Florida probate is the court-supervised process of identifying a deceased person’s assets, paying their valid debts and taxes, and distributing whatever remains to the heirs or beneficiaries. It runs through the circuit court in the county where the decedent lived, and in Palm Beach County that means the Probate Division of the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit. Whether a person dies with a will or without one, the same basic machinery applies: a personal representative is appointed, creditors get their shot at the estate, and the balance passes to the people entitled to it.
I’ve handled estates where the whole thing closed in a few months and others that dragged on for two years because a single creditor surfaced at the last minute. The difference is almost never the size of the estate. It’s how well the personal representative understood the sequence, and how seriously they took the part most families want to skip: the creditor claims period. This overview walks through how Florida probate actually works, step by step, with particular attention to where debts and claims fit in.
When Florida probate is required (and when it isn’t)
Not every estate needs to go through formal probate. Florida law recognizes a few off-ramps. Assets that pass by beneficiary designation or operation of law never enter probate at all. Think of these:
- Jointly held real estate with rights of survivorship
- Bank or brokerage accounts with a payable-on-death (POD) or transfer-on-death (TOD) designation
- Life insurance and retirement accounts with a named living beneficiary
- Property titled in a properly funded revocable living trust
What’s left, the assets titled in the decedent’s name alone with no automatic successor, is the probate estate. Florida offers two simplified procedures when that estate is modest. Summary administration is available under Florida Statutes section 735.201 when the probate assets (excluding exempt property like the homestead) are worth $75,000 or less, or when the decedent has been dead for more than two years. Disposition without administration exists for very small estates where assets are exhausted by final expenses and exempt property. Everything else goes through formal administration, which is what most people mean when they say “probate.”
One practical note specific to our area: Palm Beach has a high concentration of out-of-state owners and snowbirds who die owning a Florida condo or homestead. That single Florida-titled property frequently forces an ancillary administration here even when the main estate is being probated in another state. If that’s your situation, our overview of the Florida probate process and a conversation about ancillary filings should come early.
Step 1: Open the estate and appoint a personal representative
Probate begins when someone files a petition for administration with the clerk of court, along with the original will (if there is one) and a certified death certificate. Florida requires the original will to be deposited with the clerk within 10 days of learning of the death under section 732.901. Don’t sit on it; I’ve seen families assume the lawyer holds the will and lose weeks because nobody filed it.
The court then appoints a personal representative, Florida’s term for what other states call an executor or administrator. If there’s a will, it usually names the person. If there’s no will, the surviving spouse has first priority, then the heirs by majority interest, under section 733.301. Florida imposes eligibility rules most people don’t expect: a personal representative must generally be a Florida resident, or, if out of state, a close relative of the decedent. A friend in Ohio can’t serve. A non-relative business partner in Georgia can’t serve. This trips up out-of-state families constantly.
Once appointed, the court issues Letters of Administration. That document is the personal representative’s authority to act, to access accounts, sign on behalf of the estate, and deal with creditors. Florida also requires that a personal representative be represented by an attorney in a formal administration, with narrow exceptions, so this is not a true do-it-yourself process.
Step 2: Inventory the assets and protect exempt property
Within 60 days of receiving Letters, the personal representative must file an inventory listing the estate’s assets and their date-of-death values (Florida Probate Rule 5.340). This is more than paperwork. The inventory sets the baseline for everything that follows, including what creditors can reach and how the estate gets divided.
At this stage we also identify exempt property and family allowances, which matter enormously when an estate has debts. Under the Florida Constitution and section 732.402, certain assets are shielded from most creditors: the homestead, up to $20,000 in household furnishings, two motor vehicles, and certain education savings. The surviving spouse and dependents may also claim a family allowance of up to $18,000 under section 732.403 to live on during administration. These protections often determine whether a family keeps the house or watches it get sold to satisfy a hospital bill.
Step 3: Notify creditors and open the claims window
This is the heart of Florida probate, and on a creditor-heavy estate it’s where cases are won or lost. The personal representative has two jobs here, and skipping either one is the most expensive mistake I see.
Publish notice to creditors. The personal representative must publish a Notice to Creditors in a local newspaper once a week for two consecutive weeks under section 733.2121. In Palm Beach County that’s typically the Palm Beach Daily Business Review. Publication starts the clock for unknown creditors: they have three months from the first publication date to file a claim, or they’re barred.
Serve known creditors directly. Publication alone is not enough. The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Tulsa Professional Collection Services v. Pope established that creditors who are “reasonably ascertainable” are entitled to actual notice by mail. A known creditor served directly gets the later of three months from first publication or 30 days from the date they were served. Miss someone you should have found, and that creditor’s window may stay open far longer.
Florida puts a hard outer limit on the whole thing: under section 733.710, claims are barred two years after death regardless of whether notice was given. But you don’t want to rely on that two-year backstop, because it means the estate can’t safely close until then. Diligent, documented creditor notice is what lets an estate close in months instead of years.
How claims get paid, and in what order
When valid claims come in, they aren’t paid first-come, first-served. Section 733.707 sets a statutory priority order. In simplified terms, claims are paid in this sequence:
- Costs and expenses of administration (including attorney’s fees)
- Reasonable funeral and burial expenses, capped at $6,000 for priority purposes
- Debts and taxes with federal preference
- Medical and hospital expenses of the last 60 days of the final illness
- Family allowance
- Child support arrearages
- Business debts acquired after death (limited)
- All other claims
If the estate can’t cover everything, lower-priority creditors get a pro rata share of what’s left, or nothing. The personal representative who pays a low-priority creditor in full before a higher one can be held personally liable for the shortfall. That’s not a theoretical risk. It’s the reason these estates need a careful hand and why we don’t release a dollar until the claims picture is clear.
