The business in one offer
Who it serves
HR managers at companies with roughly 50 to 500 employees that hire or transfer a few people a year into your metro but do not retain a large relocation management company. They pay because a confused new hire loses weeks of productivity, and a fixed-price orientation is easier to approve than an open-ended benefit.
What to sell first
A settle-in week for one transferee household: a 45-minute intake call, a written briefing on three neighborhoods that fit their commute and budget, a two-day guided area tour, a utilities and services setup checklist with local contacts, a school options list drawn from public district sites, and a 30-day follow-up call. Excluded: finding or showing specific listings, negotiating leases, packing or moving, and visa or tax advice.
The employer buys a defined outcome with a known invoice, so approval does not need a policy rewrite. You can reuse your neighborhood research for the next transferee and update it rather than start fresh, and the fixed tour length keeps a single file from swallowing a whole week of your time.
What could it cost to start?
This is an original example budget for the limited pilot described above. It is not a researched market average or a complete quote for every location.
| Item to price | Example allowance |
|---|---|
| Commercial auto insurance endorsement and general liability, first payment | $900.00 |
| Neighborhood research binders, maps and printed welcome kits for three households | $180.00 |
| Website, scheduling page and e-signature tool, three months | $160.00 |
| Professional liability (errors and omissions) quote allowance | $450.00 |
| Interior detailing and car seat for client family tours | $260.00 |
| LLC filing and business bank account allowance | $200.00 |
| Example total | $2,150.00 |
What this assumes—and excludes
Assumes you already own a clean, reliable four-door vehicle, know your metro area well and can work weekdays and some weekends. Excludes office space, a real estate license, owner pay, and any local business license fee. Ask an insurance agent how your personal auto policy treats paid client transport before quoting your first tour.
Collect actual supplier, insurance and local-authority information. Add a reserve for delays and unexpected costs; the example total is not a funding recommendation.
How the unit economics work
At an assumed $1,450.00 per transferee household and $120.00 in direct costs, contribution is $1,330.00 before monthly fixed costs, owner pay and taxes. With 16 all-in working hours per unit, that is $83.13 per delivery hour before those deductions. These inputs illustrate the arithmetic; they do not establish a market price or expected earnings.
The example also allows $150.00 in monthly fixed costs. Include unpaid acquisition and administrative time when deciding whether the offer is worthwhile.
Try your own numbers
These are editable planning assumptions, not prices we have verified. Calculations stay in your browser.
Operating result = (price − direct cost) × units − monthly fixed costs. Before owner pay, taxes, financing and startup recovery. At these inputs, delivery requires 160 hours per month, plus any work not included in your per-unit estimate. Sales volume is a scenario, not a forecast.
How to find the first customers
Test a small offer before scaling traffic. Record the source of each enquiry, whether it fits the offer, and whether the buyer pays.
- List twenty employers in your area that posted roles marked as relocation eligible in the last quarter. Send each HR lead a one-page summary of the settle-in week, its fixed price and what it excludes, and log replies in a spreadsheet.
- Introduce yourself to independent recruiters who place out-of-town candidates. Offer to brief one of their placed candidates at cost so they can see the deliverable, and ask for a referral only if the file went well.
- Build a sample neighborhood briefing for one fictional household, with commute times and amenities, and use it as your portfolio piece. It shows HR exactly what the transferee receives before anyone signs.
- Ask local apartment communities and moving companies whether they get requests for orientation help they cannot handle. Agree on a written referral arrangement and tell clients about any referral fee.
What to validate before spending more
- Call your state real estate commission and ask which activities count as brokerage, such as showing specific listings or steering clients to a rental. Write down the answer and draft your scope around it.
- Run one pilot tour for a friend who recently moved and time every hour, including research and drive time. If the file takes more than eighteen hours, shorten the tour or raise the price.
- Get a written quote for commercial auto coverage, since a personal policy may not cover driving paying passengers. Compare it with the price you planned before you sell a single package.
- Ask two HR managers which invoice format, payment terms and vendor paperwork they require. Some need a W-9, certificate of insurance and net-30 terms that affect your cash flow.
The operational catch
Families ask you which neighborhood is safe or which school is best, and casual answers can drift into steering, which can raise fair housing concerns. Give objective sources such as public crime maps, commute data and district websites, let the household weigh them, and keep your written briefings free of comments about who lives where.
A practical way to fund the first step
Ask the first employer for a 50 percent deposit when they book, which covers mileage and kit printing. Keep using your own car and a monthly scheduling tool until three paid files are complete, then decide whether a second vehicle or a part-time coordinator makes sense.
Separate cash already available from money still to earn. Count only proceeds after direct expenses, and do not spend customer funds needed to fulfill their existing orders.
Questions before you start
Do I need a real estate license to do this?
Not for orientation work alone in most places, but showing specific homes, discussing listing terms or earning a fee tied to a lease or sale can count as brokerage. Check with your state commission and partner with a licensed agent for anything that crosses that line.
Should the employee or the employer pay?
Start with employers. They have the budget and a reason to want a fast settle-in. Households paying personally tend to cut the tour short, which weakens the result and your ability to show a consistent deliverable.
How do I handle transferees with children and pets?
Ask about both during intake and add a short section to the briefing: pediatric offices, dog parks, boarding and veterinary clinics. Keep a list of these by neighborhood so you can reuse it.
Source-backed checks
These references support the specific checks below. They do not endorse this business idea or substantiate the example prices, costs or demand.
The IRS publishes standard mileage rates that can be used to calculate the deductible cost of operating a vehicle for business. Internal Revenue Service: Standard mileage rates.
The SBA explains that business insurance can fill gaps in coverage and that common types include general liability and professional liability insurance. U.S. Small Business Administration: Get business insurance.
The SBA notes that businesses may need licenses and permits from federal, state and local agencies, depending on their activities and location. U.S. Small Business Administration: Apply for licenses and permits.
- Standard mileage ratesInternal Revenue Service · Reference checked September 8, 2026
- Get business insuranceU.S. Small Business Administration · Reference checked September 8, 2026
- Apply for licenses and permitsU.S. Small Business Administration · Reference checked September 8, 2026
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