Woo, this is my first post here! :)
We are wrapping up our first experience with hosting. We've had a 17-year-old Italian girl for the whole school year! We weren't sure about that long for our first time, but our high school only accepts full year placements, so that was that! It has been a great experience. We're pretty sure we're going to wait another year and then host again.
The program we're with is called Cultural Homestay International. The support has been fantastic! We "matched" with our student in May, and she arrived in August. So we had a lot of time to Skype, email and chat via WhatsApp to get to know each other a bit before she arrived. We were able to talk about what some of our expectations were, and I believe either of us could have backed out if any issues came up.
1. What are the costs? Do we cover all room/board or do they pay a stipend?
With CHI, we don't receive a stipend. We offer a place to stay, and 3 meals a day, and a nice environment (I hope!) It is a State Department requirement (I believe) that the student has their own bed (not a futon or hide-a-bed) and cell phone not on the family's plan. However they are responsible for that cost. Any spending money, sports, school fees and activities, specific food requests, etc. are the responsibility of the student.
2. What do we do if we go on a trip? Adding a third child would be another plane ticket and a whole nother hotel room, so quite expensive. Are we expected to fund the exchange student? If not, where do they go?
We've gone on 3 trips with our student. With our program, it's definitely acceptable to ask the student to pay their costs. We paid for the first 2 trips because we wanted to, but the 3rd was a week-long roadtrip for Spring Break. We did ask her to pay for 25% of the lodging and her share of activities, and we paid for food and gas. No problems whatsoever. We have a 12-year-old son; we bought a single-sized air mattress and he slept on that in the 2 Holiday Inns we stayed in, but the rest of the time we had 3 bed AirBnbs. Your coordinator should be able to help you find someone for the student to stay with if they aren't able to go with you.
3. Are curfews typical? How much are you parenting vs. having a young adult guest in your house?
House rules are totally acceptable, and encouraged. Our student was a little different, in that during the week she lives with her older brother in "the city" and only sees her parents in "the village" on the weekends. So she was used to a certain amount of independence. She had no problem with having a curfew and rules about when she could go out with friends. We haven't really had to parent much, I don't think, but I'm not sure how much of that is just not having had a teenager before!
4. Along the same lines can you assign typical household chores in line with the other children in the house?
Absolutely. I think it really helps the students feel like family, and not just guests.
5. Are there any unacceptable age combinations? We have a 9 and 11 year old.
Our program didn't mention any. I was nervous about our 12-year-old boy, but there have been no issues. Well, it took a while for him to get out of "only child mode" and realize that he didn't get 100% of our attention anymore. But they were bickering like siblings by Christmas!
6. Pros and cons of different length exchanges? I have seen from 1 month to a year. The longer ones are a little scary because what if the student annoys the crap out of us or there are other issues?
Initially, we didn't want a full-year student, but that's all our high school accepts. When we met with the coordinators, they reassured us that nothing is set in stone. If it really doesn't work out, they will find a new family. There have been a few students in our group that had to be moved, but they made it work. I would imagine that a shorter placement would logistically be easier, but you don't get the same bonding as a longer placement!