Educational information, not legal advice

This guide is published by Karia Law for general educational purposes. It is not legal advice and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Florida law changes, and individual situations vary. For guidance specific to your circumstances, consult a licensed Florida attorney.

Florida does not have a state estate tax or a state income tax. But it does have something most other states do not: constitutional homestead protection.

Your primary residence in Florida is not just protected from creditors in most cases. The Florida Constitution also restricts how you are allowed to leave it to your heirs if you have a spouse or minor children. That rule is one of the most commonly misunderstood areas of Florida estate planning, and it is a big part of why a will or plan written for another state does not automatically work here.

If you do not have a plan at all, Florida's intestacy law decides who gets what, and it does not ask what you wanted. It follows a fixed formula based on your family structure. For many families, especially blended families, that formula can produce a result nobody intended.

Fla. Const. Art. X, § 4; Fla. Stat. Ch. 732.

Figure 1.1

If there is no will

Florida’s intestacy statute follows family structure—not unwritten wishes.

Explore the chart details

Starting pointAssets subject to intestacy

1. 01

   Spouse, no children

   Spouse receives 100%
2. 02

   Spouse + children from that marriage only

   Spouse receives 100%
3. 03

   Spouse + children from a prior relationship

   Spouse 50% · Children 50%Often surprises blended families
4. 04

   No spouse, children only

   Children split equally
5. 05

   No spouse, no children

   Parents first, then siblings

Figure 2.1

How an asset travels after death

The route depends on title and beneficiary arrangements—not simply on whether a will exists.

Explore the chart details

$

Start with one assetHow is it titled or directed?

Route ACourt-guided probate

• Solely titled assets
• Assets passing under a will
• Bank account without beneficiary or POD
• Real estate titled only in the deceased’s name

Route BDirect-transfer mechanism

• Named life insurance or retirement beneficiary
• POD or TOD account
• Joint ownership with right of survivorship
• Florida property covered by a Lady Bird Deed

Impact levels are general. Individual circumstances vary.

Figure 3.1

Your plan across a lifetime

The six documents work at different moments and answer different questions.

Explore the chart details

While you’re aliveAt death

Lifetime authorityPrepare for a moment when you cannot act

Financial + legalDurable Power of Attorney

Your agent can handle authorized affairs while you are alive.

Who?Health Care Surrogate

Names who makes medical decisions.

What?Living Will

States defined end-of-life wishes.

Access?HIPAA Authorization

Controls who may see health information.

At deathDirect where property goes

Via probateLast Will & Testament

Directs assets that pass under the will.

Deed mechanismLady Bird Deed

Addresses the described Florida property.

A will says who gets your property after you die and names your Personal Representative, the person responsible for carrying out your wishes and managing the process. It is also the most common document used to name a guardian for minor children.

Who commonly has one? Every Florida adult with property, minor children, or specific wishes about who receives what typically has one, including people who also have a trust. A will catches anything the trust does not cover and is the most common place to name a guardian.

Fla. Stat. § 732.502.

A durable power of attorney names someone—your agent—to manage your financial and legal affairs. “Durable” is the key word: the document keeps working even if you later become unable to make decisions yourself. Without that language, a power of attorney stops working at the moment it is usually needed most.

Who commonly has one? Any adult who wants a trusted person able to step in on financial matters without a court process. This is not just an “elderly” document: anyone 18 or older can unexpectedly lose the ability to act, and family members have no automatic authority without one.

Fla. Stat. Ch. 709; execution requirements at § 709.2105.

A Health Care Surrogate designation names the person who can make medical decisions and access your health information if you are unable to make those decisions yourself. Think of it as answering one question: who speaks for me?

Who commonly has one? Every adult, not just people managing a health condition. Hospitals and doctors need to know who to talk to the moment you cannot answer for yourself, at any age.

Fla. Stat. Ch. 765; execution requirements at § 765.202.

A living will states your wishes about life-prolonging treatment if you are ever in an end-stage condition, terminal condition, or persistent vegetative state. It is not about everyday medical decisions.

Who commonly has one? Florida adults who want their own wishes about end-of-life treatment documented directly, rather than leaving that decision to a surrogate to interpret.

Fla. Stat. § 765.302.

A HIPAA Authorization is often the most misunderstood document because people assume it does the same thing as a Health Care Surrogate. It does not.

Who commonly has one? Anyone who wants family members or a trusted person to get information from doctors and hospitals without a separate authorization scramble during a stressful moment.

45 CFR § 164.508.

An Enhanced Life Estate Deed, commonly called a Lady Bird Deed, lets you transfer your Florida home to chosen beneficiaries automatically at death, without probate, while you keep full control during your lifetime. You can still sell, mortgage, or change your mind. Florida is one of only a handful of states that recognizes this type of deed.

Figure 3.2

Control now. Transfer later.

A Lady Bird Deed separates what the owner may do during life from what happens to the described Florida property at death.

Explore the chart details

Today

You retain control

• May sell
• May mortgage
• May change your mind

At death

Later

The deed mechanism operates

The described Florida property moves to the named beneficiary without probate for that asset.

Who commonly has one? Florida homeowners who want their home to pass directly to named beneficiaries without probate while keeping full control during life.

Fla. Stat. §§ 689.01, 695.01; Fla. Const. Art. X, § 4; Fla. Stat. §§ 732.401, 732.4015.

A document that says the right things but is not executed correctly can be challenged, rejected, or thrown out entirely.

Florida has specific signing rules for each of the six documents, and they are not all the same. This is a quick reference, not a substitute for the instructions that come with each document.

Last Will & Testament

The testator signs at the end of the will, or directs someone else to sign in their presence and at their direction. Two witnesses sign together, in the presence of the testator and each other. Florida does not recognize a will that skips this step, no matter how clearly it states the person's wishes.

