[adoptingmomma]

My husband and I are getting ready to jump into the adoption pool. There is a fair at our church at the end of February that we plan to attend and I'm sure many of our questions will be answered there, but I do have one that I am really confused about and hoping you can help with. I've heard about various types of adoptions and I would like to know the differences between them.
1. The one everyone is familiar with-private adoption. From what I understand, this is just straight up adoption, you get the baby, pay for the baby, finalize the baby, everything has already been signed....
From what I understand, this is the adoption that costs $15,000+
2. Foster-adopt: This I THINK is where you offer to foster the baby, the birth mom may be thinking about giving the baby up for adoption, but she's not 100% sure. If she signs the paper work then you can adopt the baby. IS THERE LESS OF A COST TO THIS????? For some reason I am under the impression that foster-adopt is not as expensive as a private adoption.
3. State Adoption-heard this term thrown around, but I don't understand what it is.
4. I've heard of some people not having to pay anything for their adoption, yet their children are 100% healthy!? (I know in Ohio, if you adopt special needs you don't pay), how does this happen?
5. Are there other types of adoption situations that I don't have on here and I'm just not aware of?
Cost is a HUGE factor for us, as it is with everyone. My husband would rather not take out a loan, but I don't see how we can pay for an adoption without one. We have our own personal savings we need to invest in, so if we take from that we won't have money to keep our house in shape.....
This is mainly why I would like to know about the options in adoption-I'm not sure straight up private adoption is the best route for us so I would like to know what our other options are.
Thanks!
-Joy

[Bunnygirl]

My understanding is that private adoptions are very expensive -- and are also most likely of the adoption types to not be completed. First off, you are not "paying for the baby," you are paying for the lawyer, the social worker, and the birthmom's medical expenses. These will have to be paid for, by you, regardless of the outcome. That is, if the child turns out to be special needs and you no longer want to adopt him/her, you will still be liable for the legal expenses, etc. Also, if the birthmom or birth father changes their minds (and they do have a certain length of time after the birth to do so), you will still be liable for the legal expenses, etc. (I'm not sure about the pregnancy-related expenses).

In international adoptions, and when adopting from foster care, you won't be able to get a newborn but the child will be legally available for adoption before you get the referral.

I believe that the least expensive is foster-to-adopt, but there are a lot of things to consider in addition to cost -- the age of the child, how important ethnicity is in your community, etc. You should contact an agency in your area and ask if they will be giving any information sessions that you could attend -- the group sessions are generally free and they can give you info. on the different options available.

[carly410]

I called an agency here in Arizona that is non-profit and private. In terms of cost, it is $800 for training, and then there are the lawyer fees at the end of the process--I'm just starting and have no idea how much those run. However, the state will reimburse most of the training fees plus $2000 worth of legal fees, as well as the $10,000+ one time tax credit you get for adopting a child.

Here is more info on the tax credit:
Adoption Tax Credit - How to Claim the Adoption Credit

So, even if you did take out a loan, you would be able to repay it with that money. Hope I helped!

[carly410]

Oh, and this article helped me too!

Adopting Smart - Adoptive Families

[DianeS]

All right, here goes... this is a basic, bare-bones description of the types you're asking about. There will be TONS of details and TONS of state-specific info, but this should help you start sorting things out.

Originally Posted by adoptingmomma

1. The one everyone is familiar with-private adoption. From what I understand, this is just straight up adoption, you get the baby, pay for the baby, finalize the baby, everything has already been signed....
From what I understand, this is the adoption that costs $15,000+

Private adoption is the one everybody is most familiar with. You get approved, pay money, go on a list, get picked (timeframes vary depending on your state, agency, and the type of child you want to parent), pay more money, and finalize the adoption.
This is an expensive option, but prices vary A LOT. Some people have found situations for around $5,000 some have paid upwards of $30,000. Most fall somewhere in between.
ANY type of newborn is available. Healthy, special needs, any race, and sometimes older children as well.

Costs are often unpredictable until a match is made between a family who wishes to place their child and a family who wishes to adopt. At that point the legal fees, expectant mother fees, etc are calculated. (This is also why costs vary so much.)

It is important to note that even though the adoptive family is usually permitted to bring the baby home as soon as the parents have signed surrender papers, there is almost always a "change of heart" time period during which the parents can return to claim their child. It is important to research your state laws about that and make sure you know what you are agreeing to.

