How Does the Home Instead Senior Care Franchise Work?

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Operating model

How does Home Instead operate after opening?

Direct answer Under the 2026 FDD, the U.S. Franchised Business is a local home-care service operation: the local team develops Clients, assesses needs, builds care plans, arranges Care Pros and delivers Approved Services in homes. Home Instead controls service scope, territory, brand, technology and supplier rules; Honor can centralize workforce and back-office functions through the Care Platform.

Data basis. Legal franchisor: Home Instead, Inc.; parent: Honor Technology, Inc. FDD issued April 29, 2026. Applicable structures: the U.S. Franchised Business, approved multi-territory arrangements and the Institutional Owner Addendum. Evidence used: Items 1, 6, 8, 11, 12, 15, 16, 19 and 20 plus attached agreements. Item 20 runs through December 31, 2025; public pages checked August 8, 2026. See the official U.S. franchise site.

634U.S. outlets626 franchised and 8 in the Item 20 company-owned category at 12/31/2025.

10,000+Older adultsEstimated minimum age-65+ population used to define a Protected Area.

2Care operating pathsRequired operating software is WellSky or the Honor Care Platform.

9Named Required SystemsExamples listed in Item 11, in addition to the core care platform.

Full-timeSupervisionBy the franchisee or an approved, trained manager.

What does the franchise sell, and who buys it?

The contractual offering is the FDD-defined Approved Services: companionship, home helper services, personal care, nurse directed services, specialized services and other authorized care for older adults. Home Instead, Inc. can add or remove Approved Services, and a franchisee cannot sell an unauthorized service without prior written approval.

Clients are older adults and other individuals who need care. The consumer site organizes demand around daily-living help, memory support, condition-specific care, transportation and companionship; availability varies by location. That aligns with the FDD rule that the franchisor determines the authorized service menu. See Home Instead home-care services.

Demand also comes through referral relationships and National Accounts, which Item 12 says may include referral services, insurers, hospital systems, nursing homes and hospice facilities. A required Business Development Advisor develops community and referral-source relationships; a required Client Care Advisor conducts care consultations, oversees care plans and monitors service quality and Client satisfaction.

Sources: 2026 FDD, Item 1 p. 2; Item 12 pp. 37-38; Item 15 p. 46; Item 16 p. 47; official consumer services page.

How does work move from inquiry to completed care?

The operating cycle is a service workflow, not a retail transaction: demand is captured, care needs are assessed, an authorized care plan is created, a qualified Care Pro is assigned, care is delivered in the Client’s home, and activity is billed, recorded and reported through the required operating stack.

Verified Home Instead operating workflow

Inquiry and referral capture

Actor: Local office, referral source, digital channel; optional Care Solutions Team.
Action: Receive Client or family inquiry, follow up and qualify location and care need.
System/asset: Salesforce, Invoca, local listings and Home Instead digital presence.
Output: Qualified inquiry inside the permitted service area.

Care consultation and plan

Actor: Client Care Advisor or other authorized local team member.
Action: Assess needs, confirm Approved Services and develop the Client care plan.
System/asset: Operations Manual and required care operating software.
Output: Defined service plan ready for staffing and scheduling.

Care Pro sourcing and assignment

Actor: Franchisee/local team, or a parent-company affiliate under the centralized platform path.
Action: Recruit, onboard, train and arrange the Care Pro workforce under the applicable operating path.
System/asset: ApplicantStack, Activated Insights, WellSky or Care Platform.
Output: Care Pro available for the approved Client assignment.

Schedule and deliver care

Actor: Care Pro and local care team; the centralized platform path may handle scheduling.
Action: Deliver the authorized in-home care and maintain the agreed care routine.
System/asset: Care plan, WellSky or Care Platform and required Client records.
Output: Completed service hours and care records.

Billing, collection and Client follow-up

Actor: Local operation; a parent-company affiliate may perform billing and collection under the centralized path.
Action: Record service charges, invoice or collect, and address Client service issues.
System/asset: Required operating software and Client care records.
Output: Recorded Gross Sales and ongoing Client relationship.

