FKINP To avoid paying for repeated work, define one evidence question, give each provider the same record of previous searches, then compare archive coverage, budget controls and report terms.
Compare family history research services
SAG research request
- Question: A precise, documented query that may be answered from the Society of Australian Genealogists’ holdings.[6]
- Coverage: Research is confined to SAG’s collection; requests requiring another library or archive are referred to professional genealogists.[6]
- Output and control: Volunteer Research Officers undertake research for non-members, with requests handled by volunteers or staff depending on the enquiry. SAG does not research living people, potentially including people born within the previous 100 years.[6]
Private SAG Diplomate
- Question: More extensive research or work requiring repositories beyond SAG’s collection.[5]
- Coverage: Confirm each researcher’s location, specialties and repository access. SAG’s page establishes completion of its Diploma in Family Historical Studies and availability for commissions at publication, not each Diplomate’s individual coverage.[5]
- Output and control: The commercial arrangement is private between the client and researcher. SAG expressly does not endorse a Diplomate’s commercial activities.[5]
Tricia’s Tracings
- Question: Elusive-ancestor research or a detailed written, social-history or presentation-style family history.[8]
- Coverage: The provider is based in Ballarat, Victoria; confirm access to each archive needed for the project.[8]
- Output and control: Described outputs include detailed reports and presentation folders containing sourced documents, photographs, pedigree charts and family stories.[8]
The prices are not directly comparable. SAG requires an initial A$40 payment in advance and quotes additional research if needed.[6] Private genealogist fees vary, and SAG recommends obtaining an estimate before work starts.[5] Tricia’s Tracings offers historical contract research by fee proposal and says payment plans are available.[8]
Define the question and package previous work
Replace a broad request such as find out more about this ancestor with a question identifying the person, event or relationship, relevant place and period, and evidence sought. For example: What records identify the parents of [named person] who married in [place]?
Send a compact evidence pack containing:
- Your details and request: Include your full name, location, precise question and previous attempts. SAG asks for this information so its researchers do not repeat work.[6]
- Working documents: Attach records already held, an ancestor chart, family-group record and timeline. Mark documented facts, inferences and family recollections separately. CAFHOV provides charts, timelines, research plans and other worksheets that can be used with or without genealogy software.[9]
- Name variants: List alternative spellings, aliases and name orders. For Chinese Australian research, CAFHOV recommends recording possible variations because romanisation, dialect, lifetime name changes and official-record errors can affect results.[9]
- Previous searches: Record the repositories, databases, collections, date ranges, places, search terms and name variants checked, including searches that returned nothing.
Treat family histories, indexes and database entries as leads unless supported by underlying records. AIATSIS describes these secondary sources as useful for background information and further research clues.[3]
Decide whether guidance, a lookup or research is needed
Use archive and library guidance first if the remaining problem is identifying the right collection. Australian births, deaths and marriages are organised by state or territory; state and territory archives hold records for their jurisdictions, while the National Archives of Australia holds Commonwealth-government records.[1][2]
The National Library of Australia provides family-history resources covering records such as births, deaths and marriages, electoral rolls, passenger lists, military records, newspapers and published family histories.[1] Many resources are free in its Newspapers and Family History zone, but Ancestry Library Edition and Findmypast World Edition require an in-person visit, and many subscription databases require a visit or login.[1]
If the record and repository are already known, seek a quote for retrieving that item. A broader commission should specify the searching, comparison, analysis and reporting required beyond a simple lookup.
Check experience and exact archive coverage
Ask each researcher to identify:
- the repositories and record classes they propose to search;
- whether access will be onsite or remote;
- which relevant sources fall outside their coverage;
- their experience with the jurisdiction, record type and historical period; and
- what would trigger referral to another researcher.
