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So, I got a call from my homestudy agency about 20 minutes ago telling me that they are closing. They previously had a large contract with the state that they lost to budget cuts, they were a small agency anyway, and they just couldn't manage it without the contract. They will likely be done this week or next. I am working with an out of state agency for placement, and my homestudy is good for another 6 months.
However, I have a potential placement in the works which, if it happens, will be in early November. I need to find an agency that can work with me now for the child specific addendum and other ICPC stuff, as well as doing the post-placement. I have a call in to an agency I know people who have worked with and been very happy with, and I am checking out others.
Has anybody had a situation like this where you had to switch homestudy agencies? Was it really difficult/ stressful/ expensive, or were agencies pretty willing to work with you in this kind of situation?
Ruth, I'm sorry this happened!! It didn't happen to me, but I expect that it will be totally fine. Some people do the adoption thing "ala carte" anyway. Like they sign up with a national agency but need the HS done locally, etc.
I think I have read that SOME agencies won't use another agency's HS. Which is annoying. But hopefully you will find the right one that will. Good luck!!
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Who are they refering their clients too? You would think they would have someone or someplace to send their open cases too.
They gave me names of other agencies in the state. They can't really effectively refer to a single agency because of the way things are here. I live in a very large, very rural state with few agencies. So many agencies have clients all over, so an agency that is a realistic distance for another of their clients may be 6 hours from me, and that wouldn't be terribly helpful. Also, some agencies only work with couples, others may work with everyone but not be so friendly to certain populations (ie. same sex couples or singles).
I have put in a couple of calls. I haven't actually been able to get hold of anyone I need to yet, but I've left messages. One place I got to talk to a *real live person* (even if not the person I needed to talk to) who said they had heard from someone else in my situation as well, and who was encouraging. So I'm hopeful, and not as stressed as I was yesterday (still somewhat, but I'll live).
Thanks for the feedback/ support.