What Is Probate in Florida? Formal, Summary & Small-Estate Options

What facts change the answer?

The first probate question is not "How much is the estate worth?" It is which assets require Florida court administration and what facts determine the available procedure.

First question: which assets are actually probate assets?

Probate generally focuses on assets that were owned by the decedent and do not pass automatically through another legal mechanism. Depending on the documents and titling, property may pass outside probate through rights of survivorship, beneficiary designations, transfer-on-death or payable-on-death arrangements, or a properly funded trust.

A will does not itself make an asset nonprobate. A will directs the disposition of probate property, subject to Florida law. That is why the first estate-administration task is often an asset-by-asset title and beneficiary review.

Florida has several probate pathways

Formal administration is the traditional court-supervised process in which the court appoints a personal representative and issues letters of administration. It is commonly used when the estate does not qualify for a simplified procedure or when a personal representative needs authority to collect, manage, sell, litigate over, or distribute property.

Summary administration is a simplified procedure available when the statutory requirements are met. A major 2026 change is important here: Fla. Stat. § 735.201 now uses a $150,000 threshold for the value of the estate subject to Florida administration after subtracting property exempt from creditor claims, or alternatively permits summary administration when the decedent has been dead for more than two years, subject to the statute's other requirements.

Florida also has narrower procedures for very small estates. Section 735.301 permits disposition without administration when the estate consists of specified exempt property and limited nonexempt personal property tied to preferred funeral and last-illness medical expenses. A separate statute, § 735.304, now allows an intestate small-estate affidavit procedure in defined circumstances when the decedent has been dead for more than one year, no administration is pending, and qualifying nonexempt personal property does not exceed $20,000 plus the specified funeral and last-illness expenses. Neither procedure should be treated as a generic "small estate affidavit" available whenever an estate falls below one number.

The Florida Supreme Court updated the probate rules in 2026

The statutory change was followed immediately by a rules change. In In re Amendments to Florida Probate Rules—2026 Legislation, No. SC2026-0690 (Fla. July 16, 2026), the Florida Supreme Court amended Probate Rule 5.530 to replace the former $75,000 summary-administration figure with $150,000 and amended Rule 5.425 to reflect the higher small-estate amount in § 735.304. The amendments were effective immediately. This is a practical reason to be cautious with older probate checklists, courthouse handouts, and web articles that still repeat the former thresholds.

What does the personal representative do?

In a formal administration, the court-appointed personal representative gathers and protects estate assets, gives required notices, handles creditor claims, pays proper expenses and obligations, files inventories and other required papers, addresses tax matters, and distributes property under the will or intestacy law.

Florida Probate Rule 5.030 generally requires every personal representative to be represented by a Florida attorney unless the personal representative remains the sole interested person; an attorney admitted in Florida may represent himself or herself as personal representative. See the current Florida Probate Rules.

How do creditor claims work?

Creditor procedure is one reason probate should not be reduced to "file a will and transfer the assets." Under Fla. Stat. § 733.702, many claims are barred unless filed by the later of three months after first publication of the notice to creditors or 30 days after service of the notice on a creditor required to be served, subject to the statute and other limitations.

The estate also has a separate two-year nonclaim framework under Florida law. Known or reasonably ascertainable creditors and the timing of publication or service should be handled carefully because creditor mistakes can create personal-representative risk.

A 2025 Florida appellate case shows why the source of a claim matters

In Palm Garden of Winter Haven, LLC v. Estate of Demps, No. 6D2023-3735 (Fla. 6th DCA Feb. 7, 2025), a nursing facility obtained an arbitration cost award after successfully defending litigation that the estate itself filed after the decedent's death. The probate court treated the cost award as a late contingent creditor claim, but the Sixth District reversed: because the obligation arose solely from the estate's post-death act of filing the lawsuit, it was not a claim arising before death within the probate claim framework at issue. The case is a useful reminder that "the estate owes money" does not, by itself, answer which creditor statute or deadline governs; the source and timing of the obligation matter.

What if the person died without a will?

Dying without a will is called intestacy. It does not mean the state automatically takes the estate. Florida intestacy statutes determine the heirs and shares when probate property is not effectively disposed of by a valid will.

The family structure matters. A surviving spouse, descendants from the current or prior relationships, and other relatives can change the distribution. Homestead and exempt-property rules can also produce outcomes different from an ordinary intestacy chart.

What if a nonresident owned Florida property?

Florida ancillary administration may be required when a nonresident dies owning Florida assets. Fla. Stat. § 734.102 addresses issuance of ancillary letters and the priority of qualified representatives. A smaller testate Florida estate of a nonresident may have additional procedures under § 734.1025.

This commonly matters with Florida real estate owned by someone domiciled elsewhere. The home-state probate does not automatically transfer Florida-titled real property.

How long does Florida probate take?

There is no responsible universal answer. Timing depends on the procedure, assets, creditor period, tax issues, real-estate sales, disputes, court schedules, missing beneficiaries, and whether litigation occurs.

A routine summary administration can move differently from a formal estate with a business, contested claims, real property, or tax returns. Any article promising a fixed completion date should therefore be treated cautiously.

What does probate cost?

Court costs, publication, professional services, appraisals, property expenses, and attorney fees can all matter. Florida law contains a schedule of attorney compensation that may be presumed reasonable in formal administration, but the statute expressly states there is not a mandatory statutory attorney fee and the fee is subject to negotiation. See Fla. Stat. § 733.6171.

The cost question is therefore estate-specific and should not be answered simply by multiplying the estate value by a percentage.

When attorney review may be useful

Botwin Law Firm assists Florida families, beneficiaries, and personal representatives with probate and estate administration, including evaluating whether formal administration, summary administration, or ancillary proceedings may be appropriate.

Attorney review is especially useful when the estate includes Florida real estate, homestead, business interests, disputed beneficiaries, creditor issues, an out-of-state decedent, uncertainty about probate versus nonprobate assets, or a proposed summary administration near the statutory threshold. The firm serves clients from Tampa and throughout Florida. A consultation can begin with the death certificate, will or trust, deeds, account ownership and beneficiary information, known debts, and a preliminary asset list.