Adoption Consultants, Inc.
Birth Parent Line:
1-800-605-4588
(1-800-605-4LUV)
Adoptive Parents:
(818) 766-2222
Adoption Consultants, Inc.
E-mail: info@adoptionconsultantsinc.com
Comparison Chart
Adoption Consultant's Programs Other Programs
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Start Up Fees
An initial remittance of less than half (approximately 40%) of Adoption Consultants, Inc.’s facilitation fee is due upon contracting as a client, with the remaining balance ONLY becoming due upon a match! (Should you choose to terminate the adoption process pre-match, for any reason, the balance remaining will be waived.) The initial remittance fee is allocated towards: all printed advertising, including Yellow Page advertising reaching into hundreds of communities, with a population exceeding several million people, distribution of adoption materials, including Adoption Consultants, Inc.’s Adoption Book of Waiting Families which is distributed to organizations who assist pregnant women; Internet presence; submission of your profile to potentially suitable birthmothers; overnight mailings, including Federal Express; long distance telephone charges (State-to-State and In-State), as well as an array of facilitation services.
Typically full fees are due up front to become a facilitation client and begin the search for a birthmother with no guarantee of a “match” ever occurring, despite full payment of up front fees.
How our Facilitation Program helps make the Process of Adoption
Easier and More Affordable
(and what makes our Program different from others)
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Number of Clients
Waiting to Adopt
Adoption Consultants, Inc. maintains a very limited clientele base, approximately 30 clients, maximizing our clients' exposure to birthmothers. Thus, whenever your criteria matches a birthmother’s criteria, your profile may be shared with her! Due to our limited clientele base, a minimal number of profiles are initially shared with a birthmother for review, dependent upon the birthmother’s criteria, as well our clients.
Many adoption organizations maintain in excess of 100-350+ clients waiting to adopt, thus slowing down the process and increasing wait time. Further, even if you meet a birthmother’s criteria, the odds greatly increase your profile may not be presented due to vast numbers of other clients whose criteria may also meet the birthmothers who are also vying for the same potential situation.
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Wait Time to Adopt
Adoption Consultants, Inc. maintains a limited clientele base, helping to facilitate a match as timely as possible for each of our clients. The timeframe for perspective adoptive parents to be identified by a birthmother as a family she is interested in placing with is anticipated to be less than one year following remittance and distribution of their profile (Dear Birthmother letter). Adoption Consultant’s Inc’s quickest matches have been within 2-3 days! (Note: A narrow/restrictive criteria may increase anticipated wait time.)
Many attorneys and agencies do not specialize in locating birthmothers, nor do they limit their clientele, thus maintaining large numbers of clients waiting to adopt. Many agencies also maintain a wait list. It is not unusual to wait minimally 3-5 years for an adoptive placement through an agency or attorney
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Legally Allowable
Living Expenses for a
Birthmother
The birthmothers this office assists are asked to fill out a Financial Worksheet reflecting any pregnancy related living expenses needs. These needs are broken down into categories, such as food, rent, utilities, maternity clothes, transportation, in order that an adoptive family are aware of what a birthmother's needs actually are. Additionally, they are also asked to indicate all sources of monthly income (salary, alimony, cash aid, food stamps, WIC, etc.). Any monthly income is then subtracted from their monthly living expenses, thereby reducing any financial living expense needs accordingly. The office also recommends keeping any remittance of physical cash to a minimal amount, instead assisting through the remittance gift cards and paying vendors/landlord directly whenever possible.
Many adoption organizations do not request a birthmother reveal any sources of income. They merely pass on her total monthly living expenses to the adoptive families to cover, without deducting any monthly income. Therefore, an adoptive parent may very well end up paying increased living expenses over and above what the birthmother is legally entitled to. Many also tend to remit monthly checks directly to birthmothers, rather than trying to keep physical cash to a birthmother to a minimum. It is not uncommon that a birthmother may find budgeting difficult and thereby can typically run through their living expense assistance prior to the month's end, requiring additional assistance by the adopting family than was otherwise planned for to get her through the month.
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Added Protection for
Prospective Adoptive Parents
In addition to requesting birthmothers declare all sources of income when requesting living expense assistance, when a birthmother chooses to match with a family, they are requested to sign documents stating they are not working with any other adoption professional or adoptive families. These forms also reiterate under what circumstances are they entitled to receive financial benefits from an adopting family and under what circumstances is it illegal and prosecutable to the fullest extent of the law to receive such financial benefits under false pretences. If a birthmother has nefarious intentions, requiring signatures on these documents may encourage her to go elsewhere.
Other adoption organizations may not request a birthmother sign these types of documents. Therefore, an adopting family may be at a much higher degree of risk of matching with a birthmother whose intentions may be less than honorable, potentially exposing a family to great financial loss, as well as emotional pain.
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Accessibility
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The office is available to birthmothers 24 hrs/7 days a week! The office answers our birth mother lines directly after hours in the evenings and during weekends, including holidays. These are prime hours birthmothers may place their initial call for help. Being available for immediate assistance eliminates the risk losing a birthmother by not connecting immediately. For local birthmothers, the office is available to travel out to meet with them personally and to discuss adoption and review profiles.
The vast majority of adoption organizations do not pick up their phones directly in the evenings, on weekends or holidays, instead choosing to route all incoming calls, including birthmother calls, to an answering service, or even voicemail. Most birthmothers will not wait to be connected to an adoption advisor, and simply hang up. Rarely do adoption organizations travel out to meet birthmothers.
