What a Will Does, and What It Does Not Do

What a Will Does, and What It Does Not Do

A will names the people who inherit your property. A will names the personal representative who handles your estate. A will names a guardian for minor children if both parents die. Those three jobs are important, and a will does them well.

A will does not avoid probate. A will directs probate. The personal representative you name must still go to court, open a case, notify creditors and file an inventory before any distribution happens. An estate with probate assets over $150,000 (excluding exempt property) needs formal administration unless the person has been dead two years. Summary administration is available under that line.

A will also does nothing while you are alive. If you become incapacitated, a will cannot give anyone authority over your accounts or your house. A separate power of attorney handles finances. A health-care surrogate handles medical decisions. Without both, your family may need a court guardianship to pay your bills or sell your home.

The practical question is how much property would actually pass through probate. A house can pass by deed. Retirement accounts and life insurance can pass by beneficiary designation. Bank and brokerage accounts can pass by payable-on-death or transfer-on-death registration. When those tools cover the larger assets, a will catches only what falls through the cracks. A will-plus-deed plan may leave little or nothing for a court to supervise.

What Probate Would Cost Your Family With a Will Alone

Florida probate attorney fees are presumed reasonable at a percentage of the estate, but that schedule is not mandatory. The statutory presumption runs 3 percent of the first million dollars of estate value. An estate worth $500,000 would carry a presumed-reasonable attorney fee of $15,000. Personal representative fees run the same percentages, though a family member serving as personal representative often waives the fee. Court filing, publication and certified copies add more.

A formal administration takes months. The personal representative must publish a notice to creditors and wait at least three months before closing. A personal representative with a power of sale in the will can sell non-homestead property during administration, but a homestead requires a court determination before the sale can close. Family members who need funds wait for distributions the court allows.

The presumed-reasonable fee applies to the gross value of the estate, not the net equity. A house worth $400,000 with a $300,000 mortgage still counts as $400,000 for fee purposes. Property that passes outside probate, including property with a named beneficiary or a deed that transfers at death, does not count at all.

The question is not whether probate is bad. Probate is a court process that protects creditors and heirs. The question is whether the cost and delay are worth avoiding, and if so, which tool does the job at the lowest expense. A trust avoids probate, but so does a deed that transfers at death or a beneficiary designation on an account. The right answer depends on what you own and what you want to happen.

The Will-Plus-Deed Plan: When a Trust Is Not Needed

A lady bird deed (an enhanced life estate deed) keeps your home out of probate without giving up control while you live. You stay on the title, pay the taxes, live in the house and can sell or refinance without anyone’s permission. At death the home passes automatically to the people named in the deed. No probate is needed for the house.

Florida bank accounts and brokerage accounts can carry payable-on-death or transfer-on-death designations. Retirement accounts and life insurance already pass by beneficiary designation. When the house passes by deed and the accounts pass by beneficiary, the will may govern only personal property and any accounts that slipped through without a designation.

The Secure Will Estate Plan at this firm costs $1,200 for an individual and $1,950 for a couple. The plan includes the will, a durable power of attorney, a health-care surrogate designation, a living will, a HIPAA authorization and a lady bird deed on the home. Recording costs are additional.

A single person with a paid-off house, accounts with named beneficiaries and one or two adult children is a good candidate for the will-plus-deed plan. The same is true for a married couple whose children are all from the same marriage. When every asset either passes by deed or beneficiary or falls below the summary administration threshold, a trust adds cost without adding a benefit.

The will-plus-deed plan does not work as well when beneficiaries are minors, incapacitated or poor with money. A deed passes property outright at death. A beneficiary designation passes property outright at death. Neither tool lets you hold funds back, spread distributions over time or name a trustee to manage the money on someone’s behalf.

Six Situations Where a Trust Earns Its Fee

A revocable living trust avoids probate on anything funded into the trust. The trustee (you, while you are alive and capable) controls the assets without court supervision. At your death, the successor trustee you named distributes the assets according to the trust document. No probate is needed.

Property in another state is one situation where a trust earns its fee. A will that governs land in two states requires probate in two states, one where you lived and one where the land sits. A trust that owns the property in both states avoids both probates.

