Let’s face it, we all need a little help sometimes. When your car is not working, you take it to a professional mechanic. When your computer does something strange and unexpected, you call the IT department in your workplace. If you are having difficulty with your genealogy research, you can benefit from the assistance of a professional genealogist.
Professional genealogists are people who are working 30 to 70 hours a week, every week, on genealogy research for other people. They make their living entirely from the genealogy work that they do. It is their career, not just a hobby that they do in their spare time. A professional genealogist will charge an hourly rate that matches their own skill level, education, and experience in genealogy. Their rate might also reflect how in demand their services are.
Professional genealogists will be able to specifically state exactly what their hourly rate will be, and discuss with you other fees that might be come up that are specific to the research they are doing for you. It is a good idea to talk with the professional genealogist you are hiring, and make it clear exactly what you want that person to help you with.
There are many reasons why you should hire a professional genealogist. For some people, it is a matter of convenience, and for others, it is a way to supplement genealogy research skills that they, personally, do not possess.
You might want to hire a professional genealogist when:
*You just don’t have the time right now to do the research you want done. You do, however, have the money to pay someone else to do it.
*The documents you need for your genealogy research are written in a language that you cannot read or understand. The professional you hire might be fluent in that language.
*You are seeking records about adoption, or looking for a birth parent, and need someone to assist you with the legal aspects that this kind of search may require.
*You have hit a “brick wall”, are at a dead end, and have completely run out of ideas about how to continue your genealogy research. The professional genealogist should know about resources that you were not aware of, or may have researching skills that you have not learned.
*You are trying to locate living family members, and have been unsuccessful in your attempts.