allows you to actually adopt a child. I would suggest Catholic Social Services (they base their rate by your income) or Family To Family Adoptions Inc. in Texas. ( fam2fam.org ) We used Family to Family, they gave us a beautiful baby girl in a very short amount of time. The check we wrote to them was around $16,000 or $17,000. We plan to use them again when our little girl gets a little older.

If you do not use either one of these agencies here are a few tips.
~Never pay money up front, with exception to an application fee (which should be no more than $500!)
~Ask for referances if not a huge agency....hear from the ones who know...previous adoptive families.
~Think about adopting older or minority children (There is a greater need....we wanted a baby & waited almost 4 years)
~Look into agencies with grants or in house funding. (Family to Family now has a payment plan...there is also a Christian group called the ABBA fund out of North Carolina who if you are selected give no interest loans to adoptive families.
~Think about maybe becoming foster parents...we have been liscensed and it looks like we will be able to adopt a 6 month old baby boy who has been with us since birth.

I know that it is a difficult situation, but when you are serious about adoption, it is an emotional highway. It is best to put a little more money into it then be taken by someone who is not for real. I pray for families starting the adoption journey every night because I know how difficult it is....but there is nothing better than having the judge pound is gavel and say "petition for adoption GRANTED!"

ps~something else to look into is different states policies on adoption. I would NEVER adopt a child from California, Michigan, Illinois, or Florida. The first three because of the length of time the birthmother has to change her mind, and Florida because it seems adoptions run much higher in this state.

Good Luck!

Answer 8

my family is currently in the process of adopting my baby sister. We did foster care for a few years before my parents decided they wanted to adopt a baby girl. we chose to do foster adopt, which is where a child is placed with you, like regular foster care, but will have the chance to adopt, unlike regular foster care, which is only temporary. Foster adopt has its risk however, such as the parent/family member of the child could decide they want the child. Its kind of confusing and I'm not explaining it very well. My advice would be to look it up online. The main reason my parents chose foster adopt is because its a couple thousand dollars cheaper than regular adoption. Plus you get paid for caring for the child until they are legally yours.

Good luck!

Answer 9

Have you considered adopting from the foster system? If you're looking for a healthy, white infant, the wait will be long...however if you're open to different races, mixed races, older kids, special needs kids and/or sibling groups, the wait will be much shorter.

You can also do foster to adopt if you want.

Foster system adoptions are inexpensive or free (depending on where you live). Check out your state's child welfare agency and see what is required and the steps involved.

SG

Answer 10

There are many childern in forster care that will never be going home. If you are open to adopting any age child this may be an avenue that you may want to explore. From experience it is less expensive and at one point the state we worked with actually picked up some of the cost. Check with your local dhs office. Good luck