A beneficiary who should not receive outright is another situation. A trust can hold funds for a child with a disability, a child with a substance-abuse problem, a child who cannot manage money or a child whose marriage is unstable. The trustee distributes what the trust terms allow, and the rest stays protected.

A blended family often needs a trust. A married couple where one or both have children from a prior relationship may want the surviving spouse to have use of the home and income for life, with the remainder passing to the children of the first to die. A will alone usually cannot accomplish this without giving the surviving spouse outright ownership, which lets the survivor change the plan.

A rental property or a business is another situation. A trust can give the successor trustee authority to manage the property or business if you become incapacitated, without a court guardianship.

Privacy is a reason some people prefer a trust. A will filed with the court becomes a public record. A trust is a private document.

A house with a mortgage and a refinance on the horizon is sometimes a reason to choose a trust over a deed. Some lenders prefer not to close a refinance when a lady bird deed is on title. A house already in a trust is straightforward for most lenders.

Incapacity: The Part a Will Never Covers

A will does nothing while you are alive. A will takes effect at death. If you become incapacitated before you die, your will cannot give anyone authority over your bank accounts, your house or your medical care.

A durable power of attorney gives someone authority to handle your finances if you cannot. A health-care surrogate designation gives someone authority to make medical decisions. These documents are part of both the will-plus-deed plan and the trust plan at this firm.

A revocable living trust adds a layer of protection. The trust names a successor trustee who steps in if you become incapacitated. The successor trustee can manage whatever the trust owns, including real estate, investments and bank accounts funded into the trust, without going to court. The power of attorney handles what the trust does not own.

A guardianship (a court proceeding where a judge appoints someone to manage your affairs) is the backup when no planning is in place. Guardianship is expensive, slow and public. The person seeking guardianship must hire an attorney, file a petition, arrange for a medical examination and attend a hearing. The court must appoint an attorney to represent you. Annual accountings go to the court for as long as the guardianship lasts.

Incapacity planning matters more as families live farther apart. An adult child in another city may need authority to talk to the bank, access medical records and pay bills on a parent’s behalf. The documents that grant that authority are part of both plans at this firm.

Property in Another State

A will must be probated where the person lived. When the person owned real property in a second state, a second probate (called ancillary administration) may be required in that state. A couple with a house in Florida and a cabin in North Carolina would face probate in both states if those properties pass under a will.

A trust can hold real property in more than one state. When the property is titled in the name of the trust, the successor trustee can distribute or sell it without opening probate anywhere. The cost and delay of two probates disappears.

A lady bird deed is a Florida tool. Other states have different rules, and some do not recognize lady bird deeds at all. A trust that owns property in multiple states avoids the question of whether each state recognizes each type of deed.

The Complete Trust Plan at this firm costs $3,200 for an individual and $4,500 for a couple. The plan includes the revocable living trust, the pour-over will, the powers of attorney and health-care documents, and the deed moving the home into the trust (recording additional). An extra deed for a second Florida property inside the plan is $199 plus recording. A standalone deed moving property into a trust outside a plan is $550 plus recording.

What Changes If You Add a Trust Later

A person who starts with a will-plus-deed plan can add a trust later. The trust costs $2,400 when drafted alone. A deed moving the home into the trust costs $550 plus recording. The earlier lady bird deed is replaced by a deed into the trust. A new pour-over will is signed with the trust to catch anything that misses the trust at death.

Adding a trust later is common when circumstances change. A single person who marries into a blended family may now need trust provisions for a surviving spouse and children from a prior relationship. A couple who buys a vacation home in another state may decide a trust is now the simpler path. A parent whose adult child develops a disability or an addiction may want to hold that child’s inheritance in trust.

The new trust can work alongside what was already done. Beneficiary designations on retirement accounts and life insurance can remain in place. Bank and brokerage accounts can be titled in the name of the trust or keep their transfer-on-death designations.

A trust added later accomplishes the same result as a trust from the start. The main cost is the extra work of redoing the deeds. For someone whose circumstances are simple and likely to stay that way, the will-plus-deed plan remains a reasonable choice.

