The short answer
Does black mold have to be removed professionally? In Texas, the law does not turn on color. It turns on how big the contaminated area is and on whether you hire someone to do the work.
A patch smaller than 25 contiguous square feet usually falls below the licensing line, so a license is generally not required to deal with it. Owners get a wider pass: no license is needed to sample or clean mold on residential property you own, as long as it has under 10 dwelling units. When you hire out a job of 25 contiguous square feet or more, it generally calls for two licensed parties: a mold assessment consultant to plan and check the work, and a mold remediation contractor to do it.
What the law allows is a floor, not advice. This guide does not give cleanup instructions. It explains the rules so you can tell when a licensed company is called for and check the one you hire.
Who regulates mold work here
The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) runs the Mold Assessors and Remediators program under Texas Occupations Code chapter 1958 and the program rules in 16 Texas Administrative Code chapter 78. The state law is the reason a mold job in Plano or Fort Worth looks different from one in a state with no mold licensing at all.
| Credential | Held by | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Mold Assessment Consultant | An individual | Inspects, samples, writes the remediation protocol and performs the post-remediation assessment |
| Mold Assessment Technician | An individual | An assessment license with a narrower role than the consultant; ask which consultant signs the work |
| Mold Assessment Company | A business | The firm that employs licensed assessors |
| Mold Remediation Contractor | An individual | Writes the work plan and runs the removal, cleaning and drying |
| Mold Remediation Company | A business | The firm that employs licensed remediation contractors |
| Mold Remediation Worker | An individual (registration) | Does hands-on remediation work |
| Mold Analysis Laboratory | A lab | Analyzes mold samples |
TDLR also has limits worth knowing. It does not inspect or test homes for mold, and it cannot make a landlord or property owner clean up mold. Its role is licensing people and firms and enforcing the rules on licensed work.
Six rules that shape every hired mold job
1. The 25 square foot line
Contamination of 25 contiguous square feet or more, meaning one connected area, is where licensing generally applies to hired work. Less than that, in most cases, can be handled by people who are not licensed.
2. Owner exemption
An owner, or an owner's managing agent or employee, needs no license for a house or residential building of up to nine dwelling units. Apartment complexes of 10 or more units are not covered by that exemption, and it does not cover an agent or employee who does mold work for the public.
3. Assessor and remediator are separate
One license holder may not do both on the same project, and no one may own part of both firms on that project. School districts using their own staff have a narrow exception.
4. A protocol comes first
The consultant writes a protocol setting the scope, containment and clearance criteria, and signs it with a license number and expiration date. You should have it at least one calendar day before work starts.
5. The state is notified
When the area reaches 25 contiguous square feet, the remediation contractor notifies TDLR at least five calendar days before the start date. An emergency follows a shorter path, with notice no later than the next working day after it is identified.
6. The consumer sheet
Licensed assessors and remediators must give the client the Consumer Mold Information Sheet before any mold-related work. It summarizes these rules in TDLR's own words.
Mold remediation levels: EPA tiers and the Texas line
Many people search for "mold remediation levels" after a contractor mentions them. The term usually comes from EPA guidance written for schools and commercial buildings, which scales protection to the size of the moldy area. In that guidance, limited containment is generally used for about 10 to 100 square feet, and full containment for areas over 100 square feet or where mold could spread through the building during the work. EPA adds that size is only a rough guide: heavy growth in a small area can release more spores than light growth over a larger one.
Those tiers are federal guidance, not Texas law. In Texas, the legal trigger for licensed work and state notification is 25 contiguous square feet, and the containment on a given job is whatever the licensed consultant's protocol calls for. If a company quotes you a "level," ask how it measured the area and whether the protocol requires that containment.
Texas mold rules in short. Mold work in Texas is licensed by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR). A small patch, under 25 contiguous square feet, usually falls outside the licensing rules. Bigger jobs generally bring in two separate license holders: a mold assessment consultant who writes the cleanup plan, called a protocol, and a mold remediation contractor who carries it out. Texas does not allow one license holder to play both roles on a single project. People who own a home or other residential property with fewer than 10 units are exempt when working on their own property. You can check any name on the TDLR license search; the Texas mold rules guide explains more.
The certificate, your insurer and selling the house
After a licensed remediation passes the consultant's post-remediation assessment, the owner gets a Certificate of Mold Damage Remediation, often called a CMDR, from the remediation contractor no later than 10 calendar days after the project ends. Both the consultant and the contractor sign it. The consultant's part states that the mold was remediated under the protocol and, if the consultant finds the cause was also fixed, says so.
- Insurance. Under Texas Insurance Code section 544.303, a home insurer cannot hold past mold damage or an old mold claim against a property in its underwriting once remediation is proven. Proof is a certificate showing the underlying cause was remediated, or an independent inspection that turns up no evidence of mold damage.
- Selling. Texas Occupations Code section 1958.154 puts a duty on sellers: every certificate from the last five years goes to the buyer as a copy. TDLR lists skipping this step as a property owner violation.
- Coverage of the mold itself. That is a separate question. The Texas Department of Insurance says mold from a covered water loss may be covered and mold from a gradual leak usually is not. Ask your insurer what your policy says.
How to use the TDLR license search, step by step
- Get the details in writing. Ask for the company's legal name and its license number, plus the name and license number of the consultant or contractor who will run your job.
- Open the search. Go to tdlr.texas.gov/LicenseSearch, TDLR's free public lookup.
- Search by number or name. A license number is the most exact. If you search by name, try both the business name and the individual's name.
- Read the license type. A remediation job needs a mold remediation license; a test needs a mold assessment license. A license from a different TDLR program, such as air conditioning, does not cover mold work.
- Check status and expiration. The license should be current, and the expiration date should be after the dates your job will run.
- Compare the names. The name on the license should match the name on the estimate, the protocol and the contract.
- Check both sides. Look up the assessor and the remediator separately, and confirm they are different firms.
If something does not match, or you think a rule was broken, contact TDLR at 800-803-9202.
Renters, landlords and apartment buildings
The owner exemption belongs to owners, along with an owner's managing agent or employee, and it stops at buildings with 10 or more dwelling units. A large apartment community in Irving or Arlington is outside it, so hired mold work there over the 25 square foot line follows the licensed process.
Renters should know one more limit. TDLR does not inspect or test homes for mold and has no power to order a landlord to clean it up. Put any leak or mold report to the landlord on paper or by email, save dated photos, and check what your lease says about repairs. If the landlord hires a company, you can still look up its license on the TDLR search.
Mistakes DFW homeowners make with mold
- Deciding by color. The CDC says the type of mold does not change how it should be handled.
- Paying for a test when the mold is plainly visible. The EPA says sampling is usually unnecessary then.
- Hiring one company to test and then remove, on a job of 25 contiguous square feet or more.
- Letting work start without a protocol, a written estimate and the Consumer Mold Information Sheet.
- Fixing the mold but not the leak, so it grows back on new drywall.
- Losing the certificate, then needing it for an insurer or a buyer.
Mold you want removed? Call, say "mold removal" and your town, and the assistant transfers you to an independent DFW mold remediation company. Testing calls are taken as a message for now. Look up every license with TDLR first.
About this line: Water Damage Pro Dallas is a free phone line, not a restoration or mold company. It answers your call and connects you with an independent local company, which inspects, quotes and does the work, and which you pay directly. Companies may pay a referral fee. Calling the line costs you nothing. See how a call is handled.