Picture two neighbors in the same Florida subdivision. Maria, 58, has a signed will naming her sister as personal representative and leaving her condo to her daughter. Across the street, Robert, 60, keeps meaning to “get around to it.” Both are healthy. Both assume they have time. The difference between them only becomes visible the day one of them passes away.
What a Will Actually Does in Florida
A Florida will is a written document that says who receives your property and who manages the process. To be valid under Florida Statutes §732.502, it must be signed by you at the end and witnessed by two people who sign in your presence and in the presence of each other. Florida does not recognize handwritten (holographic) wills that lack proper witnesses, even if they are entirely in your handwriting. That single rule trips up many do-it-yourself attempts.
Your will lets you name a personal representative (Florida’s term for executor) and, critically for parents, a guardian for minor children. Without that nomination, a Florida judge decides who raises your kids based on what the court believes is in their best interest, not necessarily who you would have chosen.
The Scenario Where a Will Saves the Day
Say Robert dies without one. His estate now passes by Florida’s intestacy rules (Chapter 732), a fixed formula the state applies regardless of his actual wishes. If he wanted his longtime partner to inherit but they never married, she gets nothing under that formula. A will would have fixed this in two paragraphs.
Maria’s will, by contrast, lets her route specific assets to specific people: the boat to her brother, a charitable gift to her church in Tampa, the rest to her daughter. She controls the outcome.
Where a Will Is Not Enough
Here is the Florida wrinkle most people miss: a will only governs assets that pass through probate. Accounts with named beneficiaries (IRAs, life insurance, payable-on-death bank accounts) skip the will entirely. So does property titled as joint tenants with right of survivorship. And Florida homestead (Article X, §4 of the state constitution) has its own protective rules: if you are survived by a spouse or minor child, you cannot freely devise your homestead, your will’s instructions may be overridden by constitutional homestead protections. A will is essential, but it is one instrument in a coordinated plan.
The Companion Documents Floridians Forget
A will does nothing while you are alive. If Robert had a stroke and survived, his will would be irrelevant, no one could legally manage his affairs without a court-appointed guardian. That is why a durable power of attorney under Chapter 709 and a health care directive belong alongside your will. Florida’s durable POA statute is detailed and strict about how authority is granted, so generic online forms often fall short.
So, Do You Need One?
If you own a home in Florida, have children, want a say in who handles your affairs, or simply want to spare your family the default state formula, then yes. The good news: Florida has no state estate or inheritance tax, so for most residents this is about clarity and control, not tax dodging. A will is the cheapest insurance against a court deciding things you could have decided yourself.
Talk to a Florida Attorney
Every estate has quirks, especially with Florida homestead and blended families. Before you sign anything, have a licensed Florida estate planning attorney review your situation so your documents actually do what you intend under current state law.
For more on our Florida practice, see our overview of estate planning in Boca Raton. Morgan Legal Group's affiliated New York office also handles Medicaid asset protection trusts.