How to Prepare for Your First Home Study Visit

Now, the time comes to open your doors to a complete stranger who will comb through your home, looking for every speck of dust, choking hazard, and potential life-threatening death object you own, determining whether or not you are fit to become a parent, all while donning a smug, judgemental expression.

At least, that’s the image you conjure when you hear the dreaded words “home study."

Don’t let movies, media, and your aunt’s cousin’s mail-man who adopted forty years ago influence your perception of modern adoption home studies. In reality, this could not be further from the truth, especially when you have one of PairTree’s highly qualified adoption evaluators on your side.

PairTree home study providers are here to help you through the entire home study process, to guide you, support you, and answer any and all questions you might have along the way. Our home study providers want to see you succeed on your adoption journey, and go the extra mile to ensure the process is as smooth and pain-free as possible. You’ll receive non-judgemental support and encouragement along the way. Nevertheless, we understand the home visit is an undeniably daunting task.

Luckily, there are a few things you can do to prepare your home and your nerves for the big day…

1. Talk to Your Significant Other

If you’re one-half of a prospective parent duo, open communication is essential!

• Take time to talk to your partner about your motivations for adopting as well as your expectations.
• Research adoption together and be on the same page regarding your adoption preferences.
• Discuss parameters such as your future child’s age, gender, and race, and be ready to talk about issues such as the potential for special needs and what an open adoption might look like.
• Make sure you are both ready to become adoptive parents and can lean on one another for support.

If you’re on this journey as a single parent, find your people. Build a support system and have open discussions. Ask yourself what you are open to and prepared for and be ready to talk to your home study provider openly.

2. Relax

Take a deep breath and remember this is just one step in the adoption process. Trust us, the hard stuff actually happens after you become a parent. Have you heard of the terrible twos?!

Home studies do require adoptive parents to provide a large amount of information and documents, but rest assured, your home study provider will do everything they can to make the process as stress-free as possible. Thanks to PairTree’s user-friendly home study platform, the application process is streamlined - designed to make the process less complex and confusing for prospective adoptive parents and adoption professionals alike.

3. Get Organized

PairTree’s Home Study Checklist is a great way to stay organized and ensure all the required documents are ready for your home study provider to review. The convenient PairTree platform makes it easy to upload your documents, complete tasks, and monitor your progress. Maintaining order reduces stress and provides a sense of accomplishment. And who doesn’t love checking off boxes?!

4. Make Appointments

Adoption home studies typically require documents such as medical check-up forms, veterinarian records, background checks, and personal references. Give yourself plenty of time to make and keep those appointments for yourself and your pets. Give your best friend, neighbor, cousin, and pastor plenty of time to write those glowing reference letters. They’ll need the extra time to accurately describe just how awesome you are!

5. Clean Your Home

But don’t stress over it!

Home study providers are people too, and you can rest assured there’s a fingerprint or two on their refrigerator door at home. Tidy up like company is coming over, but don’t obsess. And while you might find joy in preparing a Pinterest-worthy nursery for your baby, by all means, you do you (and tag us when you plaster that beauty on Instagram) but it isn’t necessary, especially this early on in the process. Your provider just wants to make sure that you have a safe, clean, comfortable space ready for your future child.

No points will be deducted for dust on the ceiling fans, scouts honor.

6. Write Down Your Questions

No seriously, write them down.

Sticky notes, legal pads, the napkin from last night’s take out, whatever you have handy when a thought strikes! You will likely have a million questions and forget them all the second your provider pulls into the driveway. Likewise, take notes while your provider is there. You’ll be able to refer back to them as you continue through the adoption process.

Imagine it now…your PairTree home study evaluator pulls into the driveway and you smile, feeling cool, calm, and collected, knowing it’s your time to shine. You immediately feel at ease as your provider guides you through the interviews, tours your tidy, albeit lived-in home, reviews your well-organized documents, and opens up the floor for your questions. You’ve charmed them, and now have another fighter in your corner as you continue on this roller coaster ride we call adoption.

When the home visit is all done and the home study report is complete, you’ll sit back and wonder why you were freaking out to begin with. So take a moment and reflect on why you started this journey. You’re ready to become a parent and you can face this hurdle with confidence, knowing that PairTree has your back every step of the way.

So take a deep breath, gather your thoughts, then head over to PairTree Home Study to open the next chapter of your life.