Financial reporting and control

Actor: Franchisee and Home Instead, Inc.
Action: Submit monthly financial statements; franchisor monitors business information and compliance.
System/asset: Zeewise, standardized chart of accounts and franchisor data access.
Output: System reporting, audit trail and next-period operating data.

Sources: 2026 FDD, Items 1, 11, 15, 16 and Franchise Agreement Sections 4, 9, 12-13. The public Honor Care Platform operating page states that Honor handles recruiting and training, scheduling, and billing/invoicing for participating local agencies, while local agencies assess new Client needs and manage local relationships.

Who runs the unit, and what changes under the Care Platform?

This is not contractually an absentee model. Item 15 requires full-time supervision by the franchisee or by an employed manager who completed Home Instead franchise training and received written approval. If performance falls short under manager operation, the franchisor can require one or more Principals to become full-time operators.

Responsibility map: local operation vs. network dependencies

Franchisee / local office

Full-time supervision through the owner or approved manager.
Local Client assessment, relationship management and state-law compliance.
Approved Services delivery through Care Pros under the applicable staffing path.
Local referral development, office operations, required records and monthly reporting.

Home Instead, Inc.

Defines Approved Services, Operations Manual standards and area rules.
Approves managers, marketing materials, designated vendors and Required Systems.
Provides ongoing operational support and can inspect, audit and access business data.
Controls the Marketing Fund and may designate National Accounts participation.

Honor / designated third parties

Honor owns the Care Platform and may provide Care Pro recruiting, onboarding, training and employment.
The platform may include care management, scheduling, billing and collection.
WellSky and other Designated Suppliers provide required software or services.
Third parties can support local marketing, digital presence and other designated programs.

Sources: 2026 FDD, Items 1, 8, 11 and 15. The official franchise model page describes the Care Platform as centralizing operations; the FDD controls which functions are actually assigned to a parent-company affiliate.

The franchisor may require a Business Development Advisor and Client Care Advisor. Under a Multi-Territory Addendum, one approved full-time manager may oversee up to three contiguous same-state Franchised Businesses, but separate managers can be reinstated with 120 days’ notice. The Institutional Owner Addendum instead uses a designated top executive to oversee operations.

Which systems, suppliers and operating controls are mandatory?

Technology and sourcing are heavily standardized. Every franchisee must use either WellSky or the Care Platform as operating software, acquire the Required Systems designated by the franchisor, follow equipment and supply specifications, and use Designated Suppliers when made mandatory.

Required technology and reporting stack

Care operations

WellSky or Honor Care Platform. The franchisor currently has independent access to data stored in both.

Demand and digital

Salesforce for customer relationship and lead management, Invoca for call tracking, and Yext for digital presence.

People and access

ApplicantStack for applicant/onboarding workflows, Activated Insights for learning, Ping for identity/access, plus Microsoft Office365.

Finance and content

Zeewise for financial collection/analytics and monthly statements; Canva for designated content work.

Source: 2026 FDD, Item 11 pp. 29-31. Required Systems are examples listed as of the FDD issuance date and may be modified.

The control extends beyond software names. The franchisor can change Designated Items, Designated Suppliers, specifications and system requirements. A franchisee may propose a new supplier for some non-designated inputs, but cannot request alternatives to a Designated Item or Designated Supplier. Item 8 says Honor or its subsidiaries may become sole suppliers for certain technology, background-check, document-signing and insurance services.

During the Franchise Agreement term, the franchisee and franchisor jointly own operating information; the franchisor may access it at any time and requires monthly financial statements through Zeewise using the standardized chart of accounts. The franchisee must use the provided Home Instead email for business communications and maintain reliable, redundant high-speed internet.

FRANCHISOR CONTROLThe largest ongoing dependency is not a single vendor. It is Home Instead’s contractual ability to change the Operations Manual, Required Systems, Designated Suppliers and operating specifications while retaining audit and data-access rights. The franchisee controls day-to-day execution only inside that changing system envelope.

Sources: 2026 FDD, Item 8 pp. 22-24 and Item 11 pp. 28-31; Franchise Agreement Sections 9, 12 and 13.

