Several categories of property in Florida pass to heirs without going through probate. The assets exempt from probate in Florida include property held jointly with a right of survivorship, accounts with payable-on-death or transfer-on-death beneficiaries, life insurance and retirement accounts with named beneficiaries, assets titled in a revocable living trust, real estate transferred by an enhanced life estate (Lady Bird) deed, constitutionally protected homestead property, and specific personal property and allowances set aside for surviving family members by statute.
Each of these categories has its own rules, and a few have traps that pull the asset back into probate if the paperwork is wrong. Here is what qualifies, what doesn’t, and where the boundaries sit.
Jointly Owned Property With Right of Survivorship
When two or more people own property with an express right of survivorship, the deceased owner’s share automatically passes to the surviving owner. Florida is unusual on this point. Joint ownership by itself does not include survivorship. Under Florida Statute 689.15, a transfer to two or more people creates a tenancy in common unless the deed or title document explicitly provides for survivorship.1The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 689.15 – Estates by Survivorship A deed reading “John and Jane, as joint tenants,” without the survivorship language, can send the property to probate.
Married couples get an automatic exception. Tenancy by the entireties, which applies only to spouses, carries a built-in right of survivorship and also shields the property from the individual debts of either spouse.1The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 689.15 – Estates by Survivorship After one spouse dies, the survivor usually records the death certificate in the county’s public records to update the title. No probate filing is required because legal ownership continues in the surviving spouse.
Payable-on-Death and Transfer-on-Death Accounts
Bank, credit union, and brokerage accounts can be set up with a named beneficiary who receives the balance at the owner’s death. Florida Statute 655.82 governs payable-on-death accounts at financial institutions and requires the bank to release funds to the named beneficiary once proof of the owner’s death is presented.2Florida Senate. Florida Code 655.82 – Pay-on-Death Accounts The beneficiary brings a certified death certificate and identification, and the money is released without court involvement.
These designations work because the account contract, not a will, controls who receives the funds. The probate court has no jurisdiction over money governed by a POD or TOD agreement. Outdated designations are the single most common failure point. A designation left in place after a divorce can send money to an ex-spouse. A named beneficiary who has already died can push the account into probate anyway.
Life Insurance, Retirement Accounts, and Annuities
Life insurance policies, 401(k) plans, IRAs, and annuities pay out to a named beneficiary by design. Florida Statute 733.808 specifically authorizes death benefits from life insurance, group policies, benefit plans, and annuities to be paid directly to a named individual or trustee.3The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 733.808 – Death Benefits; Disposition of Proceeds Beneficiary designations override whatever a will says. A detailed will cannot redirect insurance proceeds away from the person named on the policy form.
The critical requirement is that a living person, trust, or entity is named as beneficiary rather than “my estate.” Naming the estate as beneficiary pulls the proceeds into probate, exposes them to creditor claims, and subjects them to court administration delays. Properly named beneficiaries typically receive payment within weeks of submitting the death certificate and claim forms, while Florida probate estates often take six months or longer to close.
Assets Held in a Revocable Living Trust
A revocable living trust holds title to assets during the grantor’s lifetime and distributes them under the trust document after death. Because the trust owns the property, no probate is triggered when the grantor dies. The successor trustee steps in and follows the written distribution instructions without court supervision.
Trusts also stay private. A will filed in probate becomes part of the public record; a trust document does not. Distribution can begin almost immediately, which matters when a surviving spouse needs access to funds for living expenses or a mortgage. The tradeoff is setup: creating and properly funding a trust involves attorney fees and the tedious job of retitling every asset into the trust’s name. Any asset left out of the trust by accident still goes through probate.
Enhanced Life Estate (Lady Bird) Deeds
Florida recognizes an enhanced life estate deed, commonly called a Lady Bird deed, that lets a property owner keep full control over real estate during life while naming a beneficiary who automatically receives it at death. The owner can sell, mortgage, or give away the property without the beneficiary’s permission. At death, the property transfers to the remainder beneficiary and skips probate.
Lady Bird deeds come from Florida common law rather than a specific statute. They serve a role similar to the transfer-on-death deeds used in other states, which Florida does not allow for real property. For homeowners who want to keep a residence out of probate without setting up a trust, the Lady Bird deed is often the simplest option. It is recorded during the owner’s lifetime, and after death the transfer requires nothing more than recording the death certificate.
One limitation matters. Florida’s homestead restrictions still apply. If the property qualifies as homestead and the owner is survived by a spouse or minor children, the deed cannot override the constitutional protections those family members hold in the property.
