A will is a written direction that takes effect at death and must be validated through Florida probate court before assets reach your heirs; a revocable living trust is a legal arrangement you create and control during life that holds title to your assets and passes them to your beneficiaries privately, outside of probate. For most Palm Beach families the real question is not which document is “better” in the abstract, but which one—or which combination—matches the size of your estate, the privacy you want, and the kind of people you’d be leaving behind to administer it.
I’ve sat across the conference table from a lot of physicians and business owners in this county who assumed a trust was an automatic upgrade, and from just as many who were quietly relieved to learn that a well-drafted will was all they actually needed. The honest answer is “it depends,” and below I’ll walk through exactly what it depends on under Florida law.
What a Florida Will Actually Does
A last will and testament is governed by the Florida Probate Code, principally Chapters 731 through 735, Florida Statutes. To be valid, it must be signed by you at the end and witnessed by two people who sign in your presence and in the presence of each other (Fla. Stat. § 732.502). Most attorneys add a self-proving affidavit so the witnesses don’t have to be tracked down years later.
Here’s the part people miss: a will does nothing on its own. It is a set of instructions to a probate judge. When you die, your personal representative files the will with the circuit court in the county where you lived—Palm Beach County, for most of our clients—and the court supervises the transfer of your assets, the payment of creditors, and the resolution of any disputes. That supervision is the will’s strength and its weakness at the same time.
What probate involves
- Time. A formal Florida probate typically runs six months to a year, sometimes longer if there are creditor claims or a contest. Even a streamlined summary administration (available when the estate is under $75,000 or the decedent has been dead more than two years) takes weeks to months.
- Cost. Florida law allows “reasonable” attorney’s fees, and § 733.6171 sets out a presumptively reasonable fee schedule tied to the size of the probate estate. On a sizeable estate, those fees add up.
- Publicity. A probate file is a public record. Anyone—a competitor, a curious neighbor, an estranged relative—can pull it and read who got what.
None of that makes a will a bad tool. It makes it a court-supervised tool. For a younger physician with a mortgage, retirement accounts with named beneficiaries, and a couple of kids, a will paired with proper beneficiary designations is often perfectly sufficient.
What a Florida Revocable Living Trust Does Differently
A revocable living trust is created under the Florida Trust Code, Chapter 736. You are typically all three roles at once while you’re alive and well: the settlor (you create it), the trustee (you manage it), and the beneficiary (you enjoy it). “Revocable” means you can change it, amend it, or tear it up entirely at any time, for any reason, as long as you have capacity.
The mechanism that makes a trust valuable is funding—the unglamorous work of retitling assets into the trust’s name. Your home deed, brokerage accounts, business interests, and the like are transferred so the trust, not you personally, holds title. When you die, a successor trustee you’ve named simply steps in and distributes everything according to the trust terms. No court, no judge, no public filing.
That last point is the whole game for many of our Palm Beach clients. A trust that is actually funded avoids probate for the assets it holds. An unfunded trust—and I’ve seen plenty—is an expensive binder on a shelf that accomplishes nothing.
Where a trust earns its keep
- Privacy. The terms stay private. For a surgeon with a high public profile or a family that simply values discretion, this matters.
- Incapacity planning. If you become incapacitated, your successor trustee manages trust assets immediately—no court-supervised guardianship over your finances. A will offers nothing here; it only speaks at death.
- Out-of-state property. Own a condo in another state? Without a trust, your family may face a second “ancillary” probate there. A trust can hold that property and skip it.
- Continuity. A successor trustee can pay bills and manage investments the day after your death, rather than waiting weeks for letters of administration.
For families weighing how to handle real estate specifically—including techniques like retained life estates and lifetime transfers—it’s worth understanding how those tools interact with a trust. Our colleagues at Morgan Legal cover the mechanics well in their guide to ; the New York framing differs from Florida’s, but the underlying planning logic translates.
The Florida-Specific Wrinkles That Change the Calculus
Two features of Florida law deserve special attention because they trip up people who copy advice from other states.
Homestead protection and devise restrictions
Florida’s constitutional homestead protection (Art. X, § 4) is unusually strong, and it cuts two ways. It shields your primary residence from most creditors, and it sharply limits how you can leave that home if you’re survived by a spouse or minor child. You cannot freely devise homestead property in those circumstances, whether through a will or a trust. Putting your homestead into a revocable trust requires careful drafting so you don’t accidentally lose the creditor protection or run afoul of § 732.401 and § 732.4015. This is one of the most common mistakes I clean up after the fact.
The elective share
A surviving spouse in Florida is entitled to an “elective share” of 30% of the elective estate (Fla. Stat. §§ 732.201–732.2155). Critically, the elective estate includes assets held in a revocable trust. So you cannot use a trust to disinherit a spouse the way some people imagine. If a blended family is part of your picture, this needs to be addressed deliberately, often through a marital agreement.
