Adopting out of foster care?

Question

Hi. I want to adopt at LEAST two kids from Vietnam, but I am also interested in adopting in America as well. I'd like African American children because they are (unfortunatly) the hardest kids to place. I would be interested in two kids (a boy and a girl), preferably between 1 and 5 months old.

My questions are, how long would it take to be placed with a child? I know domestic fees vary a lot, but what would cost in this case?

Answer 1

Foster care costs nothing and there is a huge need for it.  If you are serious you need to contact your local social servies department.  Once you are certified you will probably get kids right away!  Then it is all a process.  The fact is there are tons of kids in the system that never go home.  The chance of you getting a child/children that are adoptable is very high (your right african american numbers are way up there).

Answer 2

Let me correct you -----  African American babies are NOT at all hard to place!!!!!!  There are 1000's of adoptive families here in the U.S. and overseas who are waiting to adopt every baby in the United States!!!

The only "hard to place" infants anymore are those precious babies who were born with tragic, catastrophic  medical conditions.  (HIV+ and ill, severely mentally impaired, etc.)

Answer 3

for children this young it will be hard as they will probably still have rights with their bio parents.  We have had children placed in our homes in hopeing to adopt, but the youngest one we have had so far was 7 months when he moved in...the oldest child we have had was 4 (I believe) when this one moved in.

Answer 4

It is very hard to be placed with an infant of any race from foster care that is already free for adoption. Babies who are put up for adoption by birthparents are placed through a private agency. The vast majority of foster children available for adoption are over age 5, and most are over age 10.

While many adoptive parents request caucasian infants from private agencies, it is a myth that there are many healthy african-american babies waiting in foster care to be immediatly adopted simply because of there race.

You could do foster-adopt, where the baby is placed in your home until it is decided if parental rights are severed, and if they are, then you can adopt the baby. This however does carry a real risk of the child being reunited with the birthfamily. Because many families are waiting for an infant,the wait for an infant foster-adopt child can be anywhere from 2 days to even 2 years.

Another option is private domestic adoption. The birthmother usually places the child at birth, however depending on your state, she may have 2 days to several months to change her mind after the child is born. The birth mother usually selects the adoptive parents, so it's hard to know how long it would take to be chosen, but it is often within the first year. Accepting a child of any race will increase your chances of being chosen quickly. From those I know who've adopted domestically, the cost can range from anywhere from $15,000- $50,000.

You mentioned adopting from Vietnam. We adopted both our children from Korea, and were drawn to international adoption in part because of the low-risk in the adoption not going through. Basically once the child is home, they are here to stay. International adoptions range from $15,000-

$35,000, but most are around $20,000. You will not be able to adopt a newborn, but most arrive home between 5-18 months depending on the country. (both of our boys were 6 months)

Each type of adoption has it's pro and cons, and each family must decide what's right for them and the children. Good luck!