What Each Plan Costs

The Secure Will Estate Plan costs $1,200 for an individual and $1,950 for a couple. The plan includes the will, durable power of attorney, health-care surrogate designation, living will, HIPAA authorization and a lady bird deed on the home (recording additional).

The Complete Trust Plan costs $3,200 for an individual and $4,500 for a couple. The plan includes the revocable living trust, the pour-over will, the powers of attorney and health-care documents, and the deed moving the home into the trust (recording additional).

A revocable trust drafted alone costs $2,400. A simple will alone costs $299. A durable power of attorney alone costs $350. A lady bird deed alone costs $399 for one owner and $449 for two, plus recording. A deed moving a property into a trust costs $550 plus recording.

Fees were posted September 2026 and are honored 90 days. Government costs, including recording, filing, publication and certified copies, are additional and passed through at cost.

A free 30-minute consultation by phone, Zoom or WhatsApp is available to discuss which plan fits.

Frequently Asked Questions

Common Situations

A retired teacher came in with a paid-off house in Florida, two bank accounts with named beneficiaries and one adult daughter. She wanted everything to pass without probate and without paying $3,200 for a trust. The will-plus-deed plan at $1,200 did everything a trust would have done. The lady bird deed passed the house at death. The beneficiary designations passed the accounts. The will named the daughter as personal representative and caught anything that slipped through. No probate would be needed.

A couple owned a condo in Florida and a cabin in North Carolina. A will alone would have meant two probates, one in Florida and one in North Carolina, because the will must be probated wherever real property sits. The trust plan at $4,500 for a couple avoided both. The trust owned both properties, and the successor trustee could distribute or sell without opening probate in either state. The extra cost over the will-plus-deed plan was justified by the out-of-state property.

Sources of Law

• Summary administration: Fla. Stat. §735.201
• Disposition without administration: Fla. Stat. §735.301
• Compensation of attorney for the personal representative: Fla. Stat. §733.6171
• Devise of homestead: Fla. Stat. §732.4015
• Revocation or amendment of a revocable trust: Fla. Stat. §736.0602 (annotated)
• Trustee powers on the face of a deed: Fla. Stat. §689.073

Related Guides

Will vs living trust · Which estate plan do I need? (quiz) · Probate cost calculator · Lady bird deeds · Ancillary probate

The Question I Ask Before Recommending a Trust

In 14 years of law practice, I have sat with many clients who came in asking whether a trust was worth the extra cost when they already had a will. The answer almost always depends on three or four facts about their property and their family.

I have a few take-home points.

The first is that a will does not avoid probate. A will directs probate. The personal representative you name must still open a case, publish a notice to creditors and file an inventory before any distribution. Probate attorney fees in Florida are presumed reasonable at 3 percent of the first million, and personal representative fees run the same if taken. An estate worth $500,000 can face a combined presumed fee of $30,000.

The second is that a lady bird deed on the home and beneficiary designations on the accounts often leave nothing for probate to touch. A single person with a paid-off house and accounts with named beneficiaries can accomplish the same result as a trust for $1,200 instead of $3,200. The trust earns its fee when there is property in another state (requiring two probates under a will), a beneficiary who should not receive outright or a blended family needing layered provisions.

The third is that a trust handles incapacity without court involvement. The successor trustee steps in and manages trust assets. A will does nothing while you are alive. Without a trust and a power of attorney, your family may need a guardianship.

Avoid assuming that a trust is always better. The trust plan costs $2,000 more, and that cost is worth paying only when the trust accomplishes something the will-plus-deed plan cannot.

One honest limit is that circumstances change, and a person who chooses the will-plus-deed plan today may need to add a trust later if property in another state, a blended family or a beneficiary who needs protection enters the picture.

Kevin D. Klagge, Esq., admitted in Florida since 2012. General information rather than advice on your situation.

Updated on October 29, 2026. Reviewed by Kevin D. Klagge, Esq., Fla. Bar No. 99502. General information about Florida law, not legal advice, and no attorney-client relationship is created. Do not send confidential information until we have agreed to represent you.