A SAG Diplomate has completed the Society’s Diploma in Family Historical Studies, but the directory is not a guarantee of commercial performance: SAG does not endorse Diplomates’ commercial activities, and each arrangement is private.[5] The cited SAG directory page does not identify each Diplomate’s specialties, location or archive access, while Tricia’s Tracings does not state archive-by-archive coverage.[5][8]
Ask for a sample report or an anonymised example of comparable work before agreeing to a large commission.
Set an hours cap and progress checkpoints
SAG recommends making initial contact with a professional genealogist in writing, describing the work clearly and obtaining an estimate before research begins.[5] The written estimate should specify:
- the maximum authorised hours or total spend;
- the hourly rate or fixed-fee basis;
- which activities are billable, including searching, correspondence, analysis and report preparation;
- a stop/go checkpoint after an agreed amount of work or after priority sources have been searched; and
- which purchases or additional work require written approval.
At each checkpoint, require a short account of sources searched, findings, unsuccessful searches, remaining priorities and budget used before authorising another stage.
Specify citations, uncertainty and negative searches
Define the report as a contractual deliverable. Request:
- Retrievable citations: Each material finding should identify the repository or database, collection or series, item or image, and relevant page where available.
- Evidence assessment: The report should distinguish documented facts from inferences, conflicting evidence and unresolved possibilities. Competing interpretations should be explained.
- Negative-search log: Require a record of repositories, collections, years, places, names and search terms checked without success. CAFHOV’s research log tracks sources examined, while its correspondence log and repository checklist record enquiries, contacts and institutions.[9]
- Next steps: Ask for further searches ranked by likely value and estimated cost.
Do not commission a guaranteed discovery or ask documentary research alone to determine inheritance, citizenship, biological parentage or medical risk.
What to confirm with each provider
The SAG research-request page publishes a $40 advance initial fee; the cited pages do not publish the other terms for the following matters.[5][6][8]
- Price and limits: Hourly or fixed fees, included hours, maximum spend, checkpoint timing and overrun approval.
- Extra charges: Certificates, record copies, archive retrieval, travel, postage, scanning, translation, database access and report production.
- Report specifications: Length, structure, file format, delivery date, document images, full citations, uncertainty statements, negative-search notes and revisions.
- Rights: Ownership, licensing and permitted reuse of the report and supplied images.
- Privacy: Confidentiality, consent, secure file transfer, access controls, retention and deletion.
- Ending the engagement: Cancellation, rescheduling, refunds and termination.
Tricia’s Tracings distinguishes detailed written reports from presentation folders, which may contain sourced documents, ancestor photographs, pedigree charts and family stories. Specify which format is included in the quote.[8] SAG separately advises care and respect for relatives’ privacy and states that its institutional service does not research living people.[6]
Send a one-page written scope
Send each candidate the same brief so quotes cover the same question and starting material:
Research question: [exact question]
Person: [identity, dates, places and name variants]
Starting material: [attached evidence, prior findings and unsuccessful searches]
Proposed work: [repositories, records and exclusions]
Budget control: [authorised hours or spend, checkpoint and overrun approval]
Deliverables: [report format, citations, uncertainty, negative searches and deadline]
Other terms: [privacy, additional charges, revisions, cancellation and reuse]
Require the provider to answer each field and accept the scope in writing before work begins. Choose SAG’s institutional request for a precise question within its holdings, consider a private SAG Diplomate for broader repository work, or consider Tricia’s Tracings when the required output is a detailed report or presentation-style family history.[5][6][8]
References
- Family history research guide | National Library of Australia (NLA) (library.gov.au)
- Researching your family | naa.gov.au (naa.gov.au)
- Get organised | AIATSIS corporate website (aiatsis.gov.au)
- Society of Australian Genealogists – Hire A Professional Genealogist (sag.org.au)
- Society of Australian Genealogists – Make a Research Request (sag.org.au)
- Home – Family History Detective: Tricia's Tracings (familyhistorydetectivetriciastracings.com.au)
- Chinese Australian Family History Research Guide – CAFHOV (cafhov.com)
