Florida Probate Cost 2026: Fee Schedule, Summary Limit, Clocks
Some links pay us a referral fee; each one says so. Disclosure
Quick Answer
Florida sets no mandatory probate fee. The statutes only say what is presumed reasonable in a formal administration: for the attorney, $1,500 on a probate estate of $40,000 or less, $3,000 at $100,000, then 3 percent of the whole value up to $1,000,000 (our arithmetic: $30,000 at $1,000,000); for the personal representative (the executor), 3 percent of the first $1,000,000. A $600,000 probate estate therefore carries a presumed $18,000 attorney fee plus a presumed $18,000 commission, $36,000 in all (our arithmetic), before court costs, the extra fees the statute allows for selling real property, and anything the parties negotiate differently. The cheaper route moved on July 1, 2026: under chapter 2026-57, summary administration is available when the estate subject to administration in Florida, less property exempt from creditors, does not exceed $150,000 (it was $75,000), or when the decedent has been dead for more than 2 years (section 735.201(2)). Creditors' claims are cut off 3 months after the first publication of the notice to creditors (section 733.702) and, with limited exceptions, 2 years after death (section 733.710). Florida has no small-estate affidavit that moves a house; the affidavit routes cover bank accounts up to $2,000 (section 735.303) and $20,000 of personal property in some intestate estates (section 735.304). As of October 22, 2026.
Key Takeaways
- The attorney schedule in section 733.6171(3) is a presumption, not a price: the statute makes the attorney tell the personal representative in writing that “There is not a mandatory statutory attorney fee for estate administration,” and an attorney who skips the disclosure “may not be paid for legal services without prior court approval of the fees or the written consent of all interested parties” (section 733.6171(2)(b), (d)).
- Between $100,000 and $1,000,000 the presumed attorney fee equals 3 percent of the estate ($3,000 at $100,000 is already 3 percent), and the personal representative's presumed commission is also 3 percent of the first $1,000,000 (sections 733.6171(3), 733.617(2); our arithmetic). Both are charged on the inventory value of the probate estate, so assets that pass outside probate are not in the base (our reading).
- Chapter 2026-57, effective July 1, 2026, doubled the summary administration limit from $75,000 to $150,000 (section 735.201(2)), raised the bank-account affidavit from $1,000 to $2,000 (735.303), the tax-refund route from $2,500 to $5,000 (735.302) and the intestate personal-property route from $10,000 to $20,000 (735.304). It left the attorney fee schedule itself unchanged.
- Summary administration still has a catch: recipients “shall be personally liable for a pro rata share of all lawful claims against the estate of the decedent” up to what they received (section 735.206(4)(e)), and known creditors must be served before the order (735.206(2)).
- Protected homestead is outside the $150,000 test and outside the personal representative's assets: the limit is measured after “property exempt from the claims of creditors” (735.201(2)) and the Constitution makes the homestead exempt from forced sale for the owner's surviving spouse or heirs (article X, section 4(a)-(b); section 733.608(1)). Joint tenancy with survivorship and tenancy by the entirety are not protected homestead (731.201(33)).
- The clocks: creditors have until 3 months after first publication (733.702); the personal representative cannot be compelled to pay debts for 5 months after first publication and must pay claims within 1 year (733.705); will objections run 3 months from service of the notice of administration (733.212); everything is cut off 2 years after death (733.710). No statute sets a total length for probate, and the state court report we saved counts cases, not their age.
- In fiscal year 2024-25 Florida's circuit courts logged 67,808 probate filings and 66,688 dispositions; only 92 of those dispositions were non-jury trials (Office of the State Courts Administrator).
CSV · 162 rows
Florida probate: presumed attorney and personal representative fees, summary administration limits, claim clocks, homestead rules and 2024-25 court filings, as of October 22, 2026
162 rows: the statutory fee schedules, our fee arithmetic at ten estate sizes, what chapter 2026-57 changed on July 1, 2026, the small-estate routes, every claim and objection clock, homestead provisions and Florida circuit court probate filings and dispositions by county.
