But the Chicago advertising executive never expected she would have to sell her house, drop out of business school and move back in with her parents to tackle costs associated with hiring the surrogate mother who delivered a healthy baby girl on her behalf earlier this year.
She joins the selective but growing ranks of would-be parents – primarily upscale professionals with ample discretionary cash – turning to gestational surrogates to help them fulfill their dreams of having biologically connected children. This differs from traditional surrogacy, in which the surrogate is the child’s genetic mother.
But the costs faced by people working with gestational surrogates are daunting, with few options outside of creative self-funding or high-priced loans.
“I felt like movie stars do that,” said DiSantis, who despite a six-figure-plus income struggled with expenses that she said ultimately approached $300,000. “I didn’t know what it was or how it worked.” Read full article.
