Selling an inherited house in Florida
What heirs need to know in Florida, from summary administration to full probate, homestead rules, selling costs and the property tax jump, plus how an as-is cash sale works in Jacksonville, Orlando and Tampa Bay.
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- No cleanout, repairs or showings
- We pay all closing costs
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Can you sell an inherited house in Florida without full probate?
Often, yes. Florida has a faster court process called summary administration for smaller estates and for anyone who died more than two years ago. Many Florida homes also pass outside the estate entirely, either as protected homestead or through a lady bird deed (an enhanced life estate deed) the owner signed while alive.
The catch is that Florida has stricter rules than most states about who inherits a homestead and who has to sign the deed. Sorting that out first is what keeps a sale from stalling at the title company.
Find the right path for the house
| Situation | Likely path | Who signs the deed |
|---|---|---|
| Owner signed a lady bird deed or the house was held jointly with right of survivorship | No probate for the house. Record the death certificate with the county. | The named beneficiary or surviving owner |
| House was the owner’s homestead and there’s a surviving spouse or minor child | Protected homestead. Florida’s constitution decides who inherits, not the will. | The heirs set by law (spouse and/or children), usually after a court order determining homestead |
| Homestead, no spouse or minor child | Protected homestead passes under the will or to the heirs. A court order determining homestead is usually needed for clean title. | The heirs or beneficiaries |
| Non-homestead house (rental, vacant or second home) and the estate is $150,000 or less, or the owner died more than two years ago | Summary administration | The beneficiaries named in the court’s order |
| Larger non-homestead estate, or debts to sort out | Formal administration | The personal representative (Florida’s word for executor) |
| Owner lived in another state but owned the Florida house | Ancillary administration in the Florida county where the house sits | The ancillary personal representative |
The $150,000 limit for summary administration (raised from $75,000 on July 1, 2026) counts only assets that go through probate, so a protected homestead usually isn’t part of that number. If the will gives the personal representative a power of sale, they can sell a non-homestead house without asking the court first. Without that power, a judge has to approve the sale.
How Florida probate works for a house
- File in the right county. Probate is opened with the clerk of the circuit court in the county where the owner lived. If they lived out of state, ancillary probate is opened where the Florida house is.
- Hire a Florida probate attorney. In almost every case Florida requires the personal representative to have a lawyer. It’s one of the few states that does.
- Get letters of administration, or an order of summary administration. Summary administration can wrap up in a few weeks to a few months. Formal administration usually takes 6 to 12 months.
- Publish the notice to creditors. In formal administration, creditors get three months from the first publication to file claims.
- Settle homestead status. The attorney can ask the court to declare the house protected homestead, which tells the title company who owns it and that estate creditors can’t touch it.
- Sell. The personal representative, the heirs, or the beneficiaries named in the order sign, depending on the path from Step 1.
Good to know
- Surviving spouse rights. If the owner left a spouse and children, the spouse usually gets a life estate in the homestead and the children get the rest. The spouse has six months from the death to elect a half share instead, so a sale may need to wait for that decision or have everyone sign.
- Minor heirs. If a child under 18 inherits part of the house, a guardianship court usually has to approve the sale.
- Heirs out of state. Florida allows remote online notarization, so family members in other states can often sign without traveling.
- Insurance on a vacant house. Many Florida policies limit coverage once a house sits empty, and older roofs make it hard to get new coverage at all. Call the insurer early.
- Family disagreements. If heirs can’t agree on selling, a partition case is possible, but it’s slow and expensive. A neutral offer often settles it faster.
New to probate?
Start with our guide to selling a probate property, or read inherited a house? what to do next.
What it costs to sell an inherited house in Florida
| Cost | What to expect |
|---|---|
| Documentary stamp tax | Florida’s transfer tax is $0.70 per $100 of the sale price (about $1,750 on a $250,000 sale). The seller usually pays it. Deeds from the estate to heirs with no money changing hands are normally taxed at the minimum. |
| Title insurance | Florida sets the rates. In Duval, Orange, Hillsborough and Pinellas counties the seller usually pays for the owner’s policy. |
| Property taxes | Florida taxes are paid in arrears, so the seller credits the buyer for taxes from January 1 to closing. |
| HOA or condo fees | Unpaid dues and an estoppel letter fee are settled at closing. |
| Agent commission | Often 5% to 6% on a listed sale. None on a direct sale to a cash buyer. |
| Probate costs | Court filing fees plus attorney fees. Florida law sets a “reasonable” attorney fee schedule tied to estate value, about 3% of the first $1 million for formal administration. |
When you sell to BAM, we pay all closing costs, and back taxes and liens are paid at closing out of the sale.
The property tax jump after a death
Florida’s Save Our Homes rule caps how much a homestead’s taxable value can rise each year, at 3% or inflation, whichever is lower. When the owner dies and the house passes to anyone but a spouse, that cap resets on January 1. The homestead exemption of up to $50,000 also ends unless an heir moves in and makes it their own permanent home.
