[becky]

It not necessarily the case that 'good' agencies do not use photolistings...I know of a couple that use them for older and special needs children.

The issue is that many people feel that young children should not be placed on a photolisting, as they are often used as 'bait' to lure in a family to choosing an agency without doing their homework on the agency. It's very easy to fall in love with a photo of a beautiful infant and be willing to overlook negative feedback on the agency.

Also...many of the really good agencies have a waiting list of clients. Why is that? Because they have spent years building up their reputation in Guatemala and people who do their research know that they are getting a great agency, and a lot of people are willing to 'wait' in order to work with an agency who has spent years developing their program in Guatemala.

There are always going to be people who tell you their wonderful stories about how they chose their children off of a photolisting....and there certainly are many cases where it has led to a happy adoption for everyone involved. However, for every happy family, there are also MANY unhappy families, who ended up waiting long periods of time for their adoptions to complete, because they fell in love with a picture and didn't do their homework about the agency involved.

Bottom line....if you want to look at photolistings, do so, just do your research on every agency you are considering...and do it well.