Last week, I shared about the first avenue of adoption, agency adoptions. This week, I will be sharing about a different avenue of adoption: adoption consultants.
So, what exactly are adoption consultants? With an adoption consultant, you pay one fee to network your portfolio with several different agencies in different states. Adoption consultants work to be your advocate and hold your hand through the entire adoption process. While there aren’t as many restrictions with adoption consultants as adoption agencies, there are still some restrictions and regulations that consultants follow.
Here are some of the restrictions that most consultants have:
- Age- Outside of the normal age range of 21 to 60 years old, there are no age requirements with adoption consultants. However, the adoption attorney or adoption agency that your consultant connects you with may have age restrictions. Most states do not have age restrictions outside of 21 and 60 years old.
- Location- This does not matter when it comes to working with a consultant. Because consultants are national, they are used to connecting with other adoption professionals all over the United States! Just keep in mind that you may have to travel if you are working with a consultant because you may not get matched with an expecting mother in the same state.
- Marriage- If you are married, you must be married for one year. Agency policies may change or be different from this. Consultants do work with singles. With divorce, it depends on the agency you are matched with.
- Finances- You don’t have to be ultra rich to work with a consultant. Most people have the misconception that you must have a 6 figure income to adopt, but that is simply not true! Consultants will work with a range of incomes.
- Medical- Overall, you should be healthy with a normal life expectancy.
- Criminal History- This will depend on the agency the consultant connects you with, however, generally, a history with felonies is not accepted. A consultant works nationally and you may not know what state your adoption will be in. More difficult if you have a felony and working with a consultant
Age of child- there are no restrictions or regulations on age, but generally consultants work more with newborns and occasionally toddlers. - Gender and Race- you can have a preference for these when working with a consultant, but note that it will limit the agencies you may be connected with.
- Agencies- Working with a consultant may limit what agencies you can work with. Usually consultants work with open adoption, since all domestic adoptions are open. Like I mentioned earlier, location does not impact this, but it can make things more challenging if you live in a different state from the expecting mom you are arranging an adoption with.
- Time- When working with a consultant, because consultants have a wide network of agencies and attorneys, your placement may come in as little as 12 to 18 months.
- Cost- As far as cost goes, the typical cost is between $45,000 and $50,000, which is on the higher end of the spectrum of adoption fees.
It is important to remember that the consultant will know what agency to direct you towards based on your situation. They are a great resource for any questions or concerns you may have with the adoption process.
That about sums up adoption consultants! Stay tuned for next week when we share about Private Adoptions.