Meet the Hernandez family of Hialeah. After Maria’s husband passed, she spent eight months and thousands of dollars probating his estate in Miami-Dade County. Determined to spare her own children that ordeal, she sat down to restructure her assets. Her plan is a useful map for any Florida resident who wants to keep their estate out of the courthouse.
Why Probate Matters in Florida
Probate is the court-supervised process for transferring a deceased person’s assets, governed by Florida’s Probate Code (Chapters 731-735). Florida offers two main paths: formal administration for larger estates, and summary administration, available when the estate’s non-exempt assets are under $75,000 or the death occurred more than two years ago. Even summary administration takes time and filings, so avoiding probate entirely is often the goal.
The Lady Bird Deed for the Family Home
Maria’s biggest asset was her homestead in Hialeah. She used an enhanced life estate deed (commonly called a Lady Bird deed), a tool well established in Florida. It let her keep full control of the home during her life, including the right to sell or mortgage it, while naming her two children to receive it automatically at death. Because Florida’s homestead protections under Article X, Section 4 of the state constitution are preserved, the home passes outside probate and keeps its creditor protection and the Save Our Homes assessment cap considerations she discussed with her advisor.
Beneficiary Designations and POD/TOD Accounts
Maria’s bank and brokerage accounts were the easy part. She added payable-on-death (POD) designations to her checking and savings accounts and transfer-on-death (TOD) registrations to her brokerage account. Her retirement accounts and life insurance already had named beneficiaries. Assets that pass by beneficiary designation skip probate entirely, as long as the named beneficiary is living and the form is current. Maria made a note to review these forms after any major life event.
A Revocable Living Trust for Everything Else
For her vacation condo in the Keys and a few investment accounts she did not want to retitle individually, Maria created a revocable living trust under Florida’s Trust Code (Chapter 736). She transferred title of those assets into the trust during her lifetime, a step called “funding.” Anything held by a properly funded trust passes to her beneficiaries under the trust terms, without court involvement. An unfunded trust, by contrast, accomplishes nothing, so she confirmed each deed and account was actually retitled.
The Pour-Over Will as a Safety Net
Maria still signed a pour-over will, executed with two witnesses and a notary as Florida law requires under Section 732.502. It catches any stray asset she forgot to retitle and directs it into her trust. She understood that a will alone does not avoid probate; it is simply a backstop and the document where she could name a guardian if needed.
What Maria Avoided
By combining a Lady Bird deed, beneficiary designations, a funded revocable trust, and a pour-over will, Maria positioned nearly her entire estate to transfer without formal or summary administration. Her children will manage the handoff with paperwork rather than a Miami-Dade probate docket.
Talk to a Florida Attorney
Every family’s asset mix and county procedures differ, and a misstep, such as an unfunded trust or a stale beneficiary form, can pull assets back into probate. Before you restructure your estate, consult a licensed Florida estate planning attorney who can tailor these tools to your situation and ensure homestead protections stay intact.
For more on our Florida practice, see our overview of Florida estate planning. Morgan Legal Group's affiliated New York office also handles special needs planning in New York.