What changed on July 1, 2026
Chapter 2026-57, Laws of Florida (enrolled CS/HB 1337, titled “Estates”), was approved on April 29, 2026 and “shall take effect July 1, 2026.” Any guide written before that date that still says $75,000 is out of date on the figures below. The enrolled text lists each new figure first and the stricken old figure after it; the current statutes show the new ones.
| Provision | Before July 1, 2026 | From July 1, 2026 | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|
| Section 735.201(2) | $75,000 | $150,000 (or decedent dead more than 2 years) | Summary administration: value of the estate subject to administration in Florida, less property exempt from creditors |
| Section 735.303(2) | $1,000 | $2,000 | A bank may pay a family member the funds in the decedent's sole-name accounts, no earlier than 6 months after death, without court proceedings |
| Section 735.304(1) | $10,000 | $20,000 | Intestate estate of only personal property, decedent deceased more than 1 year, no administration pending: court letter authorizes distribution |
| Section 735.302(1) | $2,500 | $5,000 | Federal income tax overpayment refundable to a surviving spouse or children without administration |
| Section 733.6171(2)(b), (6) | Disclosure items and agreement language | Technical wording changes (“shall” to “must” and “may not”; the personal representative “shall be entitled” to a summary of services) | The fee schedule in subsection (3) did not change |
| Section 733.6171(4)(l), new section 733.6125 | None | Proceedings to enforce a personal representative's authority are an extraordinary service, and the court awards costs and attorney fees to a prevailing personal representative | Fees can be charged to “any person whose action or inaction necessitated the enforcement proceeding” |
The safe-deposit box sections (655.933, 655.936) and the personal representative's power to start an enforcement proceeding (733.612(28)) changed in the same act. None of those changes touches how a house is titled.
What a Florida formal administration costs, by statute
Two schedules apply to a formal (full) administration. Both are applied to the compensable value of the estate, defined as “the inventory value of the probate estate assets and the income earned by the estate during administration” (sections 733.617(1), 733.6171(3)).
Attorney for the personal representative (section 733.6171(3)). “Compensation for ordinary services of attorneys in a formal estate administration is presumed to be reasonable” on this schedule:
| Compensable value | Presumed fee for ordinary services | Running total at top of band (our arithmetic) |
|---|---|---|
| $40,000 or less | $1,500 | $1,500 |
| More than $40,000 up to $70,000 | An additional $750 | $2,250 |
| More than $70,000 up to $100,000 | An additional $750 | $3,000 |
| $100,000 to $1,000,000 | 3 percent on the next $900,000 | $30,000 |
| $1,000,000 to $3,000,000 | 2.5 percent | $80,000 |
| $3,000,000 to $5,000,000 | 2 percent | $120,000 |
| $5,000,000 to $10,000,000 | 1.5 percent | $195,000 |
| Above $10,000,000 | 1 percent | n/a |
We read the first three bands as flat steps, as the text is worded (“an additional $750 for estates having a value of more than $40,000 and not exceeding $70,000”). That means the presumed fee jumps from $1,500 to $2,250 at $40,001 (our reading).
Personal representative (section 733.617(2)). A commission is “presumed to be reasonable compensation for a personal representative in formal administration” at 3 percent of the first $1 million, 2.5 percent from $1 million to $5 million, 2 percent from $5 million to $10 million, and 1.5 percent above $10 million. A personal representative “may also renounce the right to all or any part of the compensation” (733.617(4)), which is what many family executors do. With two personal representatives and a value of $100,000 or more, each is entitled to the full commission (733.617(5)).
Applying both schedules (our arithmetic, probate estate value on the left, no extraordinary services, no costs):
| Probate estate value | Attorney, presumed | Personal representative, presumed | Both together | Both as % of estate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $40,000 | $1,500 | $1,200 | $2,700 | 6.75% |
| $100,000 | $3,000 | $3,000 | $6,000 | 6.00% |
| $250,000 | $7,500 | $7,500 | $15,000 | 6.00% |
| $500,000 | $15,000 | $15,000 | $30,000 | 6.00% |
| $750,000 | $22,500 | $22,500 | $45,000 | 6.00% |
| $1,000,000 | $30,000 | $30,000 | $60,000 | 6.00% |
| $1,500,000 | $42,500 | $42,500 | $85,000 | 5.67% |
| $3,000,000 | $80,000 | $80,000 | $160,000 | 5.33% |
| $5,000,000 | $120,000 | $130,000 | $250,000 | 5.00% |
| $10,000,000 | $195,000 | $230,000 | $425,000 | 4.25% |
Three things move the real bill away from that table.
- The schedule covers “ordinary services” only. The statute lists extraordinary services that earn “further reasonable compensation”: among them “purchase, sale, lease, or encumbrance of real property by the personal representative,” “legal advice regarding homestead status of real property or proceedings involving that status,” “proceedings involving ancillary administration of assets not subject to administration in this state,” tax-return work, and the federal estate tax return (section 733.6171(4)(f), (i), (k), (e)). The personal representative's list includes “the sale of real or personal property” and “dealing with protected homestead” (733.617(3)(a), (e)). If the estate's main asset is a rental that must be sold, expect the sale to be billed on top.
