Florida Wills for Palm Beach Real-Estate Owners

A will is the foundation of most estate plans, but for Palm Beach property owners it is only part of the picture. A Florida will tells the probate court who should receive your home, condo, or rental parcels, yet it does not move real estate by itself. Understanding what a will can and cannot do is essential when your wealth is tied up in real property.

How a Florida Will Must Be Signed

Florida sets strict execution rules. Under Section 732.502, your will must be signed at the end by you (or at your direction) in the presence of two witnesses, who must also sign in your presence and in the presence of each other. To make the will self-proving, so the court can accept it without tracking down witnesses later, you add a notarized self-proving affidavit. A homemade or out-of-state form that does not meet these requirements can be challenged or rejected, leaving your real estate to pass under Florida’s default intestacy rules instead of your wishes.

Wills and Your Real Estate

When real property passes through a will, it still goes through probate. The court supervises the transfer, the personal representative gathers and protects the property, and title is not cleared until administration concludes. For a Palm Beach owner with a single home, that may be manageable; for someone holding several rental units or a vacation property, probate can mean months of court oversight and public filings before heirs can sell or refinance.

The Homestead Limitation

Florida’s homestead protection (Art. X, Section 4) does more than shield your residence from creditors; it also limits how you may leave it. If you are survived by a spouse or a minor child, you generally cannot freely devise your homestead to anyone else. A will that ignores these restrictions can produce results you never intended, such as a surviving spouse receiving a life estate while the children take a remainder interest.

Why a Will Alone May Not Be Enough

Because a will guarantees probate, many real-estate owners pair it with a revocable trust, a Lady Bird deed, or other transfer tools so the property passes outside court. A will then serves as a backstop, often a pour-over will, capturing anything left out of the trust. Florida charges no state estate or inheritance tax, so the focus is on a smooth transfer rather than tax avoidance.

Consult a Florida Attorney

This page is general information, not legal advice for your situation. Will drafting, witnessing, and homestead rules in Florida are technical, and small mistakes can invalidate the document or create probate complications for your property. Speak with a licensed Florida estate planning attorney before preparing or updating your will.