[SezzySue]

Hi, I am new here. I have been thinking about adoption for a little while now. I am not able to do it any time soon, but I want to prepare for the process. I am curious what the cost of an adoption is. I know it depends on where the child is from and the age, which is fine. I wanted to know the range of cost to expect.
Also what all do they look for when choosing a parent? Do I have to have a lot of money, or own a house? I am in the military so we have an apartment right now. We are working for a house and a family. Do you know if they discourage military because they move more often? I am sorry for the randomness but I am just looking for information. God Bless.

Sarah

[LisaCA]

Originally Posted by SezzySue

Hi, I am new here. I have been thinking about adoption for a little while now. I am not able to do it any time soon, but I want to prepare for the process. I am curious what the cost of an adoption is. I know it depends on where the child is from and the age, which is fine. I wanted to know the range of cost to expect.
Also what all do they look for when choosing a parent? Do I have to have a lot of money, or own a house? I am in the military so we have an apartment right now. We are working for a house and a family. Do you know if they discourage military because they move more often? I am sorry for the randomness but I am just looking for information. God Bless.

Sarah

hi,

costs: we were told the range for most newborn adoptions (and this includes everything, travel, living expenses, etc) is $15,000-$25000. If you adopt from the state, your expenses will be much, much lower (like several hundred dollars) and the children are slightly older 6 months on up. Of course for state adoptions, most require you to be certified as a foster parent and this takes time, often lots of time. Also adopting children of color is less costly for many awful reasons.

what do they look for in a parent? that depends. Most are looking for you to be financially stable (this doesn't mean rich, just living within your means and able to afford a child), some require two parents, others not, some require you to be married for at least a year if you are married. depending on your state, you can be gay/lesbian to foster adopt or you can do a private adoption. you should have a place in your home for the child (this doesn't mean a mansion, just a room, and if you have children they can share). Many folks in the military adopt, in fact there's a military adoption board here and they can answer your specific adoption questions. I'd suggest you get a book about the basics of adoption and it should have a chapter about who can adopt, etc.

we saved for a few years before adopting and it was the best thing we could have done. It kept our debt down and allowed us to focus on the adoption experience. oh and I should add there is an adoption tax credit of over $10000 which you can access later after finalization (you may have to wait two or so years after placement to file). this credit is dependent on your adoption costs and your income when you file your taxes (you have to make less than roughly $200000, easy enough if you're in the military -I know, i was a navy brat ).

good luck!

[ALI143]

While you wait... you could go through the foster/adopt training classes and do respite care for the age of child your hoping to adopt. I take 0-3 year olds. They only stay a day-2 weeks so if you have to move a lot it won't disrupt a placement, it's good practice and the payment is usually $20-30 a day and can go right into your adoption fund. Best of Luck. (Or you can think about a special needs child or sibling group 0-16 years old*doesn't have to be as scary as it sounds* and that is free, infact some expenses are even covered.)

[missyB77]

There is some resources listed here that are very good.

It is good to find out as much as you can before you begin the process. I think we studied this process for 2 years before we started. I wanted to know all I could.

Good luck.

[quiescentfury]

Have you looked into the military providing financial assistance for your adoption. I am not in the military, but quite a few agencies say they provide some assistance.

Good Luck,
Maureen

[sneezyone]

But there are other resources. I'd check out those listed by others here and also visit the military adoption boards.

My DH is in the Navy and we had absolutely no problems getting "approved" etc. The only thing you should keep in mind/plan for is a possible move. You don't want to start the process and then have to stop half-way or re-do your homestudy b/c you moved. Blech!

Remember - the military has a lot to offer children/families! Low-cost childcare, access to well-equipped recreation facilities and family support centers (for counseling, etc.), ethnically diverse neighborhoods, overseas travel opportunities. Sure, there are drawbacks, but don't sell yourself short!

[Heather Jeane]

We are a military family ourselves, wanting to adopt my cousin's son. First stop? The family support center. The law offices weren't much help and only gave me a link to a referal center for Florida lawyers.

The family support center was able to give me a link to the adoption support group here as well as the coordinator's number and last night I was able to attend a meeting. They had so much information and it was very encouraging. Most of the families were working with adoption agencies and not just a family adoption like mine. I kept staring at the beautiful baby boy of the lady across from me. His adoption will be finalized in a month I believe.

What really impressed me though is that the family support person told me that if I ran into dead ends to come back because there are resources and we can find them. I was so relieved I almost cried.

Military CAN adopt.