All adoptions require a home study. (Read our Guide to Surviving Your Home Study)..
A social worker provides you with piles of questionnaires that you must answer. You may be required to take classes. You will probably be required to learn CPR and basic first aid. You will also probably need a physical that is slightly more rigorous than your normal yearly check up. The social worker will visit your house, but you don't have to clean every nook and cranny. He or she is simply trying to make sure that the environment is safe. The specifics of the home study vary based on the type of adoption you're pursuing and on the state in which you live.
At this point, you can choose a full-service agency or a home study agency only. A full-service agency does it all--provides home studies, adoption services, and post-adoption services. A home study agency provides only home studies; it does not provide any matching or referral services. Your state may also allow you to hire an independent social worker to do a home study.
If you choose to adopt through foster care, your county's social services department can provide the home study.
Learn more about home studies.
