Small estate checker for Florida
Enter the date of death and what the person owned. The page adds what the state counts and compares it with the limit for that date. It does not decide anything.
The limits this checker uses
These come from the state's law as we checked it. The checker picks the row that matches the date of death you enter.
Summary Administration
Also in Florida (not tested here)
These procedures have their own rules, so the checker does not test them. See the state page.
- Disposition of Personal Property Without Administration
- Disposition Without Administration of Intestate Property in Small Estates (heir's affidavit)
- Payment to Successor Without Court Proceedings (bank accounts up to $2,000)
What counts toward the limit in Florida
For summary administration, add up the value of everything the person owned in Florida that would go through probate. Then subtract property that is exempt from creditors, such as protected homestead and exempt property. Property that passes outside probate (joint accounts, payable-on-death accounts, trust property, life insurance to a named beneficiary) is not part of the estate. If the person has been dead more than 2 years, there is no dollar limit.
Law: Fla. Stat. 735.201, 732.402; Fla. Prob. R. 5.530(a)(7)
| Kind of property | How it is treated | Details |
|---|---|---|
Bank accounts in the person's name alone | Counts | Bank accounts in the person's name alone, with no payable-on-death beneficiary, count. Law: Fla. Stat. 735.201(2) |
Joint or payable-on-death (POD) bank accounts | Left out | Payable-on-death accounts go to the named beneficiary, and joint accounts with survivorship go to the surviving owner, so they are not part of the probate estate. Law: Fla. Stat. 655.82; Fla. Stat. 655.79 |
Cars and other vehicles | Has its own procedure | A car can be retitled at the tax collector's office without a court order if the heirs sign an affidavit that the estate owes no debts. Up to two family cars are also exempt property when there is a surviving spouse or children, and exempt property is subtracted from the summary administration total. Law: Fla. Stat. 319.28(1)(b); Fla. Stat. 732.402(2)(b) |
Boats and mobile or manufactured homes | Counts | A mobile home or boat in the person's name counts as part of the estate, unless it is exempt from creditors. A mobile home can also be retitled through the motor vehicle agency under the same heir-affidavit rule as cars. Law: Fla. Stat. 735.201(2); Fla. Stat. 319.28(1) |
Real estate in Florida | Counts | Florida real estate in the person's name that is not protected homestead counts. Law: Fla. Stat. 735.201(2) |
Main home (primary residence) | Left out | Protected homestead (the person's home that goes to the spouse or heirs) is exempt from creditors, so it is subtracted from the total. The court can determine the homestead in the summary administration case. Law: Fla. Stat. 735.201(2); Fla. Stat. 732.401; Fla. Const. art. X, sec. 4 |
Real estate in another state | Left out | Only property subject to administration in Florida is counted. Real estate in another state is handled under that state's law. Law: Fla. Stat. 735.201(2) |
Unpaid wages owed to the person | Counts | Unpaid wages owed to the person are part of the estate. Law: Fla. Stat. 735.201(2) |
Military pay owed to the person | Not clear | Money owed by the U.S. military may be paid to a beneficiary named with the military, outside probate. Ask the clerk or a self-help center how to count it. Law: Fla. Stat. 735.201(2) |
Life insurance or retirement money paid to a named person | Left out | Life insurance paid to a named beneficiary goes to that beneficiary and is exempt from the person's creditors, so it is not part of the estate. Law: Fla. Stat. 222.13(1) |
Life insurance or retirement money paid to the estate | Counts | Life insurance payable to the person's estate becomes part of the estate and counts. Some retirement money is exempt from creditors under Florida law; property exempt from creditors is subtracted from the summary administration total. Law: Fla. Stat. 222.13(1); Fla. Stat. 222.21; Fla. Stat. 735.201(2) |
Property in a living trust | Left out | Property in a trust passes under the trust, not through the probate estate. Law: Fla. Stat. 735.201(2) |
Property owned jointly with right of survivorship | Left out | Property held with right of survivorship passes to the surviving owner and is not part of the estate. Law: Fla. Stat. 735.201(2); Fla. Stat. 319.22(2) |
Property going to a surviving spouse | Counts | Probate property left to the spouse by will or by inheritance law is still part of the estate. Property the spouse gets by survivorship or beneficiary designation is not. Protected homestead and exempt property are subtracted. Law: Fla. Stat. 735.201(2); Fla. Stat. 732.402 |
Stocks, bonds and brokerage accounts | Counts | Stocks and brokerage accounts in the person's name alone count. Accounts registered 'transfer on death' (TOD) go to the beneficiary and are left out. Law: Fla. Stat. 735.201(2); Fla. Stat. 711.509 |
Furniture, jewelry and other belongings | Left out up to $20,000 | Household furniture, furnishings and appliances in the person's home are exempt property up to a net value of $20,000 when there is a surviving spouse or children, and are subtracted. Other belongings count. Law: Fla. Stat. 732.402(2)(a) |
Source: Official page
Summary Administration
A short probate case in the circuit court. No personal representative is appointed. The judge signs an order that lets the people who inherit collect and transfer the property.
