37 guides · All dataset-fed, all dated
Every guide below is written from the same 50-state dataset as the checkers — the numbers in the prose are the numbers in the tables, checked October 22, 2026. Guides explain; the checker decides for your state.
What it really costs to open a non-medical home care agency: the five cost buckets, the guru $3k claim, the consultant $80k quote, and the payroll line nobody prints.
The California opening number, line by line: Home Care Organization License fee, bond, insurance, screening and payroll runway — computed, not guessed.
The Texas opening number, line by line: Home and Community Support Services Agency (HCSSA) License — Personal Assistance Services category fee, bond, insurance, screening and payroll runway — computed, not guessed.
The Florida opening number, line by line: Homemaker and Companion Services Provider Registration (Fla. Stat. §400.509) fee, bond, insurance, screening and payroll runway — computed, not guessed.
The New York opening number, line by line: Licensed Home Care Services Agency (LHCSA) License fee, bond, insurance, screening and payroll runway — computed, not guessed.
The New Jersey opening number, line by line: Health Care Service Firm Registration fee, bond, insurance, screening and payroll runway — computed, not guessed.
The Illinois opening number, line by line: Home Services Agency License fee, bond, insurance, screening and payroll runway — computed, not guessed.
The Georgia opening number, line by line: Private Home Care Provider License fee, bond, insurance, screening and payroll runway — computed, not guessed.
The North Carolina opening number, line by line: Home Care Agency License fee, bond, insurance, screening and payroll runway — computed, not guessed.
The Pennsylvania opening number, line by line: Home Care Agency License (separate license type: Home Care Registry) fee, bond, insurance, screening and payroll runway — computed, not guessed.
The Ohio opening number, line by line: Nonmedical Home Health Services License fee, bond, insurance, screening and payroll runway — computed, not guessed.
Brand and system vs freedom and margin — with the FDD numbers on the table and the 10-year math done both ways. No franchise-bashing; no brochure copy either.
Home Instead's franchise fee ($54,000) and total initial investment ($92,640–$350,550) from its own 2026 FDD Item 7 — what the range is made of, in plain words.
Visiting Angels' 2026 FDD: fee $51,950–$89,950 by territory, total $125,460–$171,150, royalty 3–3.5% plus 2–2.5% advertising. The full picture in one page.
A worked 10-year comparison on stated assumptions: franchise percentages and brand support vs independent freedom — and the two questions that actually decide it.
Moratoria, need presumptions and certificate-of-need states: the live gates in front of new home care founders, dated and sourced.
What a certificate of need is, which states apply it to home care or home health, what the application demands, and how to plan a timeline around it.
New York presumes a county with five or more home care agencies needs no new one. How the LHCSA need test works, what rebutting it takes, and how to plan around it.
SB 164 froze new California Home Health Agency licenses from June 29, 2026. The non-medical HCO lane is a different door — here is the map of what closed and what didn't.
It depends on the state — three regulatory species (license, registration, none), what each one means, and why 'no license' never means 'no rules'.
A state license does not let you bill Medicaid. HCBS waiver and personal-care enrollment is a separate application, separate timeline, mandatory EVV — state by state.
What EVV is, why Medicaid requires it, what it costs a small agency, and why it belongs in the opening budget — not the month-three surprise budget.
Rates you set vs rates the state sets; fast simplicity vs steady volume; the cash-flow math that should make the decision, with the enrollment timeline included.
General and professional liability, the state minimums where they exist (California's $1M/$3M), what insurers actually ask, and the wrong-entity binder mistake that stalls licenses.
A bond is not a fee. What a surety bond is, which states require one (New Jersey $10,000, California $10,000 dishonesty), and what the premium really runs.
Why the P&P binder decides licenses, what a survey-grade binder must contain, what purchased manuals get wrong, and why we sell a spec — never a boilerplate binder.
New York 6–12 months, North Carolina 90–180 days, Pennsylvania 10–20 weeks, Illinois provisional ~90 days, New Jersey 30–60 days — the dated timeline table.
The administrator is the person the state holds responsible. Experience rules, credential rules, and why a mismatch stalls applications before anyone reads your binder.
What California requires for a home care agency license: the Home Care Organization License, fee, bond, administrator rule, covered services and the Medicaid gate — from primary sources.
What Texas requires for a home care agency license: the Home and Community Support Services Agency (HCSSA) License — Personal Assistance Services category, fee, bond, administrator rule, covered services and the Medicaid gate — from primary sources.
What Florida requires for a home care agency license: the Homemaker and Companion Services Provider Registration (Fla. Stat. §400.509), fee, bond, administrator rule, covered services and the Medicaid gate — from primary sources.
What New York requires for a home care agency license: the Licensed Home Care Services Agency (LHCSA) License, fee, bond, administrator rule, covered services and the Medicaid gate — from primary sources.
What New Jersey requires for a home care agency license: the Health Care Service Firm Registration, fee, bond, administrator rule, covered services and the Medicaid gate — from primary sources.
Companionship, homemaker help, personal care, live-in, transportation — and the line where non-medical ends: the scope map behind every license verdict.
Bathing is hands-on personal care. In Florida a $50 companion registration legally excludes it. How the hands-on line works state by state — and what to do instead.
A reminder is non-medical. Administration is nursing. Where the line runs, why it matters for your license scope, and the words to use and avoid.
Wound care, injections, IV therapy, skilled assessments — what sits behind the home health license, and why it is a different business, not an upgrade.