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Advertising and
Outreach
Adoption Consultant’s Inc.’s Yellow Page advertising alone reaches into hundreds of communities with a population exceeding several million people. All of our ads are in full color. Because the office is not busy conducting home studies or processing legal paperwork, we are able to heavily focus on maintaining our ongoing extensive advertising and outreach programs to locate new birthmothers for our clients, thus offering our clients superior marketing on their behalf and increasing their chances of matching in a timely fashion. As part of our current outreach program, our facilitation clients gain additional exposure through our Adoption Book of Waiting Families (a booklet containing profiles of waiting families) which is created in-house and distributed to organizations who assist pregnant women, maximizing our clients possible avenues of exposure.
Many agencies and attorneys do not maintain ongoing extensive advertising or outreach programs due to staff and/or time constraints. Their advertising efforts may tend to be very minimal, with smaller size ads which may run in black and white or minimal color. Their primary focus tends to be on maintaining current adoption plans and attending to the legal aspects, not on the birth mother search. Most adoption organizations do not create and distribute an adoption book of waiting families, thus minimizing their clients possible avenues of exposure, which is key in expediting matches!
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What Information is Available to me, Including for my Review, Before Deciding to "Match"
You may review all birth parent(s) background questionnaires the birth parent(s) have filled out for the office (including medical/health and psychosocial questionnaires); all available pregnancy related medical records (which we urge you to share with a physician of your choosing for interpretation/analysis prior to agreeing to a match); any available photographs of the birthmother, birth father and any children they may have; and a financial worksheet breaking down a birthmother's financial living expense needs. A conference call can also be arranged whereby you may have the opportunity to ask any questions at all you may have (other than identifying information prior to matching, of course). You may also elect to meet prior to agreeing to a “match.” (Note: Out of state Clients do not need to travel to California to meet with a birthmother prior to agreeing to a match, though they can certainly choose to do so if they prefer.)
It is not at all uncommon that an adoption organization (whether it be an adoption agency/attorney/facilitator or networker) will not allow you to review background questionnaires filled out by the birth parent(s), nor will they remit the birthmother's medical records to you for you and your physician's review. Instead, this imperative information will only be verbally conveyed to you. Many will not request photographs with which to share with you prior to matching; and many will also only lump together a birthmother's financial living expense needs, without providing a detailed breakdown of any such needs. You may also not be allowed the opportunity to speak directly with a birthmother prior to your agreeing to a match and/or may not be allowed to meet until you have already matched.
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Should an Adoption
Plan Not Work Out
Adoption Consultants, Inc. has only had 1 birthmother reclaim! The office believes this incredibly low number is credited to the fact that a birthmother we assist will never be pressured into matching with a family. Conversely, she will be encouraged not to match unless and until she feels fully ready to enter into a match and confident in her decision for placement. However, should your relationship with a birthmother not successfully complete for any reason, at any time, Adoption Consultants, Inc. does not assess any additional fees to re-start the search process and to render further services under the terms of your existing Facilitation Contractual Agreement.
Birthmother reclaim rates tend to be much higher in the adoption field and nationwide than our office sees. It is also not uncommon that adoption organizations assess re-matching fees to re-start the search process for another birthmother and/or charge for time, regardless of the reason the adoption plan fell through.
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Contract "Freeze"
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Locating a Child
Elsewhere
Extension of Contract
Although it is expected our contractual period should be a sufficient timeframe for most clients to successfully adopt, in the event your contract should expire prior to the successful adoption of a child or sibling group, your Contractual Agreement may be extended for a minimal fee and any facilitation fee previously remitted will continue to remain credited. The office retains the right to waive any extension fee for a client awaiting a rematch.
Rarely will any adoption organization extend your Contractual Agreement if you have not successfully adopted prior to your contract expiring. In such event, in order to continue your adoption pursuit, you will generally need to sign a new contract and remit an additional full facilitation fee to restart the process.
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Should you locate a child through another source, your Facilitation Contractual Agreement will continue to be honored, unless you choose to terminate it.
Many adoption organizations may terminate your Contractual Agreement should you locate a child elsewhere, even if the child is not yet born.
Should you need to temporarily halt the adoption process, you may freeze your Contractual Agreement for up to one year's time. Upon reactivating, the time frozen for will be added onto the contract's original expiration date.
Many adoption organizations may not freeze your Contractual Agreement, regardless of necessity. They may also terminate the Agreement if you halt the process.
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Creating a Profile (Dear Birthmother Letter)
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Adoption Consultants, Inc. guides our clients in creating their profile. A detailed document will be provided, breaking down specific elements a client may want to include in their profile to best illuminate for a birthmother what makes their family unique and different from others, as well as what their child's life will be should they choose to place with their family. The document essentially proves a roadmap whereby clients can "plug in" information that pertains to their specific family. The office also suggests various inexpensive programs (typically less than $ 50) a client may choose to utilize in creating and designing the "look" of their profile, thus individualizing it and setting it apart from others. Additionally, profiles of previous clients who are similar in characteristics and dynamics to the incoming client and whose profiles have received very positive responses from birthmothers are also shared to help guide the client in creating their profile. The office will then conduct a profile review on the profile draft once prepared, offering comments and suggestions. When the client feels their profile is complete, the office will commence presentation of it to birthmothers for their review and consideration. (Note: Although the office will walk you through the creation of your profile, the office does have resources available to clients who prefer to have an outside company create their profile for them).
Many adoption offices will leave the creation of a client's profile to the client themselves.
