Florida does not have a transfer on death deed for real estate. Unlike roughly 30 other states, Florida has never adopted the Uniform Real Property Transfer on Death Act or any equivalent statute, so you cannot name a beneficiary directly on the title to your house or land the way you can on a bank account. Florida does allow TOD designations for securities and financial accounts under Chapter 711 of the Florida Statutes, but that law stops at financial assets.1The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes Chapter 711 – Florida Uniform Transfer-on-Death Security Registration Act For real property, Floridians use an Enhanced Life Estate Deed, better known as a Lady Bird Deed, which accomplishes the same practical goal: passing real estate to a named beneficiary at death without probate.
What a Lady Bird Deed Does
A Lady Bird Deed is a common-law instrument that lets a property owner name a future beneficiary, called the remainderman, while keeping full control of the property for life. When the owner dies, title passes automatically to the remainderman. The property stays out of probate. No court filing, no petition, no claim process.
In legal terms, the deed creates a life estate in the owner with “enhanced” powers. That enhanced control is the difference between this deed and a traditional life estate, where the owner would normally need the remainderman’s consent to sell or mortgage. With a Lady Bird Deed, the remainderman’s interest is a vested remainder subject to complete divestment: the beneficiary only inherits if the owner still holds the property at death and has not changed course.
Control the Owner Keeps
The whole point of the enhanced label is that the owner gives up nothing during life. You can sell the property, mortgage it, lease it, gift it to someone else, or swap the beneficiary at any time. None of these actions require the remainderman’s knowledge or consent.2UF Advisor Network. Using Enhanced Life Estate Deeds to Pass Real Property to Charity: Opportunities, Pitfalls, and Best Practices If you sell before death, the remainderman gets nothing and has no legal claim.
That retained control is what makes the deed function like a TOD designation. The beneficiary has no present interest in the property, so you don’t have to involve them in anything you do with the home while you’re alive.
Medicaid and Probate
A large share of Lady Bird Deeds in Florida are recorded for Medicaid reasons. Two separate issues matter: qualifying for benefits during life, and what happens after death.
Because the owner retains full power to revoke the deed and sell the property at any time, recording a Lady Bird Deed is not treated as a transfer for Medicaid eligibility purposes. Nothing has actually been given away. No look-back penalty is triggered, and the home continues to be treated the same as any other homestead for Medicaid qualification. That makes the deed fundamentally different from an outright gift, which can create a penalty period.
After death, Florida’s Medicaid Estate Recovery Act allows the state to recoup Medicaid payments by filing a claim in the deceased recipient’s probate estate. The statute directs recovery through probate proceedings under Part VII of Chapter 733.3The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 409.9101 – Recovery for Payments Made on Behalf of Medicaid-Eligible Persons Property that passes through a Lady Bird Deed goes directly to the remainderman outside of probate, so it is not part of the probate estate and Florida’s recovery mechanism does not reach it. For anyone anticipating long-term care costs, that is often the deciding factor.
Tax and Homestead Effects
Recording a Lady Bird Deed does not trigger federal gift tax. For a transfer to count as a completed gift, the donor must permanently give up control. Because the owner keeps the unrestricted right to revoke, sell, or change the beneficiary, the IRS does not treat the recording of the deed as a taxable gift, and no gift tax return is required.
The property also qualifies for a stepped-up basis at death. Since the owner retained a life estate with the power to revoke, the home is included in the owner’s gross estate for federal estate tax purposes under Treasury Regulation § 20.2036-1. The remainderman inherits with a basis equal to fair market value on the date of death.4Internal Revenue Service. Gifts and Inheritances A home bought for $120,000 and worth $450,000 at death gives the beneficiary a $450,000 basis, so a quick sale afterward produces little or no capital gains tax. Inclusion in the gross estate rarely creates actual estate tax exposure, because the 2026 federal basic exclusion is $15 million per individual.5Internal Revenue Service. What’s New — Estate and Gift Tax
Florida’s documentary stamp tax runs $0.70 per $100 of consideration on deeds that convey real property.6The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 201.02 – Tax on Deeds and Other Instruments A Lady Bird Deed conveys no present beneficial interest and typically involves no monetary consideration, so the tax at recording is minimal.
The homestead exemption is unaffected. Because the owner keeps complete ownership and control during life, the property’s tax status does not change. The standard homestead exemption and the Save Our Homes assessment cap stay in place. An outright gift, by contrast, can lose the exemption and trigger reassessment.
Risks to Watch
The deed is useful, but it has sharp edges.
If the Beneficiary Dies First
If the named remainderman dies before the owner, the remainder interest doesn’t simply vanish. Florida title insurance underwriters generally treat the remainderman’s interest as a vested remainder, which means it may pass to that beneficiary’s own heirs or through their estate. If the owner then dies without recording a new deed, a probate proceeding for the deceased remainderman’s estate could be needed to clear title. The fix is to record a new deed whenever a named beneficiary dies, but owners often don’t realize that step is necessary.
Existing Mortgages
If there is still a mortgage on the property, the lender’s due-on-sale clause is a reasonable concern. Federal law blocks lenders from accelerating a residential mortgage for certain transfers, including transfers into a trust where the borrower remains a beneficiary, transfers to a spouse or child, and transfers at the borrower’s death.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 12 U.S. Code 1701j-3 – Preemption of Due-on-Sale Prohibitions A Lady Bird Deed is not expressly on that list, though it is analogous to a trust transfer because the borrower keeps complete control. Most lenders do not treat it as triggering the clause, since no actual ownership transfer happens during the borrower’s lifetime. Notifying the lender or asking an attorney first is still the cautious move.
Title Insurance
Because the Lady Bird Deed is a common-law creation rather than a statutory one, some title insurers are more cautious when writing a policy on a property that has passed through one. When the remainderman eventually sells, the title company may ask for additional documentation to confirm the deed’s validity and the absence of competing claims. Working with an attorney familiar with these deeds reduces that friction later.
Spousal Elective Share
Florida’s elective share statute may pull a Lady Bird Deed property into the elective estate, because the remainderman’s interest can be revoked by the life tenant. The deed is not voided, but a surviving spouse electing against the will may have a claim against the property’s value. Anyone married should factor this in before signing.
How to Create One in Florida
A Lady Bird Deed is a written instrument that needs to include:
- The grantor’s full legal name and mailing address.
- The full legal name of each remainderman.
- The property’s legal description from the existing deed or title policy, not just the street address.
- Specific enhanced-powers language reserving the owner’s right to sell, mortgage, lease, or revoke without the remainderman’s consent. This wording is what makes the deed “enhanced” rather than a standard life estate.
Florida law requires the grantor to sign in the presence of two subscribing witnesses, and the signature must be notarized. Electronic witnessing through audio-video communication technology is permitted, so everyone does not have to be in the same room.8The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 689.01 – How Real Estate Conveyed
Once signed, witnessed, and notarized, the deed must be recorded in the official records of the county where the property sits. Recording provides public notice that the deed exists and makes sure the transfer to the remainderman can happen as planned. County recording fees are modest, typically under $50 for a short document.
Changing or Revoking the Deed
Undoing a Lady Bird Deed is simple. Because the owner retains full power over the property, revocation just requires recording a new deed. You can execute a quitclaim deed back to yourself that explicitly revokes the Lady Bird Deed, or record a new Lady Bird Deed naming a different remainderman. Either way wipes out the prior beneficiary’s interest. No court approval is required, and the former remainderman does not need to agree or even be told. The new deed has to meet the same execution requirements as the original: two witnesses, notarization, and recording in the county where the property is located.