- Limit
Up to $150,000
The estate subject to administration in Florida, minus property exempt from creditors, cannot be more than $150,000. This limit took effect July 1, 2026; before that it was $75,000. If the person has been dead for more than 2 years, the estate can use summary administration whatever its value. In either case the will (if any) must not require formal administration.
- What counts
The value of the whole estate subject to administration in Florida, minus the value of property that is exempt from creditors' claims (such as protected homestead and exempt property). Property that passes outside probate is not part of it. Alternatively, there is no dollar limit if the person has been dead for more than 2 years.
- Waiting period
The law sets no waiting period. The petition can be filed at any stage of an estate if the estate qualifies when it is filed.
- Who can use it
Any beneficiary, or the person named as personal representative in the will. The petition must be signed and verified by the surviving spouse, if any, and by the beneficiaries, except a beneficiary who will receive a full share under the proposed distribution. A beneficiary who does not join must receive formal notice. A guardian, a personal representative of a beneficiary who has died, or a person who received a beneficiary's interest may sign for that beneficiary.
- Court or where to file
Circuit court (probate division) in the county where the person lived. If the person did not live in Florida, any county where the person's property is.
- Notary
The petition is verified: signed under oath or under penalty of perjury as the law requires.
- Papers to attach
- Certified copy of the death certificate
- The original will, if there is one (it must be admitted to probate)
- A list of all assets with the estimated value of each, with any protected homestead and exempt property listed separately
- Names and addresses of the surviving spouse and beneficiaries
- A statement about creditors: that claims are barred, that the estate owes nothing, or a list of each creditor and how the debt will be paid
- A schedule of who will receive each asset
- Proof of formal notice to beneficiaries and known creditors who did not join the petition
- Steps
- Make a diligent search for the person's creditors (unless the person has been dead more than 2 years and all claims are barred).
- Fill in the petition for summary administration and a proposed order, listing each asset and who receives it.
- Have the surviving spouse and beneficiaries sign and verify the petition.
- Serve formal notice of the petition on any beneficiary who did not sign and on known creditors.
- File the petition, the will (if any), the death certificate and the fee with the clerk of the circuit court.
- When the judge signs the order, get certified copies and give one to each bank or holder named in it.
- Fee
Clerks may charge up to $340 to file summary administration for an estate worth $1,000 or more, or up to $230 for an estate worth less than $1,000, plus a $4 service charge. Certified copies cost extra. Ask the clerk for the exact total.
- If you can't pay
If you cannot afford the fee, ask the clerk about applying for civil indigent status.
- Debts and responsibility
The people who receive property under the order are personally liable for a share of all lawful claims against the estate, but only up to the value of what each received (not counting exempt property). A known creditor who was not notified and not provided for can still collect and be awarded attorney's fees. After 2 years from the death, no claim can be enforced unless a proceeding was started. An heir left out of the order can sue the people who got the order. If an order is entered, you may publish a notice to creditors; unknown creditors then have 3 months to file claims.
- What the bank or holder must do
The order authorizes banks, debtors and others holding the person's property to pay or transfer it to the people named in the order. A holder who does so is not accountable to anyone else for that property. The people named in the order may sue to enforce their right to collect it.
Law: Fla. Stat. 735.201-735.2063 (as amended by ch. 2026-57, Laws of Fla.); Fla. Prob. R. 5.530; Fla. Stat. 28.2401
Source: Official page
Bank accounts after a death in Florida
A payable-on-death (POD) account goes to the named beneficiary, and a joint account with survivorship goes to the surviving owner, without probate. For accounts in the person's name alone, a spouse, adult child, adult descendant or parent can collect a total of up to $2,000 with a sworn affidavit after 6 months. Larger amounts need a court order, such as an order of summary administration.
Law: Fla. Stat. 735.303; Fla. Stat. 655.82, 655.79, 735.303
Source: Official page
Surviving spouse in Florida
A surviving spouse is first in line to collect up to $2,000 from sole-name bank accounts with an affidavit after 6 months. The spouse, or the children if there is no spouse, can claim exempt property: household furniture and appliances up to $20,000 net and two family cars. In a probate case the spouse and dependent family can get a family allowance of up to $18,000. A spouse pays no title fee to take a car out of the deceased spouse's name. If there are also descendants, the spouse takes a life estate in the homestead or may elect a one-half interest within 6 months of the death.
Law: Fla. Stat. 735.303; Fla. Stat. 732.402; Fla. Stat. 732.403; Fla. Stat. 319.32(7); Fla. Stat. 732.401
Related pages
Free help in Florida
A court self-help center or a legal aid office can check whether the estate qualifies, free of charge or at low cost.
- The Florida Bar Lawyer Referral Service · 800-342-8011
- Florida Law Help (legal aid directory)
- Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida (Miami-Dade): Probate Smart Forms and self-represented litigant packets
- The Florida Bar: Florida Probate Rules
- LawHelp.org
- Legal Services Corporation (LSC) - Find legal aid
- Eldercare Locator · 1-800-677-1116
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (debt collection and mortgage complaints) · (855) 411-2372