In Florida, deciding who should inherit the home can be more complicated than writing a name in a will. Homestead protections can restrict a transfer when a spouse or minor child survives, and a deed or trust needs to fit those rules.
Families who have moved here also need to review the people and powers named in their older documents. An out-of-state adult child and an out-of-state friend are treated differently when qualifying as a personal representative. A power of attorney deserves its own check, especially if the family expects it to remain inactive until someone becomes incapacitated.
Homestead: separate the inheritance question from the tax exemption
The homestead exemption on a property-tax record is not a complete explanation of who can inherit the home. Florida also has constitutional homestead protections and restrictions on devising it. Treating these as one rule can lead a family to assume the home is protected while overlooking a problem with the intended beneficiary.
Under Florida Statutes §732.4015, homestead generally cannot be devised when the owner is survived by a spouse or minor child, except that it may be devised to the spouse if there is no minor child. The statute also addresses dispositions by trust.
For example, a married homeowner who wants children from a previous relationship to receive the home should have that intention reviewed before relying on a will or trust. The spouse’s rights and any valid waiver can matter. Simply putting the property into a trust does not settle the homestead question.
When homestead is not validly devised and a spouse and descendants survive, Florida Statutes §732.401 generally provides a life estate for the spouse with a remainder for descendants. It also gives the spouse an alternative election, generally within six months of death, for an undivided one-half interest. A recently bereaved spouse should get advice promptly about the applicable rights and deadline.
A Lady Bird deed needs to fit the title and the family
An enhanced life estate deed, often called a Lady Bird deed, can reserve powers to the owner during life while providing for a transfer at death. The Florida Bar Journal explains how it differs from an ordinary life estate in its review of deed alternatives.
The practical question is whether that instrument works with the present title, marital situation, intended beneficiaries, and future sale or refinancing plans. If the home is already in a trust, or a couple owns it together, take the existing deed to the consultation rather than asking for a replacement form in isolation.
Our Lady Bird deed and homestead guide walks through those questions. If the owner has died, locate the recorded deed first; the task is to establish the existing transfer route, not create a new plan for the deceased owner.
Moved to Florida? Check who you nominated to handle the estate
Florida restricts who can qualify as a nonresident personal representative. The permitted relationships in Florida Statutes §733.304 include lineal relatives and certain other relatives and spouses. A nonresident adult child can fall within a permitted category; an unrelated friend living elsewhere generally cannot qualify under that nonresident rule.
If your old will names a friend from your former home state, flag that choice for review. A person’s willingness to help and their legal eligibility to serve are separate questions. Ask about a suitable alternate as well.
Also bring out-of-state property records. Moving your residence does not itself change a deed in another state. A coordinated plan should identify which professional will handle that property rather than assume the Florida paperwork finishes every transfer.
After a death, check the newer summary-administration limit
Florida raised the value-based summary-administration ceiling from $75,000 to $150,000 under Chapter 2026-57, effective July 1, 2026. The calculation excludes property exempt from creditors’ claims. Florida Statutes §735.201 also provides a separate route where the person has been dead for more than two years, and includes a condition concerning directions in a will.
That makes older descriptions of a fixed $75,000 limit unreliable for a current eligibility check. It does not mean every estate below $150,000 qualifies automatically, or that the value of the homestead should simply be added to the total. Earlier deaths and proceedings need an applicability review.
Our Florida probate guide explains what records to gather and how to distinguish summary administration from formal administration. Neither the home’s sale price nor a blanket percentage of family assets is a reliable probate quote.
Financial authority: check when it starts and what it permits
For a newly executed Florida power of attorney, the ordinary execution requirements include two subscribing witnesses and acknowledgment before a notary. See Florida Statutes §709.2105. Florida generally does not allow new powers that become effective only upon future incapacity, subject to statutory exceptions; Florida Statutes §709.2108 addresses effectiveness and older instruments.
Out-of-state documents need a separate validity analysis. Florida Statutes §709.2106 recognizes certain powers validly executed under another state’s law. A move to Florida is a reason to review the document, not proof that every existing power is invalid.
Some important powers, including specified trust, gift, and beneficiary changes, require a specific grant separately signed or initialed under Florida Statutes §709.2202. If an adult child expects to help with trust funding or a later planning change, ask whether the actual document grants the needed authority.
Name a healthcare surrogate and record treatment wishes
Florida’s healthcare-surrogate designation names a person to act within the authority granted. A living will records instructions about life-prolonging procedures in the circumstances the law describes. These are different roles, even when prepared as part of the same package.
The surrogate-designation rules require two adult witnesses; the named surrogate cannot witness that designation, and at least one witness must be neither a spouse nor a blood relative. The living-will provision also has a two-witness rule with a spouse/relative restriction. Check Florida Statutes §765.202 and Florida Statutes §765.302 when arranging execution, rather than assuming relatives gathered at the kitchen table can all serve as witnesses.
Our Florida county atlas of older adults living alone adds community context with Census estimates and margins of error. Living alone does not establish incapacity or a need for a particular legal document.
Compare the Florida work included in a trust quote
Ask whether the provider reviews homestead, prepares any deed, coordinates the powers of attorney and healthcare documents, and explains how assets will be funded. These questions are particularly useful for a remarried homeowner or a family with property in two states.
The Florida living trust cost guide compares service options. Ask for the scope in writing so that a lower document-preparation price is not confused with a complete title and homestead review.
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You can review Trust & Will if you are considering online preparation. Confirm whether your property and family questions require separate Florida legal advice before choosing a package.
Make the consultation specific to your Florida situation
Bring the current deed, any older out-of-state will or power of attorney, the names and residences of proposed personal representatives, and the ages of children who may inherit. If there has been a death, include the date and ask about any homestead election deadline.
The Florida Bar lawyer referral service can help you locate counsel. Describe whether you need a new estate plan, a homestead or deed review, or help administering an estate; those requests call for different work.
By Randy Smith, founder of Family Estate Guide. Sources checked September 14, 2026. This guide provides educational information, not legal advice; it has not been reviewed by an attorney. Editorial standards.