2. Foster-adopt: This I THINK is where you offer to foster the baby, the birth mom may be thinking about giving the baby up for adoption, but she's not 100% sure. If she signs the paper work then you can adopt the baby. IS THERE LESS OF A COST TO THIS????? For some reason I am under the impression that foster-adopt is not as expensive as a private adoption.

Throw out everything you think you know about foster-adopt, because what you described is private adoption with a potential birthmother who wants to consider her decision longer than her stay in the hospital. That's not foster-adopt, it's just one of the twists that can happen in private adoption.

Foster-adopt is really a function of state adoptions; see the next question.

3. State Adoption-heard this term thrown around, but I don't understand what it is.

State Adoption is adoption from foster care. In all states, children are removed from parents who are abusing or neglecting them. (States differ on what rules they follow for removing these children.) Children are placed in foster homes (certified by the state) while the parents do the requirements they were given for getting their children returned to them. Sometimes the parents fail to complete those requirements, and a court terminates their parental rights and says the children may be adopted. Adoptive parents certified by the state (different process than getting certified for private adoption) can then adopt those children.

Sometimes a family is willing to foster a child who may still be returned to their biological family, but that same foster family is also willing to adopt the child if the bio family does not complete their requirements. THIS is foster-adopt. It means the case could go either way, the parents could get their act together and a judge sends the child home, OR the parents could fail and the judge orders that their rights be terminated.

Different states call a child's placement a foster placement, a foster-adopt placement, or an adoption placement at different times, and have different amounts of risk allowed in each category. You will want to post in the Foster Care section to find out more particulars about your own state and county if you choose to go this route.

It is important to note that by the time a newborn is abused, removed, their parents attempt to finish their requirements, their parents fail, and a judge orders their rights terminated and the child can be adopted... the child is usually at least year or two old. It sometimes happens that a judge moves a case through quickly and a child is free for adoption sooner, but those cases are RARE. Anyone wanting a newborn or infant from the foster care system almost always has to be willing to foster that child and risk him/her going home. The older the child you want to parent, the more chance you will find one who is already legally free and waiting for adoption.

4. I've heard of some people not having to pay anything for their adoption, yet their children are 100% healthy!? (I know in Ohio, if you adopt special needs you don't pay), how does this happen?

Adoption from foster care is usually free, or close to it. The other side of the coin is that these children are suffering from the effects of the abuse or neglect they suffered, often for years, before coming to your home. Sometimes it turns out that these children heal quickly, sometimes they don't.

A good "for instance": A child who was removed from his/her parents at birth because the mother was doing drugs may be considered special needs, because he will be going through withdrawals and because of the risk of learning disabilities later in life. If you're willing to take that risk and be ready to parent a child with learning disabilities, this may be a route for you. The adoption would likely be free because of the assumed special needs, which you need to be ready to deal with but which you may or may not experience.

Your state will have it's own definition of "special needs". What is special needs in one state may not be in another. Research carefully.

5. Are there other types of adoption situations that I don't have on here and I'm just not aware of?

Sure, there is international adoption. That's when the child is a citizen of another country (and living there, of course) and that country allows the child to be adopted by someone here. You have to follow the laws of BOTH countries. This is the most expensive type of adoption.

Any type of child is available (except newborns, although infants are sometimes available), depending on the country. Any length of wait is available, depending on the country. Any race, ethnicity, religious background, etc is available, depending on country. Any travel requirement or length of stay in the country is available, depending on country. Each country has their own rules, by which adopting parents MUST abide. Research carefully.

But with a few exceptions, international adoption is also the one that comes closest to "guaranteeing" you will bring home a child. In most cases, if the child you were referred is no longer available, the country will replace that referral with another one at no additional charge. It sounds awful, and it's an emotional issue, but a point to be considered.

I hope that helps. Like I said, it's a broad overview. Post back any questions that it raised!

[Magic_Hat]

And there's also Independent Adoption where you advertise (newspaper, internet, flyers, word of mouth) and match with a woman or couple that wants to make an adoption plan. Then you would use an attorney to do the rest. A lot depends on your state's laws though. Some states don't allow you to advertise and I think some don't even allow independent adoption, meaning both parties would have to work with an agency to complete the adoption. Cost will vary depending on your state too since some states allow you to pay the expectant mom's living expenses, medical and legal expenses and some do not allow living expenses, only medical and legal. If paying living expenses puts adoption out of your budget, you can just try to match up with someone that doesn't need living expenses or even a lot of medical expenses (she may have her own insurance and you'd pay the co-pays).
Hope this helps.