One-time costs
- Legal paperwork (power of attorney, HIPAA release): free at the City of Houston wills clinics for eligible households, about $300 to $1,000 from a private attorney for the documents alone, or $1,800 to $2,800 bundled with a will
- Senior move manager: about $2,000 to $9,000, depending on the size of the home
- Licensed mover: about $800 to $3,000
- Haul-away of what's left: about $150 to $800 by the truckload
- Estate sale: usually no upfront cost, with the company keeping 30% to 45% of what sells, and most want $5,000 or more in goods
- Deep clean and minor repairs before a sale: about $750 to $5,000
- Realtor commission: about 5% to 6%, and it's negotiable
Monthly costs
- Assisted living: about $4,000 to $6,500 a month, plus a one-time community fee of $1,000 to $5,000
- In-home help: about $25 to $35 an hour
- Medical alert device: about $25 to $60 a month, the high end with a mobile unit and fall detection
- Storage: about $80 to $180 a month for a 10 by 10 climate-controlled unit
- Carrying an empty house: about $500 to $900 a month for utilities, lawn and a vacant-home insurance policy, on top of the mortgage and taxes
What moves the price
How much is in the house, stairs, how fast it has to happen, and whether you're coordinating from out of town.
How we set these ranges
Each figure comes from published Houston prices we checked in September 2026: the CareScout Cost of Care Survey for care and assisted living, RentCafe and Apartments.com for rent, Angi's Houston cost pages and local companies' own rate cards for movers, cleaners, haulers and organizers, and Texas and federal sources for the rules. They're planning estimates, not quotes. Prices change, and we check them at least once a year.
Ways to lower the total
Call the Aging & Disability Resource Center first at 855-937-2372. Benefits, in-home services and repair programs can change which option is affordable, and none of them cost anything to ask about.
Donate before you haul, and ask every company for a written estimate. Compare at least two, and never pay a cash-only deposit.