- The court can move the number either way. On petition, the court “may increase or decrease the compensation for ordinary services” using factors such as the complexity of the administration and the value of the assets (733.6171(5)), and in a review the burden of proof is on the personal representative and the person employed, who can be ordered to “make appropriate refunds” if they received excessive compensation (733.6175(3)).
- The parties can agree to something else. Compensation may be “determined in a different manner than provided in this section” by agreement of the attorney, the personal representative and the people bearing the cost, or by disclosure and no objection (733.6171(2)(a)); flat fees are the common version, and we found no official figure for them.
Court charges. Clerks of court may charge up to $230 to open an estate, $340 for a summary administration of an estate valued at $1,000 or more, and $395 for a formal administration (section 28.2401(1)(a), (e), (g)). Costs of publishing the notice to creditors are set by the newspaper, not by statute, and we did not find a published statewide figure.
Worked example (our arithmetic). A Florida resident who rented her own home dies owning a $480,000 rental condominium in her sole name, a $70,000 brokerage account in her sole name and $50,000 of other sole-name assets, and a $200,000 IRA with a named beneficiary. The IRA passes outside probate and is not in the fee base (our reading of “probate estate assets”). Compensable value $600,000: presumed attorney fee 3 percent, $18,000; presumed commission 3 percent, $18,000. If her daughter serves as personal representative and renounces the commission, the presumed total falls to $18,000, plus extra attorney time if the condominium is sold.
Which route: formal, summary or none
The route depends on size, on whether the will directs formal administration, and on how long ago the person died. This is the decision most heirs are really asking about when they search for a Florida “small estate affidavit.”
| Route | Statute | Limit | What it can reach | Main conditions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Summary administration | 735.201 to 735.2063 | $150,000 net of creditor-exempt property, or decedent dead more than 2 years (since July 1, 2026) | A court order assigns the estate to the people entitled, including real property outside protected homestead (our reading) | Will must not direct administration under chapter 733 (testate estates); the surviving spouse and beneficiaries sign and verify the petition; known creditors are served and provided for before the order; the will is proved and admitted |
| Formal administration | Chapter 733 | None | Everything the personal representative can administer | Letters, notice to creditors, inventory, claims period, accounting; presumed fees in the tables above |
| Disposition without administration | 735.301 | Only exempt personal property plus nonexempt personal property up to the funeral and last-illness expenses | Personal property | Informal application to the court |
| Bank-account affidavit | 735.303 | $2,000 total in sole-name accounts at the institution | Deposit accounts and certificates of deposit in the decedent's sole name | Family member only; no earlier than 6 months after death; no personal representative or probate pending; no known will |
| Intestate personal property | 735.304 | $20,000 plus funeral and last-illness expenses | Personal property | No will; decedent deceased more than 1 year; no administration pending; court letter; notice to the Agency for Health Care Administration if the decedent was over 55 |
| Tax refund | 735.302 | $5,000 overpayment | A federal income tax refund | Surviving spouse, or the children if none; no administration begun or planned |
Two points are easy to miss. First, none of the three affidavit-style routes can move title to a house; they reach bank accounts and personal property. A house in a decedent's sole name goes through summary or formal administration, or avoids probate because of how it was titled (a Lady Bird deed, a trust, survivorship). Florida has no transfer-on-death deed for real property, as our Lady Bird deed page and the state-by-state deed table show. Second, summary does not erase creditors. The order lets buyers from the recipients take free of creditors' claims (735.206(4)(c)), but non-exempt property in the recipients' hands “shall continue to be liable for claims against the decedent until barred,” a known creditor who was not notified can sue and “shall be awarded reasonable attorney's fees,” and after 2 years from death neither the estate nor the recipients are liable unless a claim has been enforced (735.206(4)(d), (f)). Anyone who has obtained the order may also publish a notice to creditors, which bars unknown creditors 3 months after first publication (735.2063).
Homestead: what counts toward $150,000 and who gets the house
Florida's homestead rules decide both the size test and who ends up with the house. The Constitution exempts from forced sale a homestead of up to 160 contiguous acres outside a municipality or half an acre inside one, owned by a natural person, and says the exemption “shall inure to the surviving spouse or heirs of the owner” (article X, section 4(a)-(b)). The Probate Code calls this the protected homestead and excludes “real property owned in tenancy by the entireties or in joint tenancy with rights of survivorship” from the definition (731.201(33)); those pass outside probate anyway.