Cost, Honestly Compared
People fixate on the upfront price. A simple Florida will costs less to draft than a fully funded trust package, no argument. But that comparison is incomplete. The will’s costs largely arrive later—at probate—and they’re often larger than the trust’s setup ever was, especially on an estate with real property and investment accounts.
The trust front-loads the cost and the effort: you pay more now, and you do the funding work now. In exchange, your family pays less and waits less later. For a professional with a meaningful estate, that trade usually favors the trust. For a young family of modest means, it often doesn’t. There is no universal answer, which is exactly why a templated, one-size document downloaded online is risky.
You Almost Always Need a Will Either Way
This surprises people: even clients who set up a fully funded revocable trust still sign a will. It’s called a pour-over will, and it acts as a safety net. Any asset you forgot to title into the trust—a stray bank account, a vehicle, an inheritance you received late in life—”pours over” into the trust at death so it’s distributed under the same plan. The pour-over will is also where you name guardians for minor children, something a trust cannot do.
So the real choice is rarely “will or trust.” For larger estates it’s “will and trust, working together.” For smaller, simpler ones it’s “will plus beneficiary designations, done correctly.” If you want a clearer picture of what a properly drafted will should contain, this overview of the is a useful primer, and our own wills page walks through the Florida-specific requirements.
So Which Fits Your Family?
Strip away the marketing and the decision usually comes down to a handful of questions:
- Do you own real estate—especially in more than one state?
- Is privacy genuinely important to you, or are you indifferent to a public file?
- Do you want someone able to manage your finances seamlessly if you’re incapacitated?
- How complex is your family—blended marriage, special-needs beneficiary, a child you’d rather not hand a lump sum?
- Is your estate large enough that future probate fees would dwarf today’s setup cost?
The more “yes” answers, the more a revocable living trust earns its place. A high-earning physician with a Palm Beach home, a vacation property up north, and a desire to keep family matters out of the public record is close to a textbook trust candidate. A newly married teacher with a 403(b) and a starter home is usually well served by a solid will and clean beneficiary designations—at least until life gets more complicated.
What I’d caution against is letting a single feature drive the whole decision. Avoiding probate is worth a great deal, but a trust funded carelessly, or a homestead handled wrong, can create more trouble than the probate it was meant to dodge. The document is only as good as the drafting and the funding behind it.
If you’d like a plan built around your actual assets and your actual family rather than a template, our Palm Beach estate planning attorneys can help, and you can also review the broader available through our affiliated office. When you’re ready, reach out for a consultation and we’ll map the right combination for you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a revocable living trust avoid probate in Florida?
Yes—but only for assets actually titled in the trust’s name. A trust avoids probate for property it holds, which is why “funding” the trust is essential. Assets left in your individual name still go through probate, which is what the pour-over will is designed to catch.
Can I disinherit my spouse with a trust in Florida?
No. Florida’s elective share (Fla. Stat. §§ 732.201–732.2155) entitles a surviving spouse to 30% of the elective estate, and that estate includes assets held in a revocable trust. A trust will not override a spouse’s statutory rights without a valid marital agreement.
Do I still need a will if I have a living trust?
Almost always yes. A pour-over will captures any asset you didn’t transfer into the trust and is the only document that can name guardians for your minor children. A trust and a will work as a team, not as alternatives.
Is a trust worth the higher upfront cost?
It depends on your estate. A trust front-loads cost and effort but can save your family significant probate fees, delay, and publicity later. For larger or multi-state estates the trade usually favors a trust; for small, simple estates a will is often sufficient.
Can I put my Florida homestead into a revocable trust?
You can, but it must be drafted carefully to preserve constitutional homestead creditor protection and to comply with Florida’s restrictions on devising homestead when you have a surviving spouse or minor child. This is a common area for costly mistakes, so don’t attempt it with a generic form.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a revocable living trust avoid probate in Florida?
Yes, but only for assets actually titled in the trust’s name. A trust avoids probate for property it holds, which is why funding the trust is essential. Assets left in your individual name still go through probate, which is what the pour-over will is designed to catch.
Can I disinherit my spouse with a trust in Florida?
No. Florida’s elective share (Fla. Stat. sections 732.201 to 732.2155) entitles a surviving spouse to 30% of the elective estate, and that estate includes assets held in a revocable trust. A trust will not override a spouse’s statutory rights without a valid marital agreement.
Do I still need a will if I have a living trust?
Almost always yes. A pour-over will captures any asset you didn’t transfer into the trust and is the only document that can name guardians for your minor children. A trust and a will work as a team, not as alternatives.
Is a trust worth the higher upfront cost?
It depends on your estate. A trust front-loads cost and effort but can save your family significant probate fees, delay, and publicity later. For larger or multi-state estates the trade usually favors a trust; for small, simple estates a will is often sufficient.
Can I put my Florida homestead into a revocable trust?
You can, but it must be drafted carefully to preserve constitutional homestead creditor protection and to comply with Florida’s restrictions on devising homestead when you have a surviving spouse or minor child. This is a common area for costly mistakes, so don’t attempt it with a generic form.
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