Comparison stage · 7 min read
10 Questions to Ask Before Hiring In-Home Support in Orange County or LA
You don't have twelve hours to research this properly. These ten questions do most of the work of a long comparison in a single phone call.
Use this as a phone script, not a research project
Every service sounds identical on its website, which is why comparing websites is a waste of an evening you don't have. Ask the same ten questions of each one, take notes in the same order, and the differences surface fast.
You are also, realistically, the only person doing this evaluation. There's no sibling double-checking your shortlist. That's an argument for a short, repeatable script rather than an exhaustive one.
The ten questions
1. Who exactly will my loved one work with — one named person, or whoever is available that day?
2. What is your vetting standard for outside providers? Ask for the specific checks: background, license verification, insurance, in-person interview.
3. Can we meet that person before committing?
4. What happens if it isn't a good fit — is there a replacement guarantee?
5. What is included in the monthly fee, and what is billed separately?
6. How do you handle after-hours and urgent requests?
7. What reaches me, how often, in what format — and who controls what gets shared?
8. What is your response time on a normal request?
9. Do you carry liability insurance, and are your providers insured independently?
10. What does the first 30 days look like, concretely — what will be handled without me?
What good answers sound like
Specific, unhedged, and the same answer twice. If pricing, vetting, or accountability turns vague under a direct question, that vagueness reappears later as a surprise invoice or an unfamiliar face at the door — and as another problem routed to you.
Pay particular attention to question 10. A service that can describe the first month concretely is a service that will actually take work off your plate; one that can't will hand it back in the form of check-ins.
Before you make the calls
If you want the whole picture in one place, download the Getting Started Checklist — every category you'll eventually have to deal with, from legal documents to insurance to daily routine, organized so you can work through it in the order that suits your week.