For a house someone owned for decades, the next tax bill can be two or three times higher. Tax bills come out in November, with a 4% discount for paying that month, and become delinquent April 1. Unpaid taxes go to a tax certificate sale, which starts the clock on a possible tax deed sale.
Florida voters approved Amendment 3 on November 3, 2026. Starting January 1, 2027, it raises the homestead exemption from non-school property taxes to up to $150,000 (up to $250,000 in 2028) and lowers the yearly cap on non-homestead assessment increases from 10% to 5%. Save Our Homes stays in place, so the taxable value still resets when a house passes to anyone but a spouse.
Taxes heirs ask about
- No Florida inheritance or estate tax, and no state income tax on the sale.
- Stepped-up basis. Heirs generally take the house at its value on the date of death, so selling soon after usually means little or no capital gains tax. See IRS Publication 551.
- Federal estate tax only applies to very large estates, over $15 million per person in 2026.
If the house is in one of our Florida metros
Jacksonville
Probate for Duval, Clay and Nassau counties runs through the Fourth Judicial Circuit, and St. Johns County is in the Seventh. Many older homes in Arlington, the Westside and Northside still have original cast iron drain pipes and older roofs, which can make a 4-point insurance inspection hard to pass. Homes near the St. Johns River and its creeks may also need flood insurance a buyer has to price in.
Orlando and Lake County
Orange and Osceola counties share the Ninth Judicial Circuit, Seminole is in the Eighteenth, and Lake County cases are filed in Tavares in the Fifth. Central Florida sits on limestone, so sinkhole claims and settlement cracks come up more here than in most of the state. Many 1980s and 1990s homes around Orlando, Apopka and Clermont also have polybutylene plumbing that insurers dislike. Lake County values have climbed fast with growth around Clermont, so the Save Our Homes reset can hit heirs there especially hard.
Tampa Bay
Hillsborough is the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit, Pinellas and Pasco share the Sixth, Hernando is in the Fifth and Polk is in the Tenth. Homes in flood zones that took damage in the 2024 hurricanes can fall under the FEMA 50% rule, which may require raising or rebuilding the house before major repairs. Older condos in Pinellas face milestone inspections and reserve requirements under Florida’s 2022 condo safety law, which can mean big special assessments. We buy houses and condos in either condition.
Keep, rent, list or sell for cash?
Keep it
Makes sense if a family member will live there. Moving in and filing for homestead by March 1 brings back the exemption, though the taxable value still resets.
Rent it out
Brings in income, but you’ll pay non-homestead taxes, landlord insurance and repairs, and Florida insurance costs keep rising.
List with an agent
Usually brings the highest price for a house in good shape. Expect repairs, cleanout, showings, commissions and a buyer whose lender and insurer both need the house to pass inspection.
Sell for cash
Fastest and simplest when the house needs work, the heirs live far away, or no one wants to carry taxes and insurance. You’ll trade some price for speed and certainty.
Not sure which is right? Read our cash buyer vs. realtor guide.
Selling the house to BAM
- Get an offer early. We can make an offer before probate or the homestead order is done, so the family knows the number while the attorney works.
- See the math. You’ll get a fair cash offer within 24 hours, and we’ll show you how we got there.
- Close on the estate’s timeline. We work with your probate attorney and title company and close in as little as 2–3 weeks, or whenever the paperwork is ready.
- Leave what you don’t want. Take the keepsakes and leave the rest. No cleanout and no repairs.
Why heirs call us
- 20+ years and 500+ houses bought
- No commissions or fees
- We pay all closing costs
- Back taxes and liens paid at closing
- Close in as little as 2–3 weeks, or on your timeline
Florida inherited house questions
Do I need probate to sell an inherited house in Florida?
Not always. A house with a lady bird deed or joint ownership with survivorship skips probate. A protected homestead usually needs only a court order confirming who inherited it. Other houses go through summary or formal administration first.
What is summary administration?
It’s Florida’s shorter probate process. It’s available when the estate going through probate is worth $150,000 or less, not counting protected homestead, or when the owner died more than two years ago. The court issues one order naming who gets the property, with no personal representative needed.
What does homestead mean when someone inherits a Florida house?
If the house was the owner’s permanent home, Florida’s constitution protects it from most creditors and, when there’s a surviving spouse or minor child, limits who can inherit it no matter what the will says. It also usually passes outside the probate estate.
Will the property taxes go up after we inherit?
Usually, yes. The Save Our Homes cap and homestead exemption end on January 1 after the house passes to anyone other than a spouse, and the house is taxed at full market value from then on.
Can a personal representative sell without court approval?
Yes, if the will gives them a power of sale and the house isn’t protected homestead. Otherwise the court has to approve the sale, or the heirs sign the deed themselves.
The house needs a lot of work. Will you still buy it?
Yes. We buy as-is, including roof, plumbing, sinkhole, flood and hurricane damage. Take what you want and leave the rest.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Probate and tax rules change and every estate is different, so check with a Florida probate attorney or tax professional. Current as of November 2026.
Talk to us about the house, no pressure
We’ll walk the whole family through the offer, even if a cash sale isn’t the best fit.