Yvette Brown always dreamed of becoming a mother. And when the time came to turn that dream into a reality, she chose to adopt. “I knew from a very young age that there were children in the world who needed a home, and I always said to myself that I would adopt when I was older,†says Brown. In March of 2010, the single physician from Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, adopted a 2-week-old baby girl named Kendra.
But the adoption process did not come without challenges. For starters, Brown, 44, was shocked at the expense. “The cost was unbelievable,†she says. The tally included paying $1,750 for home study, a three- to six-month process whereby social workers examine all aspects of your home and family life to determine whether it is a safe environment for a child. Then there was the $1,000 she paid for a profile about herself, which would be shown to prospective birth mothers in choosing adoptive parents. Add to that $2,880 in attorney’s fees to handle the legal aspects. When all was said and done, Brown spent $20,000 to $25,000 in total.
While the new mother had the personal savings to cover the cost of adoption, many people are not as fortunate as Brown. Private agency adoptions can range anywhere from $5,000 to $40,000-plus, according to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Administration for Children and Families, with $25,000 to $35,000 being the norm, experts say. “Most families look at that $25,000 as if it’s a gigantic brick wall,†says Cherri Walrod, who founded the website Resources4Adoption.com after looking for money to fund her own three adoptions.
However, there are ways to get past the high cost of adoption. Taking advantage of grants, tax credits, low-interest loans, and other fundraising strategies, prospective adoptive parents can effectively break down financial barriers.
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The Root of the Costs
While there is always a need for people to adopt children, African American adoptive parents are in particularly high demand, says Maxine Chalker, executive director of Adoptions from the Heart (www.afth.org), a private adoption agency based in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania. In many cases, agencies don’t have enough prospective African American parents on their waiting list for African American birth mothers who prefer to have their children adopted by someone of the same race. “In 2011, Adoptions from the Heart placed 51 African American newborns.
It’s hard to gauge how many private adoptions take place each year because states aren’t legally required to report that information. The Administration for Children and Families tracks only adoptions from the foster care system, which is temporary housing for children in the state’s control. In 2011, 50,516 children were adopted from foster care, 23% of whom were African American.
Families considering private agency adoption should know it’s not an overnight process; it could take anywhere from one to two years before completion. The good news is you have a period of time to come up with the necessary funds. “You don’t have to write a $30,000 check the day you start,†says Julie Gumm, author of Adopt without Debt: Creative Ways to Cover the Cost of Adoption (Black Boot Publishing; $14.99). Rather, you may need $5,000 at the beginning of the process and another $5,000 five months later, Gumm says.
Since there are limited federal laws governing adoptions–mainly concerning eligible expenses to receive applicable tax credits or exclusions–costs vary from state to state and agency to agency. A home study can cost between $1,000 and $3,000, and legal expenses are in the neighborhood of $6,000, depending on state requirements, birth parent relinquishment paperwork, and the number of children being adopted.
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Adoption agency fees can be as little as $5,000 or as high as $40,000, depending upon the services offered. For instance, it may cost less to find your own birth mother and have the agency handle just the legal work,†says Kimberly King, adoptive family coordinator for Lifetime Adoption Center (www.lifetimeadoption.com), a national adoption facilitator. This option was chosen by Yamilée Emmanuel-Kelly and Errol Kelly. The couple, who have been married for 18 years, desired a family. After several years of trying for a baby, they decided to adopt directly from a birth mother, with the help of a lawyer and social worker. Yamilée, who had been diagnosed with polycystic ovarian syndrome, was determined to have the family they always dreamed of.
“We wanted two kids, a boy and a girl. And I was going to find a way to make it happen,†says Yamilée, 42, a high school social studies teacher.
The Kellys sought guidance from Parents Adoption Lifeline, a Palm Beach Gardens, Florida-based adoption support group. Errol, a 44-year-old IT professional for a local university, had a co-worker who told him about a support group for people who had adopted, those interested in adoption, and those going through the process. In February 2001, a few days after joining the group, the couple received a call from a social worker, saying a young mother was interested in placing her child for adoption. Much to their dismay, the birth mother changed her mind a few weeks later, shortly after giving birth. Then, in April 2001, another opportunity arose. Yamilée and Errol received a call from their lawyer and were matched with a birth mother who was due in August.
