First off, I can't be too optimistic about the availability of adoption grants. And while some banks do offer adoption loans, you will have to decide whether they are a better deal than home equity loans, lines of credit, and other such things. A good place to find out about these things is the website of the National Adoption Information Clearinghouse, which has a website at
www.calib.com/naic/
But do remember the following:
1. All of the costs of an adoption are not paid at once. With international adoption, some fees will be due almost a year after the first are paid. So you do have some time to save.
2. While it won't help with getting access to money before the adoption, you should know that there is a $10,000 tax credit that is available once you finalize your adoption. Basically, as long as you incur more than $10,000 in legitimate adoption expenses (which can include the overseas travel and so on), you can reduce your total federal income tax liability in a given year by $10,000. If you don't have a tax liability of $10,000 in that year, you can use part of it then and the remainder over the next few years. See the IRS publication about the adoption tax credit for details, or consult your tax advisor.
3. Some employers pay adoption benefits. Check to see if yours does. And if the company doesn't currently offer benefits, see if you can start a campaign to encourage it to do so. If your company pays benefits under a formal adoption benefit plan, you can exclude the money you are given from taxable income up to $10,000 or the amount of your qualifying adoption expenses.
4. Most people can come up with creative ways to save money. As an example, some families may decide not to rent videos for a year and to put the money that they would normally spend into a separate adoption savings account. Others may trade in their gas-guzzling big car for a more fuel-efficient model. Even if you don't save more than a few hundred dollars with a particular technique, the money can pay for some important adoption fees, such as the INS I-600A fee.
5. While most people hate to "beg" for money, some people have found that their parents or other relatives are eager to see them have a child and are willing to give or loan them money. Other people have undertaken fundraising activities through their house of worship, taken second jobs, set up home based businesses selling adoption-related products and services, and so on.
6. If you feel that you can parent an older child or a child with a disability, be aware that many international adoption agencies will reduce their fees substantially in such adoptions. Also, such children are available domestically, through states, and sometimes the children even come with subsidies to cover some of the costs of their medical care.
I hope this is helpful.