Over the last few decades, many factors have made it easier to understand your rights as a parent if you’re an LGBTQIA+ individual or in an LGBTQIA+ relationship. For instance, thanks to the 2015 Supreme Court decision that legalized gay marriage, parental rights also became less murky. With the advent and rise of social media and community platforms, there is more access to information and personal stories from individuals or families who have already walked the path to parenthood that you envision for yourself.
At Donor Concierge, we have served countless LGBTQIA individuals and couples committed to growing their families. They come to us with a good understanding of what their family planning journey may look like, and it’s then our job to fill the gap and explain the nuances. Our expert teams know the ins and outs of egg donation costs, how to find an egg donor as a gay couple, and which states allow surrogacy.
Below is what you need to know if you want to find an egg donor as a gay couple and start your family planning journey.
Finding LGBTQIA community for egg donation
During your egg donor search as an LGBTQIA+ couple, you’ll find support and guidance in many different ways. While you’re learning more below about how Donor Concierge’s expert team can guide you, there’s also a lot of community insight you can find online. On Instagram alone, a community of LGBTQIA+ parents is excitedly sharing their parenting journey. For instance, Burton and Dustin Buffaloe (@BBBuffaloe on Instagram) are two dads sharing an inside look at how they parent their twins to their over 186k followers. These personal stories can help you learn more about how they got to where they are and offer inspiration for what is possible for you, too!
In our Donor Concierge community, you’ll also find individuals and families excited to share how their experience finding an egg donor led to their babies. You can ask your Donor Concierge case manager to connect you with any past clients who are willing to share their stories.
The egg donor search process
Once you’ve booked your consultation session with our expert Donor Concierge team, you’ll be matched with a case manager ready to create a customized plan that meets your family-building needs. You’ll outline your preferred egg donor traits (everything from hair color to educational attributes) so that your case manager knows exactly what to look for during your customized egg donor search. They’ll then curate a short list of potential egg donors that meet your criteria by using all the resources at their disposal, including their extensive network of egg donor agencies and connections from the decades of doing this work for all the families who came before you. Remember, your process of finding an egg donor does not have to be a stressful path that you travel alone. Our team is here to guide you and make it as easy as possible.
Things to consider during your egg donor search
In working with Donor Concierge as a gay couple or an LGBTQIA+ individual, you are trusting in experts with decades of experience navigating the legal ins and outs of egg donation (and surrogacy) across the U.S.
State Parental Rights
While gay marriage is the law of the land, parentage rights vary from state to state and become particularly nuanced when surrogacy and other assisted reproductive technologies come into play. On our website, you’ll find breakdowns of how states like California and Texas handle egg donation. Your Donor Concierge case manager will also walk you through your preferred state’s approach during your intake session.
Mental, Social & Financial Health
As you start your egg donor search, other things to consider include your mental health, financial health, support system, and available time commitment. While each journey is unique, we have noticed through our hundreds of clients that starting an egg donor search, pregnancy, or surrogacy journey can take a toll on everything from a person’s mental health to their finances. Auditing your starting point will ensure that you are prepared for the road ahead and will know when to ask your case manager for help (and what kind of support you may be looking for).
Egg Donation Cost
Each egg donor search is different, so at Donor Concierge, we’ve created four ways to work together to meet your ultimate goal. Our team can support your egg donor journey either through a:
1-month program
6-month program
Custom Donor Search experience
Private client journey
Each program varies in cost, but on average, a Donor Concierge family can spend anywhere from $22,000 to $65,000 on their search for the ideal egg donor to meet their customized egg donation criteria. You can learn more about our full list of program offerings and cost information on our Egg Donor Search Services page.
While you’ll learn a lot about the egg donor search journey (and yourself) as you decide to grow your family, take a deep breath and remind yourself that you don’t have to be an expert in all this right now. Your Donor Concierge team is here to lead you through and answer all questions you may still have about egg donation costs or finding an egg donor as a gay couple. You are far from alone. We are here every step of the way! Reach out to us online or call us at (415) 663-6097.