3.0
Act of Love is full-service infant adoption agency based in Sandy, Utah and can perform other services in most areas in the United States. Act of Love primarily facilitates standard placements (domestic, infant) but also does special needs placement (which may have reduced agency fees), and agency assist placement (helping match clients while they work with another agency or attorney). Other services include home studies, post-placement services, interstate compact services, legal services, counseling services, and outreach programs. The agency is not accredited to perform intercountry placement services but may provide adoption services for clients looking to place internationally if supervised by an internationally accredited agency.
In business since 1993, the agency has over two decades of experience with domestic adoptions of all levels of openness. Birthparents and adoptive parents can decide what works for them: no contact, meet in person, talk on the phone, Skype, send emails, share pictures on social media, send pictures and letters through the agency, etc. In 2015, they placed with 60 families, and the wait time from approval to placement was 6 months. Act of Love employees can be available to support adoptive families if services are required outside of normal working hours.
There is no strict age limit for prospective adoptive parents. Other criteria for adoptive parents include the following:
Home study minimum requirements must meet the standards of the state of Utah, Act of Love, and the state where the adoption is taking place. Act of Love requires both adoption orientation classes and parenting classes for clients living in Utah. For out of state adoptions, families can obtain similar education through online training classes and reading materials offered through Adoption Learning Partners (cost per couple is around $130). Adoptive parents who have previously taken classes from other sources may be able to count those as adequate training with a certificate and approval from AOL. Adoptive parents must become certified in infant and child CPR. Families who haven't parented a child from infancy must also attend a basic infant care class through a hospital, community center, or high school. All adoptive parents will be subject to national and state background checks according to their state of residence.
Act of Love provides a full disclosure of all fees upfront, including which fees are refundable or transferrable within the agency. Beyond the base agency fee, adoptive families can either stick to a strict budget or be more flexible with costs depending on the situation. The two budget options are as follows:
Though there is some flexibility available to families with a budget, the base agency fee is the same regardless. Standard placement in Utah is $22,975 and the cost goes up from there if clients live in a different state and/or need to pay extensive birth mother expenses and medical expenses. Most families pay between $25,000 and $45,000 total. Fee breakdown:
Not included in base fee (may not apply to all situations):
It's hard to beat a wait time of six months, which was the agency's average wait time from approval to placement in 2015, so it's not surprising that they're laden with testimonials from satisfied families online. However, the base agency fee is steeper than average. Still, it's nice that clients can set a cap for their fees beyond that, which helps with affordability and planning in an otherwise unpredictable process.
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2 months ago
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1 year ago
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