A self-proving affidavit is a short notarized statement attached to the will. It is not required, but without it, the witnesses may need to be tracked down and sworn in during probate. Most people execute it at the same signing appointment.

Fla. Stat. § 732.503.

Durable Power of Attorney

The principal signs in front of two witnesses and a notary, all at the same time. Chapter 709 requires this exact combination. A DPOA signed without a notary present is not durable in Florida, even if it says so on the page.

Health Care Surrogate and Living Will

Both are signed by the principal and witnessed by two people. At least one witness cannot be the principal's spouse or blood relative. No notary is required. Many people sign both at the same appointment since they cover related ground: who decides and what you want regarding end-of-life treatment.

HIPAA Authorization

A signature is enough—no witnesses and no notary. Some health systems have their own HIPAA form, so confirm that your document will be accepted before an appointment or hospital stay is underway.

Lady Bird Deed

The grantor signs in front of two witnesses and a notary. What makes this document different is what happens next: it must be recorded in the Official Records of the county where the property is located. An unrecorded Lady Bird Deed does not accomplish its purpose. Recording typically involves a small per-page fee and, in some counties, documentary stamp requirements depending on the deed's terms.

The right approach often depends on the shape of your family, where you split your time, and which assets or obligations stretch beyond Florida's borders.

Blended Families

The core issue: a will is not the only document that controls where assets go.

Life insurance, retirement accounts, and payable-on-death accounts have their own beneficiary designations, and those designations override the will. Someone can update a will after a new marriage or child and still have an old 401(k) form sending everything to an ex-spouse or one child.

What commonly comes up

• Beneficiary forms never updated after remarriage or divorce
• Providing for a current spouse during life while preserving assets for children from a prior relationship
• Homestead property, where a surviving spouse's rights can limit what a will is able to do

Snowbirds and Relocators

The core issue: Florida residency affects more than taxes. People who split time between states often ask whether they need entirely new documents once they establish Florida residency.

• Advance directives and powers of attorney validly executed in another state are generally honored in Florida. This is usually a review situation, not a start-over situation.
• A will's validity in a Florida probate court can depend on the formalities of the state where it was executed. Confirm rather than assume.
• Homestead status is tied to where someone actually lives and declares residency. It affects property tax exemptions and how property can be devised.
• People who own property in more than one state sometimes need documents in each state. A Lady Bird Deed only reaches Florida property.

Fla. Stat. §§ 765.112, 709.2106, 732.502(2).

Multigenerational Households

The core issue: Florida documents govern Florida assets and decisions. They do not reach outside the state or country.

Many households are caring for aging parents, coordinating decision-making across generations and time zones, and managing family assets or obligations outside Florida or the United States.

What Florida documents can help with

• Naming a Health Care Surrogate, co-surrogates, or successors to make medical decisions
• Naming a trusted family member, co-agents, or successors in a Durable Power of Attorney
• Creating a will that reflects the family's wishes instead of Florida's default intestacy formula

The Throughline

These six documents do real, useful work, but they work within Florida and alongside beneficiary forms, other states' documents, and obligations abroad that they cannot reach or override. Knowing where that edge is matters as much as knowing what the documents do.

Your documents do their job only when the people who need them can find them and know what else exists.

This organizer is meant to sit alongside your documents, not replace them. Print this chapter and keep it somewhere your family can find it. Do not include full account numbers or passwords.

Accounts

List just enough for someone to know what to look for.

Beneficiary Designations

Review this after any major life change: marriage, divorce, a new child, or a death in the family.

Passwords and Digital Access

Do not write passwords here. Record where that information lives so someone knows where to look.

Key Contacts

Document Locations

What to Do Next

If you have made it this far, you already know more about Florida estate planning than most people do before they need to.

Glossary

Agent

The person named in a Power of Attorney to act on the principal's behalf.

Beneficiary Designation

The named recipient on an account, such as life insurance or a retirement account, who receives it directly regardless of a will.

Durable

Language in a Florida Power of Attorney stating that the agent's authority continues after the principal becomes incapacitated.

Enhanced Life Estate (Lady Bird) Deed

A Florida deed that transfers real property automatically at death without probate while the owner keeps full control during life.

Grantor

The person who creates and signs a deed, transferring an interest in property.

Guardian

A person appointed by a court to make decisions for a minor child or incapacitated adult. A will is the most common place to name a guardian for minor children. Florida also allows a standalone designation. (Fla. Stat. § 744.3046.)

Homestead

A Florida constitutional protection for a primary residence, including creditor protection and rules about devise when the owner has a spouse or minor children.

Incapacity

A legal and medical determination that a person is no longer able to make financial or medical decisions for themselves.

Intestacy / Intestate

Dying without a valid will. In Florida, the estate passes under the formula in Chapter 732 of the Florida Statutes.

Notary / Notarization

A formal witnessing process performed by a commissioned notary public, required for some Florida documents but not others.

Personal Representative

The person named in a will to gather assets, pay debts, and distribute property. Other states may use the term “executor.”

Principal

The person who creates a Power of Attorney and grants authority to an agent.

Probate

The court-supervised process of administering an estate after death. A will directs probate; it does not avoid it.

Recording

Filing a document with the county Clerk of the Circuit Court so it becomes part of the public record. Required for a Lady Bird Deed.

Remainder Beneficiary

The person named to receive property after the current owner's interest ends, often used with a Lady Bird Deed.

Self-Proving Affidavit

A notarized statement attached to a will that can simplify probate by avoiding the need to locate and question witnesses later.

Successor Surrogate / Co-Surrogate

An alternate or additional Health Care Surrogate named in case the first choice is unavailable.

Testator

The person making a will.

Witness

A person who watches a document being signed and signs to confirm it. Requirements vary by document.