Exploring the Pros and Cons of Local Adoption Agencies
When considering adoption, local adoption agencies can provide support, services and convenience to help you through the entire adoption process.
- Most local adoption agencies can offer the services and support you need to safely and legally place your child with another family.
- You can place your child for adoption within your community with a family of a similar background.
- Local convenience can be beneficial for travel, in-person meetings with your professional and open adoption with the family you choose.
Before you continue reading about local adoption and agencies in your area, you can speak to a professional to get more information on the adoption process and find the best local adoption agency by filling out our free online contact form.
As we move forward, you can learn more about local adoption, what it means for your adoption experience and the pros and cons of working with a local adoption agency.
What are Local Adoption Agencies?
Local adoption agencies in your area provide support and services to help birth mothers like you place a child for adoption.
The size of a local adoption agency in terms of employees and the number of adoptions each year varies. What separates a local adoption agency from a national agency is local professionals focus on placements in a specific area.
Perhaps a prospective birth mother places convenience and adoption within her community as important factors. In this case, working with a local adoption agency makes sense.
As with anything, there are pros and cons to weigh when deciding to work with a local adoption agency.
Local Adoption Agency Pros and Cons
Adoption is a big decision. Knowing what agency to work with is important, but knowing what type of agency to work with is just as important.
Deciding on a local or national agency can be confusing. While we have a guide breaking down the benefits of a national adoption agency here, let’s look at the pros and cons of working with a local adoption agency.
The Pros of Local Adoption Agencies
- The convenience of working with an adoption professional in person is a benefit for many prospective birth mothers. In some cases, local adoption agencies offer face-to-face counseling, which can be beneficial.
- In terms of local adoption, typically, you’ll find agencies, adoption attorneys and what are known as “adoption facilitators.” The benefit of working with a local adoption agency is they can provide you with all theservices you’ll need throughout the adoption process. In contrast, attorneys and facilitators may only provide you with certain services. At that point, you would then need to find additional professionals to handle specific aspects of the adoption process, adding unnecessary inconvenience.
- Local adoption agencies receive an annual review from the state government to ensure they operate according to state adoption laws. The risk associated with other adoption professionals, such as facilitators, is that you can’t guarantee they are following the required laws for placing an adoption.
- By working with a local adoption agency, you will also choose an adoptive family that lives in the region. Living near your child, especially in an open adoption, means you can enjoy in-person meetings to continue building a lifelong relationship.
The Cons of Local Adoption
- While local adoption agencies can help you place a child for adoption in your region, they have fewer adoption opportunities than national agencies. Having less access to available adoptive families means it may be more difficult to find the perfect family for your child that meets the criteria in your adoption plan.
- Local adoption agencies often lack resources and are susceptible to changes in state adoption laws. Unfortunately, the risk of a local agency going out of business during the adoption process is much higher than a national agency. Additionally, local adoption agencies typically have smaller staff, meaning their availability to you can be limited.
- Having the adoptive family in the same region can also work against you regarding your privacy. In some cases, you may have to speak with the family more frequently, whereas a national agency can offer mediation to manage communication.
To get more information on the pros and cons of working with a local adoption agency, you can always reach out to a professional. They are ready to answer all of your local adoption questions.
So, what are some good questions to ask when choosing a local adoption agency?
Good Questions to Ask When Choosing a Local Adoption Agency
How do you know which local adoption agency is the right fit for you? One way to help determine that is to compile a list of good questions to ask.
Here is an example of some common questions prospective birth mothers can ask a potential local agency.
- How many waiting adoptive families do you typically have?
- What is the availability of my adoption professional?
- Do you help birth mothers get financial assistance for living expenses?
- Are you a licensed agency?
- How much control do I have during the adoption process?
- Do you help mediate contact with the adoptive family?
- Do I have access to free adoption counseling?
We also encourage you to fill out this form to speak to a professional who can help you create a list of good questions to ask and things to look for when choosing a local adoption agency.
Find the Right Local Adoption Agency for You
Ultimately, you deserve to work with an agency that fits your needs and can provide you with the support and services to complete a safe and smooth adoption.
Local adoption and the agencies in your region offer face-to-face interactions and regional support, which can be beneficial. If you prefer to place a child for adoption in your area, you can complete this form to connect with a professional to help you find the right local adoption agency.