Objecting to a creditor claim
Not every claim that gets filed is valid. A creditor might assert a stale debt, an inflated balance, or a claim already paid. The personal representative can file a written objection under section 733.705, and once that’s served, the creditor has 30 days to file an independent lawsuit to enforce the claim or it’s barred. Used well, the objection process is a powerful tool to clean up an estate’s debt load. For families dealing with aggressive collectors, this is often the single most valuable thing a probate attorney does. Many of the same pressures arise elsewhere; Morgan Legal’s discussion of the covers parallel issues that come up in any debt-heavy estate.
Step 4: Pay taxes, expenses, and approved claims
With the claims period closed and objections resolved, the personal representative pays what the estate owes in priority order. Florida has no state estate tax and no state inheritance tax, which surprises some clients, but federal estate tax can still apply to large estates, and the decedent’s final federal income tax return must still be filed. Ongoing expenses, property upkeep, insurance, mortgage payments, condo association dues, get paid from estate funds throughout administration.
Selling assets often happens here too. If the estate needs cash to satisfy claims, the personal representative may sell real estate or other property, sometimes with court authorization depending on the will’s terms and the circumstances. On Palm Beach estates, the Florida property is frequently the largest asset and the one that has to be sold to make creditors whole.
Step 5: Distribute the remainder and close the estate
Only after debts, taxes, and expenses are handled does anything pass to the beneficiaries. If there’s a will, the assets go as it directs. If there’s no will, Florida’s intestacy statutes (sections 732.101 through 732.111) control: a surviving spouse with no descendants takes everything; with shared descendants the spouse still takes all; the math changes when there are children from another relationship. People are often shocked to learn the state, not their wishes, dictates this when they die without a valid will, which is exactly why we push clients to keep their wills and estate plans current.
To close, the personal representative files a final accounting and a petition for discharge, gives beneficiaries notice and a chance to object, and obtains a court order discharging them from duty. That discharge is what finally ends the personal representative’s exposure. Until it’s entered, they remain on the hook.
How long does Florida probate take?
A clean formal administration with cooperative beneficiaries and no creditor disputes typically runs six months to a year. The three-month creditor period sets the practical floor; you simply cannot safely distribute and close before it ends. Summary administration can wrap in a few weeks. But contested wills, hard-to-find creditors, real estate sales, or a will challenge can stretch things well past a year.
Will contests deserve a word, because they’re a common source of delay and they intersect with the claims process when a disinherited heir is also a creditor. The grounds and mechanics vary by state; Morgan Legal explains in a way that maps closely onto the Florida analysis under sections 733.107 and 733.109, where the burden shifts to the will’s proponent once a challenger establishes undue influence.
Why the creditor angle matters in Palm Beach
Palm Beach estates skew toward retirees, and retiree estates skew toward medical debt, long-term care liens, and credit obligations that surface only after death. I regularly see families assume an estate is “simple” because the assets are clear, only to discover the real work is in the liabilities. Getting creditor notice right, asserting exemptions, objecting to bad claims, and paying in strict priority order is where a probate attorney earns their keep. Done well, it can mean the difference between a family keeping the homestead and losing it.
If you’re facing a Florida estate with debts you’re unsure how to handle, our firm focuses on exactly these creditor-and-claims questions. You can review Morgan Legal’s for additional background, or reach out to our Palm Beach office for a direct look at your situation. The earlier you involve counsel, the more of the estate you tend to keep.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is probate always required in Florida?
No. Assets that pass by beneficiary designation, joint ownership with survivorship, or a funded living trust avoid probate entirely. Small estates may qualify for summary administration (probate assets of $75,000 or less, or death more than two years ago) or even disposition without administration. Only assets titled in the decedent’s sole name with no automatic successor must go through formal probate.
How long do creditors have to file a claim in a Florida probate?
Unknown creditors have three months from the first publication of the Notice to Creditors. Known, reasonably ascertainable creditors who are served directly get the later of that three-month period or 30 days from service. An absolute outer limit of two years from the date of death applies under Florida Statutes section 733.710, regardless of notice.
Who can serve as personal representative in Florida?
A personal representative must generally be a Florida resident, or, if out of state, a close relative of the decedent such as a spouse, child, parent, or sibling. Non-relatives who live outside Florida cannot serve. The person must also be at least 18, mentally competent, and not a convicted felon.
In what order are debts paid in a Florida estate?
Florida Statutes section 733.707 sets the priority: administration costs first, then funeral expenses (capped at $6,000 for priority), debts with federal preference, last-illness medical expenses, the family allowance, child support arrears, certain post-death business debts, and finally all other claims. A personal representative who pays a lower-priority claim ahead of a higher one can be held personally liable.
How long does Florida probate take?
A straightforward formal administration usually takes six months to a year, since the estate generally cannot close before the three-month creditor claims period ends. Summary administration can finish in weeks, while contested wills, hard-to-locate creditors, or real estate sales can push a case well beyond a year.
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For more on our Florida practice, see our overview of Florida probate administration. Morgan Legal Group's affiliated New York office also handles .
