Care Wizard™Start
Open your care business the right way.
A plain-English roadmap for getting off the ground — free to read, wherever you are.
- Free roadmap from idea to open doors
- Entity, EIN, business banking, and insurance — explained simply
- Where to find your state's licensing path
- A readiness checklist and a startup budget planner
General guidance, not legal or financial advice. Always confirm anything important with a licensed professional.
The path from idea to open doors.
The same guided, step-by-step style as the rest of Care Wizard — so starting a care business feels doable, not overwhelming.
Decide your service line & structure
Group home, supported living, home care, day program — pick your lane, and the ownership structure (LLC, S-corp, nonprofit) that fits it.
Form your entity & get your EIN
Register the business in your state and get your federal EIN so you can open accounts and hire — we explain each step in plain English.
Business banking & insurance
Separate business banking, and the coverage a care business needs — general liability, professional, workers' comp. What each is and why it matters.
Find your licensing path
Every state licenses care businesses differently. We point you to your state's authority and the general steps — so you know where to start.
Policies, staffing & first hires
The core policies and the first roles to hire, with a checklist so nothing essential slips through the cracks before you open.
Open — and stay ready
Once you're running, Care Wizard keeps you organized day to day, with verified compliance tracking for Florida APD providers.
Full compliance tracking for Florida APD providers today — more states as we verify them.
Interactive
Are you ready to open?
Tick off what you've done. Saved to this browser only — we store nothing.
Decide & structure
Make it official
Protect it
Staff & open
Interactive
Startup budget planner
Adjust each line to your own plan. Rough ballparks — saved to this browser only.
Business formation & registration
Typical $50–$800
Licensing & application fees
Typical $100–$2,000
Insurance (first year)
Typical $1,500–$8,000
Facility setup, deposits & furnishings
Typical $2,000–$25,000
Initial staffing & training
Typical $2,000–$15,000
Software & tools
Typical $200–$2,000
Working-capital buffer
Typical $5,000–$30,000
Your estimated startup cost
Most plans land somewhere around $10,850–$82,800.
$46,825
The stuff nobody explains simply.
Plain-English basics to get you oriented. The specifics vary by state — always confirm with a professional.
🏢 Which business structure?
- LLCThe common starting point — simple, flexible, and separates your personal assets from the business.
- S-corpAn LLC or corporation that elects S-corp tax treatment — can save on self-employment tax once you're profitable.
- NonprofitFor mission-driven organizations that qualify — different rules, funding, and paperwork.
🛡️ Which insurance?
- General liabilityCovers third-party accidents and injuries — the baseline most care businesses carry.
- ProfessionalCovers claims tied to the care and services you provide (sometimes called E&O).
- Workers' compFor employee injuries — required in most states once you have staff.
Opening in Florida?
Once you're licensed and running, Care Wizard's verified APD compliance tool keeps you inspection-ready day to day.
🏛️ Where Care Wizard actually helps
This page is free guidance for getting open — we don't sell an opening service. What we sell starts the day you are licensed: tracking the trainings, screenings, drills and renewals your Florida APD homes have to keep, each one cited to the rule it comes from.
Also on Care Wizard
More on Care Wizard.
Start, Run and Grow are free to read, wherever you are. Compliance tracking for Florida APD homes is the part we charge for.
Start
Open your care business the right way.
A plain-English roadmap for getting off the ground — free to read, wherever you are.
You're hereRun
Run the day-to-day from one place.
The operating tools that take the busywork off your plate, so running your homes feels calmer and takes less time.
Learn moreGrow
Grow with the right people beside you.
Best-practice guidance plus a directory of established providers to help you strengthen and expand — without the guesswork.
Learn moreComply
Stay inspection-ready — verified for Florida APD.
The deep, verified compliance tool at the heart of Care Wizard. Each requirement cited to its source. Accuracy is the product.
Learn more