The North Carolina Adoption Home Study
If you’re seriously considering adoption in North Carolina for your family, you may be familiar with the North Carolina adoption home study. It’s a very important part of the adoption process, and as such, many adoptive parents tend to stress about it. And that makes sense. An NC home study for adoption is, after all, an assessment of your family’s readiness to adopt. However, as hard as it may seem to believe right now, we promise that there’s nothing to stress over. Reading about the process in advance will help you to be prepared for your adoption home study, as will your American Adoptions adoption specialist.
An adoption home study in North Carolina is comprised of three parts: a documentation phase, a home inspection and interviews with each family member living in your home. And while it can be nerve-wracking, knowing what to expect and choosing the right home study provider can make all the difference. Remember, this isn’t something to be scared of; this is just another step to take in the journey to your child!
Here’s what you should expect in each phase of the North Carolina adoption home study:
Step 1: The Documentation Phase
The most time-consuming part of the North Carolina adoption home study will be the documentation phase. To be proactive, your American Adoptions specialist will have you begin gathering the following paperwork to present to your home study provider. Consider this your North Carolina adoption home study checklist!
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The marital statuses of everyone living in the home
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Physical and mental health records for everyone living in the home
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The ages, races, ethnicities and religions of everyone living in the home
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Educational records and/or employment records for everyone living in the home
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Proof of income, such as tax documents or paystubs
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Background checks for everyone in the home
Gathering all of these documents can seem stressful, but don’t worry! This is the most laborious part of the North Carolina adoption home study.
Step 2: Interviews with Each Family Member
After you’ve provided your North Carolina adoption home study professional with everything he or she needs from you in the documentation phase, it will be time to set up a visit to your home. Your home study provider will ask everyone in your household about their daily routines, their feelings about adopting a new family member and more. Of course, this will depend on how many members are in your family, but these interviews should take somewhere between two and four hours altogether.
Step 3: A Home Inspection
When your home study provider is in your home for the interviews, he or she will also complete a home inspection. This sounds intimidating, but it’s really just to make sure everything is prepared for your new arrival. Think of it as an extra set of eyes to help you baby proof!
After your North Carolina adoption home study is finished, your provider will write a report detailing how the process went and send it to you. You’ll have the opportunity to verify that everything is correct or point out any changes to be made before the NC adoption home study is finalized.
This doesn’t mean you’ve seen the last of your adoption home study provider, however. North Carolina laws requires that your provider also submit a postplacement report that details how you are getting along with your newly adopted child as well as a list of the expenses associated with the adoption. Your provider will either recommend the adoption to the court or list any concerns that he or she might have.
When you’re ready to start your adoption home study, contact one of the following North Carolina professionals:
For more information about starting the adoption process in North Carolina with American Adoptions, call 1-800-ADOPTION at any time.
Disclaimer
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