| Question | Rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Does protected homestead count toward the $150,000 summary limit? | The test is the value of the estate subject to administration in Florida “less the value of property exempt from the claims of creditors”; protected homestead is exempt from forced sale, so in our reading it does not count | 735.201(2); Constitution article X, section 4(a) |
| Is it an asset the personal representative controls? | No: “All real and personal property of the decedent, except the protected homestead” are assets in the personal representative's hands. The personal representative may take possession to preserve and insure a vacant homestead and may record a lien for the cost, with no personal liability for the heirs | 733.608(1)-(3) |
| Who inherits it if there is no valid devise? | It descends like other intestate property, but a surviving spouse with descendants takes a life estate with a vested remainder to the descendants; within 6 months of death the spouse may instead elect an undivided one-half interest as a tenant in common | 732.401(1)-(2) |
| Can the owner leave it by will? | Not if survived by a spouse or minor child, except to the spouse if there is no minor child | Constitution article X, section 4(c); 732.4015(1) |
| Is homestead work billed on top? | Yes: legal advice on homestead status is an extraordinary attorney service, and dealing with protected homestead is an extraordinary personal representative service | 733.6171(4)(i); 733.617(3)(e) |
Whether a particular parcel is protected homestead (inside a municipality the exemption “shall be limited to the residence of the owner or the owner's family,” so a rented-out house is a different question) is a factual and court question this page does not answer. We did not read the Florida Probate Rules on how an inventory lists a protected homestead, so we cannot tell you whether a lawyer's fee base includes it; ask for that in writing before signing. For rental properties and investment interests, the homestead rules do not help, and an out-of-state property needs its own proceeding (below).
The clocks: how long Florida probate takes
No Florida statute sets a total duration for probate. What the statutes set are floors and ceilings, and each one runs from a different starting point:
| Clock | Starts | Length | Statute |
|---|---|---|---|
| Publish notice to creditors | Personal representative acts “promptly” | Once a week for 2 consecutive weeks | 733.2121(1)-(2) |
| Creditor claims barred | First publication of the notice (or service on a creditor required to be served) | Later of 3 months after first publication or 30 days after service | 733.702(1) |
| Notice to the Agency for Health Care Administration | Decedent was 55 or older | Within 3 months after first publication | 733.2121(3)(d) |
| Objections to a claim | First publication, or filing of the claim | 4 months after first publication or 30 days after the claim is filed, whichever is later | 733.705(2) |
| Personal representative cannot be compelled to pay debts | First publication | Until 5 months have passed | 733.705(1) |
| Pay claims | First publication | Within 1 year (extended for litigated, unmatured and contingent claims) | 733.705(1) |
| Objections to the will, venue or jurisdiction | Service of the notice of administration | 3 months after service; no later than the earlier of final discharge or 1 year after service | 733.212(2)(c), (3) |
| Exempt property petition | Service of the notice of administration | 4 months after service | 733.212(2)(d); 732.402(6) |
| Elective share | Service of the notice of administration on the surviving spouse | Earlier of 6 months after service or 2 years after death | 733.212(2)(e) |
| Surviving spouse's homestead election | Death | 6 months, during the spouse's life | 732.401(2)(b) |
| All claims cut off | Death | 2 years | 733.710(1) |
An illustrative calendar (our arithmetic, invented dates). Suppose someone dies on January 15, 2026, letters issue on April 1, and the notice to creditors is first published on April 15. Creditors who need no personal service must file by July 15, 2026; objections to claims are due by August 15; the personal representative cannot be forced to pay before September 15; claims are to be paid by April 15, 2027; and the 2-year cut-off falls on January 15, 2028. The earliest sensible closing is therefore a few months after the claims period ends, and a rental that must be sold, a contested will or an out-of-state property pushes it later. Law-firm blogs quote typical durations, but we did not find an official time-to-close figure.
What the courts report. The Florida Office of the State Courts Administrator counts petitions, not ages. In fiscal year 2024-25 (July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2025) the circuit courts recorded 67,808 probate filings and 66,688 probate dispositions, plus 5,474 “other social cases” filed; across all circuit probate categories, including Baker Act, substance abuse, guardianship and trust cases, the clearance rate was 98.5 percent. Of the probate dispositions, 32,623 came before any hearing, 33,011 were decided by a judge without a trial, 92 were non-jury trials and 962 fell in the “other” category.
