Whether you’re married can decide which of your assets end up tied up in Florida probate court and which pass directly to the people you love — often by tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars. A married couple’s home can pass automatically to a surviving spouse under Florida law; an unmarried couple who built a life together for decades gets none of that automatic protection, no matter how long they were together. Below, two side-by-side case studies from a recent SJF Law Group webinar — a married couple and an unmarried couple — show exactly which assets land in probate, which pass outside of it, and what each family could have done differently.
Watch the full webinar replay: Florida Probate: Married vs. Unmarried — Case Study Webinar
What Is Probate, and What Decides What Happens to Your Assets?
Probate is the court-supervised process of settling someone’s estate: validating the will (if there is one), paying debts, and transferring assets to the people who inherit them. In Florida, there are three possible outcomes:
- Formal administration — the full court process, typically used for larger or more complex estates.
- Summary administration — a shorter, simpler process available for smaller estates.
- No probate at all — for assets that pass by title or by beneficiary designation, outside the court process entirely.
Here’s the detail that surprises most people: what decides which of these three outcomes applies to each of your assets isn’t what your will says. It’s how that asset is titled, and whether it names a beneficiary.
A will only controls what happens to assets titled in your name alone with no beneficiary listed — those are the assets that go through probate. Anything jointly titled with rights of survivorship, held as tenants by the entireties (available only to married couples), or carrying a named beneficiary passes directly to that person or co-owner, outside of probate, regardless of what your will says.
As of July 1, 2026, Florida also raised the asset threshold for summary administration — the shorter, simpler probate track — to $150,000 (Fla. Stat. § 735.201), up from the previous $75,000. Exact timelines and costs vary by county and by how complicated the estate is; that’s exactly the kind of detail worth going over in a one-on-one review of your own situation rather than a general estimate.
Case Study: A Married Couple in Florida Probate
Consider a married couple where the husband passes away, survived by his wife. Here’s what they owned:
| Asset | Value | Titling
|
| Life insurance policy | $250,000 | Names wife as beneficiary |
| Bank account | $70,000 | Husband’s name only |
| Brokerage account | $350,000 | Titled jointly |
| Primary residence | $650,000 | Tenants by the entireties |
So which of these four assets actually go through probate?
| Asset | Result | Why
|
| Life insurance ($250,000) | Outside probate | Names a beneficiary |
| Bank account ($70,000) | Goes through probate | Sole name, no beneficiary |
| Brokerage account ($350,000) | Outside probate | Passes to the surviving joint owner |
| Home ($650,000) | Outside probate | Passes automatically to the surviving spouse — tenants by the entireties is a form of ownership available only to married couples |
Only the $70,000 bank account lands in probate — and because it’s under Florida’s $150,000 summary administration threshold, this family likely only needs the shorter, simpler process, not a full formal administration.
If the husband had simply named a payable-on-death beneficiary on that one account, or held it in a revocable trust, his family could have avoided probate entirely. It’s a reminder that probate usually isn’t about one big mistake — it’s about one account or asset that didn’t get the same attention as the rest.
Case Study: An Unmarried Couple Together 18 Years
This case study is an illustrative example built for this webinar — it does not describe an actual SJF Law Group client or case.
Now consider a couple who built a life together for 18 years but never married. Partner A passes away without a will, survived by Partner B. Here’s what they owned:
| Asset | Value | Titling
|
| Home | $450,000 | Partner A’s sole name |
| Life insurance policy | $150,000 | Names Partner B as beneficiary |
| Joint checking account | $75,000 | Held jointly with Partner B, with right of survivorship |
| 401(k) retirement account | $300,000 | Still names Partner A’s ex-spouse, from a marriage that ended 12 years earlier |
Because Partner A and Partner B were never married, tenants by the entireties — the automatic protection that kept the married couple’s home out of probate above — was never available to them. That single fact changes everything about how this estate is handled.
| Asset | Result | Why
|
| Home ($450,000) | Goes through probate | Sole name, no will |
| Life insurance ($150,000) | Outside probate | Names Partner B as beneficiary |
| Joint checking ($75,000) | Outside probate | Passes to Partner B as the surviving joint owner |
| 401(k) ($300,000) | Outside probate, but not to Partner B | Beneficiary form still names the ex-spouse |
Here’s the part that tends to stop people: under Florida law, when someone dies without a will, their property passes to their legal heirs — which, for an unmarried couple, does not include a surviving partner, no matter how long the relationship lasted. So the home — the largest asset in this estate — goes through probate and passes to Partner A’s legal heirs, not to Partner B. Meanwhile, the retirement account passes outside of probate, but to an ex-spouse from a marriage that ended over a decade earlier, simply because the beneficiary form was never updated.
After 18 years together, Partner B keeps the life insurance proceeds and the checking account — but has no legal claim to the home they shared, and no claim at all on the retirement account. What could Partner A have done differently? A will or a funded revocable trust naming Partner B, a deed naming Partner B directly (since tenants by the entireties isn’t an option for unmarried couples), and updating that 401(k) beneficiary form after the divorce. Partner B’s options now are limited and should be discussed with an attorney promptly, since an unmarried partner has no automatic legal standing in a partner’s estate.
How to Avoid Probate in Florida
Both case studies point to the same lesson: probate usually isn’t caused by one big mistake. It’s caused by a handful of assets that didn’t get the same planning attention as everything else. Three tools address that directly.
