[bellamae]

My DH and I are just starting the adoption process, and we can't seem to get an answer from any agencies or anything on how much this is going to cost. I know everything's an estimate, but we're trying to budget now so that we have the money we need. Can anyone give a good estimate of cost?

The only agency that has given us a number says that they charge $23k for all domestic adoptions. Is that normal, or does that seem high?

Thanks!

[tobeafamily]

High. Most domestic parental placment situations, except in the highest cost states, run between $8,000 - $15,000 including all fees and adoption expenses. Generally this is accrued expense too - meaning it doesn't happen all at once.

DH and I saved $15K before starting to talk to agencies. We ended up with about $13K in the bank and $14K in expenses spread out over a year and a half. We got so good at saving we were able to 'cash flow' our adoption expenses, which came more in bits and pieces than large chunks.

My advice - talk to several agencies and compare.

HTH JMHO

Regina

[cdp0825tjc]

I think it must depend on where you live. My husband and I just started researching in IL. Every agency, attorney, etc. that we have gotten information from all say around $25K. Of course, the money is spread out differently and due at different points, but the "amazing" part to me is that it always comes out at the same total for domestic.

[Kimmisue]

It varies on whether you use an attorney or an agency. Our first adoption cost total around 18K. This time around we are expecting it to be closer to 15K. That is for domestic caucasian infant in Indiana.


Good luck!
Kim

[Linny]

Our experiences have been closer to the figures that Regina has written of. I've heard of costs running in the 6-8k range....but that's not as common anymore.
Our last two adoptions have been AA infants...and this is what I'm basing our experiences on.
Truly, the fees vary by state, agency and attorney. Don't be discouraged if the fees seem really high if you've only spoken to a few agencies, attorneys or facilitators. Do consider too, that some routes require much more risk, and therefore, you may end up spending much more $$ than you wanted. If money is tight, make sure you deal with an entity that doesn't require a bunch of money 'at match'...or no money until the baby is in your arms and you are free to adopt.

Sincerely,

Linny

[rredhead]

Fees vary greatly. Our flat out costs have been $18K, but that doesn't include travel (we're in CA, mom is having baby in KS). $23K sounds high, but, if they actually do everything for you, it might be worth it.

Good luck and God bless!
-Robyn

[Nevada Jen]

The costs must really vary. Our agency fee alone was 15K and that did not include various other charges (including $4500 for homestudy) that added up to a minimum of 21K. Really, they should be able to give you an estimated fee break down even if it is a very wide range. We were told by our agency 20K to 27K, depending on birthmother expenses.

Jen

[sneezyone]

The fees do vary quite a bit. Like Regina, we were able to cash-flow nearly all of our expenses. Only the agency fee of $6000 had to be paid all at once and that much we had saved. Everything else was paid in chunks - $400 here... $400 there. We even got lucky with our last-minute airfare. It was only $450! Our total cost was between $13-$14K and that was for a domestic infant placement. We also did some serious comparison shopping, tho. Our agency (out of state) did not require us to use them for the homestudy or post-placement report so we were able to have a private, licensed SW do them (same worker for both) for about half what the big agencies wanted to charge.

[flowergoddess]

omg....our domestic adoption (including travel and homestudy) was about 28k, which is why we can't adopt again right now. Was the lower ranges through an agency or finding the pbmom yourself or what? I'm in shock. Of course, i wouldn't trade our experience for anything in the world, but if i knew it was less expensive that what i paid the first time, maybe we'll get to #2 much sooner.

[AwaitingBeloved]

Ours is going to be close to $35K, through a licensed non-profit agency. This number includes travel expenses/lodging/phone bills/birthparent expenses, EVERYthing. I know a few couples who had great luck with them, and I'm very happy with them, but man, it is so expensive. How do you find these more economical methods?

This number was actually one of the lower ones that we were quoted when we started last February. Wish I had thought to come on here and ask around.... We've all but finished paying this fee, via a loan, and still, no baby. The only fee not paid yet is the finalization and whatever our travel expenses will be, and birthparent expenses. If those are low, it could end up coming out around the $25K... I feel sick to my stomach now, like we just "threw" the extra 10K away. Somebody, please tell me we're not getting bamboozled...

[quiescentfury]

My Dh and I are using an adoption agency. We are looking to adopt an African American or biracial child. Our total estimated fees will be under 15K and could be as low as 12K. This is including our homestudy fees also.

