How to find a birth parent (or other relative)?
Many people seeking genetic genealogy services have unknown family members, but what if you don’t need the service to find that relative?
Before hiring a genetic genealogist, we recommend taking an Ancestry DNA test if you suspect your unknown relative was born in the USA. Other DNA testing services exist, but Ancestry offers the most matches in the USA and is the best place to start.
We also recommend waiting for your results before hiring. It is possible that your unknown relative or a close relation to that relative has already tested. If your relative has tested, you won’t need to hire a genetic genealogist! However, if your relative has not tested, there is still a benefit to testing first. When you receive your matches, you will also be able to see how closely related you are to your matches. If you receive a match in your unknown line that is a close relative, you may need to commission far fewer hours than if your closest match was a distant cousin.
Genetic genealogists use several simple techniques that cascade into a complex system; however, when DNA matches are closely related to the tester, we often don't need to do much more than verification.
If you would like to know more about seeking unknown relatives, we would love to help! Contact us today to come up with a research plan!