Revocable Trusts
Assets titled in the name of a properly funded revocable trust pass to your beneficiaries without probate. The key word is funded — a trust that exists on paper but was never actually used to retitle your accounts and property won’t do anything for you.
Beneficiary Designations
Payable-on-death and transfer-on-death designations on bank and investment accounts, and named beneficiaries on retirement accounts and life insurance, let those assets pass directly to the people you choose — as both case studies show, outside of probate entirely.
Lady Bird Deeds
A Lady Bird deed transfers real estate to your chosen beneficiary at death, outside of probate, while you keep full control of the property — and your homestead protection — during your lifetime.
Two Habits Worth Building
A will alone does not avoid probate — it only controls what happens to assets that don’t already have a beneficiary or the right titling. And beneficiary designations aren’t a set-it-and-forget-it task: review them after every major life change — marriage, divorce, a new child or grandchild — not just once, the way the 401(k) in the second case study never got updated after a 12-year-old divorce.
If You’re Not Married
Florida’s automatic protections for married couples — like tenants by the entireties — simply don’t apply if you’re not married, no matter how long you’ve been together. If you’re in a long-term relationship and want your partner protected, that has to be put in writing: a will, a trust, a deed, or updated beneficiary forms. Florida law won’t assume it for you.
A Few Questions Worth Asking Yourself
- How is your home titled, and who is on the deed?
- Does every bank, investment, and retirement account name a beneficiary?
- Have you added anyone to an account or deed just to make things easier — and understood what that actually does?
- If you’re in a long-term relationship but not married, have you put in writing what Florida law won’t assume for you?
- When did a Florida attorney last review your documents?
How This Plays Out in Practice
The examples below are illustrative and do not describe actual SJF Law Group clients.
A bank account that never got a beneficiary form. A woman spent years building a modest but meaningful savings account, assuming it would simply go to her children the way the rest of her estate was arranged. Because the account never had a payable-on-death beneficiary listed, it was the one asset in her entire estate that had to go through probate — adding months and legal fees to settle something a five-minute form could have avoided.
Adding an adult child to a deed “to make things simpler.” A father added his adult daughter to the deed on his home, thinking it would make things easier for her down the road. Years later, a lawsuit against the daughter put the home at risk, and the father’s ability to sell or refinance it required her sign-off — not because anyone intended that outcome, but because adding her to the deed made her a legal co-owner.
A beneficiary form nobody thought to update. After a divorce, a man meant to update the beneficiary on his retirement account but never got around to it. Years later and remarried, his new spouse learned at his death that the account still legally belonged to his ex-spouse — the beneficiary form, not his will or his intentions, controlled where the money went.
When to Speak with an Estate Planning Attorney
Every scenario above was fixable while the person was alive, and difficult or impossible to fix after they were gone. What you actually need depends on your own assets, how they’re titled, your family situation, and whether you’re married — there’s no one-size-fits-all answer, which is exactly why a personal review matters more than a general guide like this one.
SJF Law Group offers a complimentary consultation to review your estate and how your assets would transfer today, and serves clients throughout Broward, Miami-Dade, and Palm Beach Counties.
Call us at (954) 580-3690 or schedule your free consultation to get started.
This content is educational only and does not constitute legal advice. Samantha Fitzgerald, Esq. is licensed only in Florida; this content applies to Florida estates and Florida-based assets.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is probate in Florida?
Probate is the court-supervised process of settling someone’s estate after they pass away — validating the will if there is one, paying debts, and transferring assets to heirs or beneficiaries.
Does having a will mean my family skips probate?
No. A will is the document the probate court follows for assets that don’t already have a beneficiary or the right titling — it doesn’t avoid probate on its own. Assets with a named beneficiary or the right form of joint ownership pass outside of probate whether or not you have a will.
What determines whether an asset goes through probate in Florida?
How the asset is titled and whether it names a beneficiary — not what your will says. An account or property titled solely in one person’s name with no beneficiary listed typically goes through probate; jointly titled assets with survivorship rights and assets with a named beneficiary typically do not.
What’s the difference between formal and summary administration in Florida?
Formal administration is the full court process, generally used for larger or more complex estates. Summary administration is a shorter, simpler process available for smaller estates — as of July 1, 2026, Florida raised the qualifying threshold to $150,000 (Fla. Stat. § 735.201).
What happens to a home if an unmarried couple lived together for years and one partner dies without a will?
If the home is titled solely in the deceased partner’s name, it typically passes through probate to that person’s legal heirs under Florida law — not to the surviving partner, regardless of how long the relationship lasted. Tenants by the entireties, the automatic protection available to married couples, isn’t available to unmarried couples. The specifics depend on your situation, which is exactly what a consultation is for.
How can I avoid probate in Florida?
Common tools include a properly funded revocable trust, payable-on-death and transfer-on-death designations on financial accounts, named beneficiaries on retirement accounts and life insurance, and Lady Bird deeds for real estate. Which combination makes sense depends on what you own and your family situation.
About This Article
By Samantha Fitzgerald, Esq., SJF Law Group
This post recaps our November 2026 webinar of the same name.
Learn more about our probate administration services, or read a related post on what asset protection strategies actually work in Florida.
Have questions about your own situation? Schedule a complimentary consultation or call (954) 580-3690.