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The Kelly’s son, Zakia, was born in August 2001. Overall, the cost was about $11, 000. The process for adopting Zakia, now 11 years old, was roughly five months. Three years later, the couple decided to adopt again, using the same process. Their daughter, Arrianna, was born July 2004. They say the total cost was about $15,000. The Kellys were able to pay for the cost of adopting Zakia through tax refunds, personal savings, and family contributions. In addition to the above, they had a personal loan and money they received from a grant when adopting Arrianna. The couple says the process for adopting Arrianna, now 8 years old, was about six months.
The couple’s advice: “Do your research,†says Yamilée. “We got a $2,000 to $5,000 grant for parents adopting from a private agency; our social worker told us about it. There is money available out there. People are willing to help you.â€
Managing the Expense
“If you are looking for a program that is going to walk you through everything
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While the costs can be prohibitive, there are ways for families to find financial relief. “Going into debt is never something somebody wants to do,†says Gumm. “I know people who’ve drained retirement accounts to pay for adoption.†Parents who don’t have the money for a private adoption should consider adopting from the foster care system. However, it is rare that an infant would be available. But “because we’re so eager to get kids out of foster care as quickly as possible and into permanent homes, there’s really not very much in the way of expenses,†says Hochman. In foster care adoptions, fees are often kept to a minimum or are waived, such as the charge for the home study. There are also adoption subsidies of up to several hundred dollars per month (depending on the state) available to help defray costs for families who adopt from the foster care system. If you’re still set on a private agency adoption, some agencies charge fees on a sliding scale, so people with less income pay less.
Here are other funding sources to consider:
Federal and State Tax Credits: There is a federal tax credit of up to $12,650 per adoption in 2012. The amount a family qualifies for depends on such factors as the family’s income, qualifying expenses such as court costs and attorney’s fees, and whether the child has special medical needs. However, the adoption tax credit is set to expire on Dec. 31, unless Congress passes legislation to extend it. Some states also offer tax credits.
Military Family Subsidies: Members of the military whose adoptions are arranged through qualifying adoption agencies may be eligible for reimbursement for up to $2,000 per child or up to $5,000 per year.
Employer Reimbursement Programs: Many companies offer financial assistance for adoption as a benefit. An Aon Hewitt survey of 1,000 major U.S. employers found that 56% offer a financial adoption benefit. Company payments ranged from $500 to $25,000 according to the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption.
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Grants: Several organizations provide grants to prospective adoptive parents. However, you typically must have your home study done before you can apply. Some grants are geared particularly toward certain communities. For example, Lifetime Adoption Center has the African-American Enrichment Program, which offers grants between $1,000 and $4,000. Should you plan to apply for grants, expect to fill out a lot of paperwork, says Walrod, who maintains a database of more than 70 adoption grant and loan opportunities at Resources4Adoption.com.
Fundraising: Many people find creative ways, or they capitalize on a hobby such as sewing, to finance adoption. Working a second job to bring in extra money is another option. Others enlist the aid of their families and friends by asking them to make a financial contribution to an adoption fund or to donate furniture and other items that can be sold on eBay, says Gumm.
Financing: Taking out an adoption loan is another alternative, however, just be wary of predatory lenders looking to take advantage of families that are in an emotionally vulnerable state, warns Walrod, who has come across adoption loans with interest rates as high as 25%. “Any time you get [interest rates] in the double digits, you need to proceed with caution,†she says. Check with your credit union or bank, Walrod suggests. Also, some organizations offer low-interest and interest-free loans for adoption, such as the ABBA Fund (www.abbafund.org) and Lifesong Legacy Fund (www.lifesongfororphans.org).
While the financial path to adoption is not easy, there are plenty of resources to make the journey less taxing. And the reward is worth the effort, says Brown, who can’t imagine life without 2-and-a-half-year-old Kendra. “I love every minute with her.â€