Florida Homestead Property
The Florida Constitution, Article X, Section 4, shields a primary residence from forced sale by most creditors, and that protection continues after death. The homestead generally cannot be sold to pay the deceased owner’s debts. How the home passes depends on who survives. If the owner is survived by both a spouse and descendants, the surviving spouse receives either a life estate in the property or may elect to take an undivided one-half interest as a tenant in common, with the remaining interest going to the descendants.4The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 732.401 – Descent of Homestead With a surviving spouse but no descendants, the spouse inherits the home outright.
Homestead property technically passes outside the normal probate distribution, but heirs commonly need to file a Petition to Determine Homestead Status in the local circuit court. That petition produces an order confirming the property’s exempt status and clearing title for a future sale or refinance. Title companies frequently refuse to insure a transaction without the order, even though the law already provides for the transfer. It is a formality that proves to the rest of the world what the law already did.
Homestead protection does not defeat federal tax liens. The IRS position, backed by Supreme Court precedent, is that state exemptions from creditors do not limit a federal tax lien. If the deceased owed back taxes to the IRS, the lien can attach to homestead property regardless of Florida’s constitutional protection.5Internal Revenue Service. 5.17.2 Federal Tax Liens
Exempt Personal Property and Family Allowance
Florida law sets aside specific personal property for surviving family members regardless of what the estate owes. Under Florida Statute 732.402, the surviving spouse or, if there is no spouse, the decedent’s children can claim as exempt property:
- Household furniture, furnishings, and appliances in the decedent’s usual residence, up to a net value of $20,000.
- Up to two motor vehicles, each weighing no more than 15,000 pounds gross vehicle weight, that were regularly used by the decedent or immediate family.
- Qualified tuition programs under Internal Revenue Code Section 529, including Florida Prepaid College contracts.
These items are removed from the reach of creditors by operation of law.6Justia. Florida Code 732.402 – Exempt Property The 529 plan exemption often gets missed and can protect significant education savings from being consumed by estate debts.
Florida Statute 732.403 separately provides a family allowance of up to $18,000 for the surviving spouse and any dependents the decedent was supporting at death.7The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 732.403 – Family Allowance The allowance is not charged against any inheritance the spouse or dependents would otherwise receive. It provides immediate support while estate assets are tied up in administration.
When the Remaining Estate Qualifies for Summary Administration
If some assets still fall outside these categories, the estate may not need full probate anyway. Florida allows summary administration when the value of property subject to administration, after subtracting exempt property, is $75,000 or less. Estates also qualify if the decedent has been dead for more than two years, regardless of value.8The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 735.201 – Summary Administration Summary administration is faster and less expensive than formal administration because no personal representative is appointed to manage the estate over many months.
The $75,000 threshold is calculated after removing exempt property, so homestead, household furnishings, vehicles, and other items protected under Section 732.402 do not count against the cap. For many Florida families, the combination of non-probate transfers and exempt property brings the leftover estate below the summary administration limit. In formal probate, creditors have three months from the first publication of the notice to creditors to file claims.9The Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes 733.702 – Limitations on Presentation of Claims Summary administration compresses that timeline, which is why structuring assets to qualify is worth the planning.
What Non-Probate Status Does Not Do
Skipping probate is not the same as escaping every claim on the property. A few limits are worth keeping in mind.
Federal estate tax still counts these assets. Jointly held property, trust assets, life insurance proceeds, and retirement accounts all factor into the deceased person’s gross estate for federal estate tax purposes. For 2026, the federal estate tax exemption is $15,000,000 per individual.10Internal Revenue Service. What’s New – Estate and Gift Tax Most estates fall well below that number, but a large insurance payout can push a total estate over the line even when nothing goes through probate.
Medicaid estate recovery can reach some non-probate assets. Federal law requires every state, including Florida, to seek repayment of Medicaid benefits paid on behalf of recipients who were 55 or older when they received nursing home care, home-based care, or related hospital and prescription services. Assets that bypass probate are generally harder to reach, since the recovery program targets probate estate assets. Money remaining in certain trusts after a Medicaid recipient’s death can still be used to reimburse the program.11Medicaid.gov. Estate Recovery States cannot recover when the deceased is survived by a spouse, a child under 21, or a blind or disabled child of any age. An undue hardship waiver exists, though the standard is high.
Federal tax liens follow the property. As noted above, homestead protection does not stop the IRS, and the same is true for other non-probate transfers when the deceased owed federal taxes.
For anyone weighing which of these tools to use, the interaction between the tools matters as much as the tools themselves. A properly funded trust plus updated beneficiary designations plus a Lady Bird deed on the homestead can leave almost nothing for probate to touch. Missed designations, unfunded trusts, or a deed without survivorship language can undo the entire plan.