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I did say you didn't need an agency, but I was just telling you that so that you understood all your options. Personally, I'm signed up with an agency. I really don't mind paying them a bit to do the leg work for me--I also like the safety that I have with mine. I didn't pay anything upfront, besides a home study feed and won't need to pay anything until we bring the baby home. Some agencies will ask for a fee that is non refundable before they'll begin matching you--and a lot of people have had problems with that.
Some say that it's faster and cheaper to use a facilitator or a lawyer--so that's why I mentioned them. On the other hand, based on the information I've gotten from other adoptive parents, I think my agency will probably cost about the same and have a similar wait time as the aforementioned options.
Lots of agencies in states where there is a longer wait for termination of parental rights (TPR) suggest using cradle care. It does protect you from becoming even more emotionally tied to the baby during what could be a 30-day wait (I couldn't find Virginia's requirement there, but it does vary from state to state).
Why not just post a request here for recommendations in your area? This post is titled "Parent Age Requirement," but if you posted a message titled something like "Agency Recommendation for VA" you'd probably get a lot of good advice via PMs. Oh, and I talked to people in my community about adoption, found out who had done it and talked to them...that helped.
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