How to Choose a Mold Remediation Company: $450 Test, License

Texas, Florida and New York rows from each state's agency or statute; the other rows from the Environmental Law Institute's 2024 summary of state mold laws (laws through 2023). Connecticut covers mold remediation over $200 under home improvement registration, and Tennessee under an environmental contractor classification.

Is it urgent? When mold needs a company and when it does not

• Hire a company: the moldy area is more than about 10 square feet, the EPA's cutoff for a homeowner cleanup, or the damage came from sewage or other contaminated water, where the EPA says to call in a professional. If you suspect mold in the HVAC system, the EPA says not to run it.
• Do it yourself: a patch smaller than about 10 square feet on a hard surface. The EPA says you can usually handle that yourself once the water source is fixed. Texas lets unlicensed people clean areas under 25 contiguous square feet.
• Call the insurer first: the mold followed a sudden leak such as a burst pipe. Photograph it before anything is removed. Never sign over the claim to the mold company.

"The key to mold control is moisture control," the EPA says. Unless the leak or humidity is fixed, mold can come back after remediation, so the first question for any company is what it thinks the moisture source is. The Texas Department of Insurance says mold from a sudden, covered leak may be covered, while mold from a gradual leak usually is not.

How do I check a mold remediation company's license?

Look the company up with your state's mold licensing agency, if your state has one. Texas licenses mold assessors and remediators through the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR), with a public license search. Florida's DBPR licenses both and lets you verify by name or number. New York's Department of Labor has required a licensed assessor and a licensed remediation contractor for areas over 10 square feet since January 1, 2016. Louisiana licenses mold remediation over $7,500, and the District of Columbia requires certification or a license, per the Environmental Law Institute's 2024 summary.

Most states have no mold license. There, check the general contractor license if walls or ceilings come out, ask for IICRC certification and references, and ask for proof of insurance. Florida sets a useful benchmark: its law requires mold remediators to carry at least $1 million in general liability coverage that includes mold, and assessors $1 million in general liability and errors and omissions. City pages with each state's lookup: mold removal in Dallas, mold removal in Miami and mold removal in New York.

Why the mold tester should not be the mold remover

A company that finds mold and is paid to remove it has a reason to find more. Several states close that gap by law. Texas says a license holder may not do both mold assessment and mold remediation on the same project; the remediator works from a protocol written by a licensed Mold Assessment Consultant, and a post-remediation assessment decides clearance. New York's Labor Law says no licensee shall do both on the same project. Florida bars an assessor's company from remediating a structure it assessed in the last 12 months, bars the reverse, and bars assessor fees that depend on what the assessor concludes. Louisiana bars doing both on the same property, and Maine allows it only with a signed disclosure, per the Environmental Law Institute.

Even where no law requires it, the split protects you. Hire the assessor yourself, get the written protocol, and give every remediation bidder the same protocol so the quotes price the same work. The industry standard, ANSI/IICRC S520 (Fourth Edition, 2024), builds in a post-remediation verification step and the role of the Indoor Environmental Professional.

What questions should I ask a mold remediation company before hiring?

Ask these nine before you let a company start, and get the answers in writing:

1. What is your state mold license number? In Texas, Florida and New York it should be a remediator license, not an assessor license.
2. Who wrote the remediation plan? In Texas and New York it should be a separate licensed assessor.
3. What do you think the water source is, and who will fix it? Remediation without a moisture fix does not last.
4. How will you seal the work area off from the rest of the house, and filter the air? Ask which standard the crew follows; the industry standard is ANSI/IICRC S520.
5. Are your technicians IICRC certified?
6. Who checks the work when you finish? Post-remediation verification should come from the assessor, not the company that did the removal.
7. Will I get a certificate or clearance report? The Texas Department of Insurance says mold professionals must provide a certificate that the mold was removed.
8. In Texas, will you file the TDLR notice? Remediation of 25 contiguous square feet or more requires one, at $25 a project.
9. What is excluded? Rebuilding walls, replacing insulation and cleaning ducts are often separate prices.

The insurance company does not get to pick. The Texas Attorney General says your insurer cannot require you to use a specific mold company.

What are the red flags? Warning signs with mold companies

Walk away from a mold company that tests and removes on the same job where your state forbids it, sells testing you do not need, or skips the license check:

• Free testing from the company that will do the removal. Texas, New York and Florida forbid one licensee doing both on the same job; elsewhere it is still a conflict.
• Air samples sold as the first step when you can already see the mold. The EPA says that in most cases, if visible mold is present, sampling is unnecessary.
• No license number in a state that licenses mold work. The Texas Department of Insurance tells homeowners to make sure the mold professional has a state license.
• No plan for the water source. The EPA says to clean up the mold promptly and fix the water problem; one without the other does not last.
• Pressure to sign over your insurance claim. Photograph the damage, call your insurer and keep control of the claim.
• A crew that runs the HVAC system through the work. The EPA says not to run a system you suspect is contaminated, because it could spread mold through the building.

How much should a mold company charge for the first visit?

A mold inspection costs $300 to $650, averaging $450, in HomeGuide's figures. Remediation itself averages $2,368 in HomeAdvisor's June 2026 data, with most jobs $1,223 to $3,757, or $10 to $25 a square foot. If a company offers a free inspection along with its removal bid, remember that Texas, New York and Florida keep those two jobs apart. Prices by room are on mold remediation cost and testing options on mold inspection cost.

What should be in a mold remediation contract?

The contract should name the areas, the containment, the protocol it follows and how clearance will be decided, with the price for each. List:

• The remediator's license number, in a state that licenses mold work.
• The protocol or plan it follows and who wrote it.
• The areas and square footage, the materials to be removed, and containment and HEPA filtration.
• How clearance will be decided, by whom, and what happens if the area fails.
• Exclusions: rebuild, insulation, duct cleaning, contents.
• The deposit, inside any state limit. California caps home improvement down payments at 10 percent or $1,000, whichever is less (CSLB).

Where do I complain about a mold company?

Complain to the state agency that licensed the company: TDLR in Texas, which takes complaints within two years; the DBPR in Florida; the Department of Labor in New York. In other states, go to the attorney general's consumer office and, if walls or ceilings were rebuilt, the contractor board. Coverage disputes go to your state insurance department; Texas takes calls at 800-252-3439.

What to do before you hire a mold company

1. Find and stop the water source, or have a plumber or roofer do it.
2. Photograph the mold and the damage, and call your insurer if a sudden leak caused it.
3. Measure the area. Under about 10 square feet on a hard surface, the EPA says you can usually clean it yourself.
4. Check your state's mold license rules and look up any company you call.
5. If your state licenses assessors, hire the assessor separately and give each remediator the same plan.
6. Agree in writing on who checks the result and what counts as clearance.

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