Home Study Services Main Page

In order to adopt a child in the United States or abroad, you must have a home study completed by a licensed agency. A home study is an in-depth look at your family to make sure that you are a suitable family for an adopted child.

Swartz Adoption can complete home studies, updates and post-placement reports for domestic, international, interstate, attorney-assisted, adult, relative and step-parent adoptions. The home study process takes approximately 6-8 week to complete and includes several visits with one of our social workers.

1. Domestic Home Studies – Include direct placement adoptions, attorney-assisted adoptions, interstate adoptions, adult adoptions, relative adoptions, and step-parent adoptions.
   
   A home study is a review of you, your spouse, and anyone else living in your home. A home study is required for almost every adoption. It highlights items such as relationships, interactions with children, your neighborhood, and your childhood. The home study helps the courts and the agency determine if a stable environment exists for a family to receive an adoptive placement.
   
   
2. International Home Studies – Our social workers are experienced in preparing international home studies and can complete studies for adoption in the country of your choice.
   
   An international home study is somewhat different than a domestic home study. With an international home study the requirements of your home state need to be met, in addition to the requirements of the Immigration and Naturalization Service and the foreign country you are adopting from. Before starting the international home study process you must already have selected an agency to work with and which country you will be adopting from.
   
   
3. Home Study Updates – An update to your home study is required for any of the following reasons:
• Residency Change
• Addition to your family
• Major life development/life change
• Home study is more than one year old
  
  
4. Post-Placement Reports – The court or country you adopt from may require several post-placement reports after the placement of a child. A post-placement report usually includes information about the adopted child’s physical, developmental, and health progress. It also includes information on the family’s and child’s adjustment to the adoptive placement. Our office can assist with both domestic and international post-placement reports.