[sneezyone]

Honestly - I was really wary of places that wanted to charge us a "flat fee" for everything. Agencies that said, "We'll only accept your homestudy if we prepare it (at a cost of $1800-$3000) or we'll accept it from another agency but only if you pay an update fee of $750-1500" were out right off the bat. Same thing with travel expenses. Why would I pay a flat fee for travel expenses if I can hop a flight to pbmom's homestate for 25-50% of what the agency wants to charge (hello priceline!)? I had no problem paying a flat fee for pbmom expenses, agency marketing fees, etc. But not for the other stuff.

For example, the content of a homestudy is usually statute driven - that is, there are state regulations that tell social workers exactly what the homestudy must include/cover. In fact, agencies sometimes subcontract with private, licensed social workers to do the homestudy (then charge you more than they pay the SW). In my mind, by going directly to the SW (who'd done NUMEROUS homestudies for other aparents) I was just eliminating the middle person.

Some folks like the idea of having an agency do all the work for them (a specialist) which is great, but you often pay more for that added convenience and that's not something I was willing to do. Think of it like building a new home. Option A: You can buy the land yourself, act as your own general contractor, solicit bids, hire all the subs, get permits, monitor the building process to make sure all is up to snuff, etc. Or Option B, you can go to a builder who will do it all (including providing the lot and the customizeable home plan) for one flat fee and probably provide you with some sort of warranty too.

I was OK going with Option A for our adoption, some folks are not. It did require more work on my part, but not by much (since I would have obsessed over everything anyway).

I know there are full-service agencies that charge less too - I just couldn't find one in my area that didn't want us to provide 2-3 years of proof that we were regular, tithing Christians! DH is also in the military so our income isn't huge and we'd have had to move before completing the process for some of the lower-fee agencies I contacted.

*shug* Different strokes for different folks...

[LisaCA]

the wide range of fees are due to a number of reasons including state/region, type of adoption, the agency (some have outrageous fees), pbparent support, and race of the infant.

there are many ways to keep costs down, including just shopping around for those agencies and lawyers who are less expensive, and stating your maximum cost to the agency/atty beforehand. then they won't show your profile to pbparents who need significant financial support for example. Or you can just refuse to travel out of state (about $2500 of our costs were due to hotel, car, expenses assoc with travel), or adopt in a state where you can stay with family or friends for example.

[tobeafamily]

Originally Posted by AwaitingBeloved

Ours is going to be close to $35K, through a licensed non-profit agency. This number includes travel expenses/lodging/phone bills/birthparent expenses, EVERYthing. I know a few couples who had great luck with them, and I'm very happy with them, but man, it is so expensive. How do you find these more economical methods?

This number was actually one of the lower ones that we were quoted when we started last February. Wish I had thought to come on here and ask around.... We've all but finished paying this fee, via a loan, and still, no baby. The only fee not paid yet is the finalization and whatever our travel expenses will be, and birthparent expenses. If those are low, it could end up coming out around the $25K... I feel sick to my stomach now, like we just "threw" the extra 10K away. Somebody, please tell me we're not getting bamboozled...

I think when you get into these 'fixed fee' situations there are advantages and disadvantages.

Principal advantage is that you have a set cost.

Disadvantage is that there likely is some 'margin' built into it and that you pay for services you may not use.

For example: Not every expectant parent wants or needs assistance with expenses. Not every state allows them to be paid or strictly caps them. So you're paying in advance for something that may not be needed. Same with travel - you may not even need this. Not every paparent flies across the country to their child, many are born right in the same city or town or somewhere you can stay with friends or family.

We did use an agency whose philosophy is to keep their fees low so people don't have to take a second mortgage to become parents. We did some work, they did some work. They connect expectant and adoptive parents, and they also teach paparents how to search on their own. Their 'soup to nuts homestudy to finalization' fee was $4K. We paid separately for our travel/hotels/food($2-3K), attorney fees ($6K), etc. We could control this - choosing to connect only with a local placment or traveling only so far or to places where family were - as we wished. The downside was that we did not know how much our total outlay was until we finished, which can be scary! Also, yes, we did our own 'work' but like some others WANTED to. Couldn't stand just waiting for the phone to ring.

HTH, JMHO

Regina

[AwaitingBeloved]

Thanks, Regina, You are right. It's not that I don't want to do the work, I didn't know how when we started, and was afraid that I'd make a mess of things. Unfortunately, I didn't find this site until recently, but see it's a great resource for people. Maybe next time around, I'll be wiser. :-)