Anyone who wants to adopt a child is legally required to complete a home study first. No one is an exception to the home study rule, even if the prospective adoptive parent is the president of the United States. Adoption laws vary from state to state, however, the home study is a mandatory prerequisite across the country. A home study is essentially a written report about who a prospective adoptive parent is a person and their history. This post is all about educating prospective adoptive parents about home studies. Read on to find out more about what they are, who writes them up, etc.

What is a Home Study?

In a nutshell, a home study is a report detailing whether or not someone is ready to parent.

What does a Home Study entail?

  • Relationship Status
  • Health History
  • Current Health History
  • Details about the home
  • Details about the neighborhood
  • History of Criminal Activity
  • Family Relationships
  • Feelings about parenting, adopting, and infertility (if applicable).
  • Personal References
  • A social worker’s approval in writing that their client would be a fit parent.

Who writes a Home Study?

Prospective adoptive parents must go to a social worker licensed in their state to write their home study. Social workers must be affiliated with a licensed adoption agency to adopt internationally through Hague-Convention countries.  There are a few states that require the home study social worker to be affiliated with an adoption agency.

Adoptions From The Heart Home Study Fees:

General Home Study*= $1,600

  • Update by AFTH of previous home study*: $450
  • Update every six months in Virginia/ first year in Connecticut: $175/each
  • Home study review of the current home study by another agency*: $500
  • New full home study after two years (Connecticut) or three years in an agency program* (other states): $850
  • Addendum to home study*: $300

*Travel Time- One-hour round trip from AFTH office is free. After that, the charge is $45 / half-hour.

How long do Home Studies take?

Between 3-6 months. This includes the time from when a prospective adoptive parent contacts the social worker, to when the social worker finishes writing the report.

For more information about what goes into a home study, feel free to contact our AFTH social workers:
Email- Adoption@AFTH.org
Phone- 1-800-355-5500

Past Home Study Posts

Preparing for Your Home Study: Suggestions From Adoption Social Workers

Home Study Dos and Don’ts