How do the Protected Area and customer-acquisition channels work?

The franchisee receives a defined Protected Area built around an estimated minimum population of 10,000 people age 65 or older. Home Instead, Inc. will not license another franchisee or operate another Home Instead business in that Protected Area, but the FDD expressly says the franchisee does not receive a fully exclusive territory.

The franchisee generally may not solicit or serve outside the Protected Area without authorization. Care in another franchisee’s Protected Area requires that owner’s written permission for the specific individual, and Internet, telemarketing or other direct marketing cannot be used to sell outside the area. Home Instead, Inc. reserves digital channels, ancillary offerings and National Accounts rights; Honor-affiliated home-care operations may also operate inside a Protected Area.

Local demand generation remains an operating responsibility. The Marketing Fund finances brand advertising and research; the official training and support page describes a local franchise website, referral-networking materials and national media management. Local advertising has no current percentage-spend requirement, but unapproved creative needs advance approval and designated sales-promotion programs are mandatory.

TERRITORY LIMITProtected Area protection is conditional. Item 12 ties its exclusivity to the Performance Standard in the Franchise Agreement and allows termination, loss of exclusivity or area reduction if the standard is not maintained. Renewal can also produce a smaller Protected Area under then-current demographic standards.

Sources: 2026 FDD, Item 11 pp. 31-35 and Item 12 pp. 37-40; Franchise Agreement Exhibit A.

What does Item 20 show about the operating footprint?

At December 31, 2025, Item 20 reported 634 U.S. outlets: 626 franchised and 8 in the table’s company-owned category. The narrative describes those eight as affiliate-operated businesses, so the table label and ownership description are not interchangeable.

U.S. outlet composition — December 31, 2025

626 franchised — 98.7%Item 20 Table 1, end of 2025.

8 company-owned category — 1.3%The narrative describes these eight as affiliate-operated businesses.

100.0% reconciled626 + 8 = 634; percentages use the exact 634-outlet denominator.

Interpretation: the U.S. footprint remained overwhelmingly franchised, while the non-franchised category increased from 3 outlets at the end of 2023 to 8 at the end of 2025.

Source: 2026 Home Instead, Inc. FDD, Item 20, Table No. 1 p. 58 and narrative p. 68. Franchised outlets ended 2023 at 616, 2024 at 619 and 2025 at 626; the company-owned table category ended those years at 3, 6 and 8.

What should a buyer verify before relying on this operating model?

The remaining questions are assignment-specific: the exact Protected Area and Performance Standard, WellSky versus Care Platform, current BDA/CCA staffing rules, current Designated Suppliers, and state rules that limit nurse directed or other Approved Services.

Care Platform assignmentConfirm which Care Pro employment, scheduling, care-management, billing and collection functions Honor or an affiliate will perform for the specific franchise.
Protected Area mechanicsReview Franchise Agreement Exhibit A, current demographics, the Performance Standard and any authorized cross-territory service procedures.
Required staffingConfirm whether Home Instead currently requires a Business Development Advisor, Client Care Advisor or separate Operations Manager for the applicable ownership structure.
Supplier and software listObtain the current Operations Manual list of Required Systems, Designated Items, Designated Suppliers and any sole-source Honor affiliate services.
National AccountsIdentify active programs, referral channels, service standards and local fulfillment obligations that apply inside the Protected Area.
State operating rulesVerify licensing, nurse-delegation, training, insurance and other local requirements before deciding which Approved Services can actually be delivered.

The official franchising process page describes access to the Honor Care Platform; the FDD and signed addenda control the operating assignment.

Operating-model synthesis

The customer mechanism is scheduled in-home care sold as Approved Services to Clients and referral-driven accounts. The franchisee’s central responsibility is full-time supervision of local acquisition, assessment, service quality and compliance. The strongest dependency is Home Instead control over service scope, systems, suppliers, data and Protected Area rules, with Honor taking added workforce and back-office functions on the Care Platform. The key distinction is the WellSky-versus-Care Platform path and the resulting division of Care Pro employment, scheduling and billing. The largest undisclosed question is the current staffing and supplier configuration in the buyer’s Protected Area.