| County | Probate filings, FY 2024-25 | Probate dispositions, FY 2024-25 |
|---|---|---|
| Miami-Dade | 5,828 | 5,547 |
| Palm Beach | 5,093 | 4,815 |
| Broward | 4,663 | 3,938 |
| Pinellas | 3,934 | 3,998 |
| Lee | 3,467 | 4,188 |
| Hillsborough | 3,332 | 3,512 |
| Orange | 2,995 | 3,193 |
| Duval | 2,888 | 2,603 |
| Brevard | 2,574 | 2,104 |
| Polk | 2,554 | 2,610 |
| Volusia | 2,499 | 2,373 |
| Sarasota | 2,311 | 2,067 |
A house in Florida, rentals elsewhere
Florida's summary limit is measured on “the entire estate subject to administration in this state,” so real property in another state is not in the $150,000 test or in a Florida lawyer's fee base (our reading). It is administered under that state's law, usually in a second proceeding; Florida's own section on this runs the other way, giving a nonresident's representative the right to “ancillary letters” for Florida assets, with notice to creditors and the same 2-year cut-off (734.102(1), (5)). Our multi-state probate page reads the small-estate limits, claim periods and sale authority of California, Texas, New York, Ohio, Arizona and others, which matters if the rentals are there.
Selling a Florida property inside an estate has its own rule. A personal representative whose will gives no power of sale may sell, but “No title shall pass until the court authorizes or confirms the sale” (733.613(1)); where the will confers a specific power to sell, the sale needs no court authorization and the buyer takes free of creditors' claims, except existing liens (733.613(2)-(3)). The general power to “acquire or dispose of an asset” excludes “real property in this or another state” (733.612(5)). Heirs who inherit a house also inherit its tax basis at date of death; whether the estate owes federal or state estate tax is a separate question our estate tax list covers. For units in a non-traded REIT or fund held in the decedent's name, the sponsor's repurchase rules for heirs are in our death and repurchase page.
What a reader can do with this
These are decision points the statutes raise, not instructions.
- Ask what is in the fee base. The base is the inventory value of the probate estate assets, so a list of what passes by beneficiary designation, survivorship, trust or deed outside probate (see revocable vs irrevocable trusts) tells you what the percentages apply to.
- Ask for the disclosure and the summary. The attorney must give the written disclosures and get a signed acknowledgment before charging on the schedule, and the personal representative is entitled to a summary of ordinary and extraordinary services at the end (733.6171(2)(b)-(c)).
- Compare a flat quote with the presumed figure in the table above, and ask what the quote excludes: the sale of a rental, a homestead question, tax returns and any contested matter are all listed as extraordinary services.
- Check the 2-year line. If the death was more than 2 years ago, summary administration is open at any value (735.201(2)), and the claim period has run (733.710).
- Put the clock dates on a calendar the day first publication is made: 3 months for claims, 5 months before debts can be demanded, 1 year to pay.
- A Florida probate lawyer decides title, homestead and which route fits. An adviser is for the money side: what to do with sale proceeds, the new basis and an estate's effect on the rest of your plan.
This is analysis of public documents, not investment, legal or tax advice.
FAQ
Update alert · free
An email when the florida probate and homestead law changes numbers change
When a rate, rule or filing behind this page changes: what changed, the one number that matters, and the source to check it yourself.
Sources, read and saved on October 22, 2026: Florida Statutes 28.2401, 731.201, 732.401, 732.402, 732.403, 732.4015, 733.212, 733.2121, 733.604, 733.608, 733.612, 733.613, 733.617, 733.6171, 733.6175, 733.702, 733.705, 733.707, 733.710, 734.102, 735.201, 735.203, 735.206, 735.2063, 735.301, 735.302, 735.303 and 735.304 (leg.state.fl.us); Florida Constitution article X section 4 (leg.state.fl.us); enrolled CS/HB 1337, chapter 2026-57, and the Florida House final bill analysis dated April 30, 2026 (flsenate.gov); Florida Office of the State Courts Administrator, FY 2024-25 Statistical Reference Guide, chapter 6, Circuit Probate (flcourts.gov). Fee figures at each estate size are our arithmetic from sections 733.617(2) and 733.6171(3).
Keep reading.
- 0124 min read
401(k) Rollover to an IRA in 2026: Direct, 60-Day, Withholding
401(k) to IRA rollover rules from the Code and IRS Pubs 590-A and 575: direct vs 60-day, 20% withholding, what cannot roll, and the once-a-year limit.
- 0221 min read
529 Superfunding 2026: $95,000, Form 709 and the Roth Rollover
A 529 can take $95,000 per child in 2026 ($190,000 for a couple) under the five-year election. Form 709 steps, death inside 5 years, the $35,000 Roth rollover.
- 0319 min read
AMT in 2026: Exemption Shrinks 50 Cents per Dollar From $500,000
The 2026 AMT exemption ($90,100 single, $140,200 joint) now phases out at 50% from $500,000 or $1,000,000 of AMT income. Worked cases and IRS 2022 data.