How Do I Transfer Property to a Family Member in Florida?

What Are the Ways to Transfer a House to a Family Member in Florida?

Florida law says no interest in real property can be transferred except by a written instrument signed in the presence of two subscribing witnesses (witnesses who watch you sign and then sign the deed themselves). Beyond that requirement, you have four main routes to move a house to a family member, and they have very different consequences for taxes, control and Medicaid.

A deed now as a gift transfers the property when you deliver it. You give up ownership and control that day. Your child takes your tax basis (the amount you paid for the property) in the property, and if the home has gained substantial value since you bought it, that basis can mean a large capital gain when they sell. The gift also starts the five-year Medicaid look-back period.

Adding a child to your deed makes the child a co-owner right away. Unless the deed expressly provides for survivorship, the two of you own the property as tenants in common (separate shares that each owner's estate handles at death). Taking your child off the deed later requires the child to sign a new deed.

A sale to a family member is a real transaction with a real price. Florida's documentary stamp tax (the transfer tax on deeds) applies at 70 cents per $100 of consideration (the value exchanged), and the consideration includes any mortgage the buyer takes subject to. The difference between the sale price and the property's fair market value is a gift for federal tax purposes.

A lady bird deed, also called an enhanced life estate deed, keeps your full control for life. You can sell, mortgage and change the beneficiaries (the people who receive the property at your death) without their consent. At your death the property passes to the named beneficiaries without probate and with a stepped-up basis (fair market value at death, rather than what you paid). A mortgage or refinance does not defeat the deed. The Department of Revenue treats a lady bird deed as not subject to documentary stamp tax, whether or not the property has a mortgage. A lady bird deed is not available when a minor child survives you. The Florida Constitution bars leaving the homestead by will, and a deed that passes the home at death falls within the same bar. An outright lifetime gift with the spouse joining is allowed because it transfers the home during life, not at death.

What Happens When You Deed the House to Your Child Now?

A deed that transfers your house to your child outright is a gift. Your child becomes the owner when you deliver the deed, and you give up all control. The simplicity of an outright gift comes with tax and planning costs.

The federal gift tax rules treat any gift above $19,000 to one person in 2026 as using part of your lifetime exemption, which is currently $15,000,000. A married couple splitting gifts can give $38,000 per recipient before using the exemption, but the split requires filing a Form 709 for that year. Any amount above the annual exclusion requires a Form 709, even if no tax is owed. Filing the return starts the IRS's time limit to revalue the gift; without it the value stays open.

The basis consequence is the hidden cost. Property passing at death gets a stepped-up basis at fair market value under federal tax law. A lifetime gift does not. Your child takes your basis, the amount you paid for the house. Suppose you bought the house for $50,000 and it is now worth $400,000. If your child inherits the house at your death, the basis steps up to $400,000 and a sale at that price produces no gain. If you deed the house to your child today, the basis stays at $50,000, and a sale at $400,000 produces a $350,000 gain subject to capital gains tax.

Florida's property tax is assessed under a cap that rises each year by a limited percentage. When ownership changes, the assessed value resets to just value as of January 1 of the year following the transfer. A deed to your child is a change of ownership, and the reset can be substantial on a home that has been protected by the cap for years.

A gift also starts the Medicaid five-year look-back period. If you apply for Medicaid long-term care within five years of the gift, the transfer can disqualify you from benefits for a penalty period. The details of the penalty and any exceptions depend on your facts and are covered at the free consultation.

Should You Add Your Child to Your Deed?

Adding a child to your deed gives the child a present ownership interest, and that ownership has consequences for control, for property taxes and for what happens at death.

Under Florida law, a transfer to two or more people creates a tenancy in common unless the instrument expressly provides for survivorship. Tenants in common own separate shares that do not pass automatically to the other owners at death. If you add your child to your deed without survivorship language, your share at your death goes through your will or intestacy, and your child's share at the child's death goes through the child's estate.

The Mayer case shows how a convenience deed can go wrong. A son used his veteran's benefits and the proceeds of another home to build a house in late 1947 or early 1948 for himself and his mother. She sold it in 1970 and put the money toward a Key Largo home. After her 1979 divorce, she quitclaimed the Key Largo house to herself and her son as joint tenants with right of survivorship (a form of ownership where the survivor takes the whole property at the other's death). In 1981, ill and planning to move near him in Fort Lauderdale, she planned to sell. He quitclaimed his interest back to her so she could sell the property more easily. She died in 1982 before the sale, having signed a will leaving half the property to a religious organization. The appeals court found a confidential relationship (a relationship where one person trusts and relies on another) and restored the son's joint tenancy with survivorship, but only after litigation. The court said the numerous conveyances, the origin of the property and the kinship all pointed to a confidential relationship that the mother misused, even if by mistake.

Florida law allows you to stay on the deed with your child without triggering a property tax reset, as long as you keep the homestead exemption and your child does not apply for one on the property. The cap protection continues until the ownership actually changes. If your child later applies for a homestead exemption on the property, that counts as a change of ownership and the assessed value resets.

Taking a child off the deed is not something you can do alone. The child owns a present share, and removing that share requires the child to sign a deed back to you. A lady bird deed works differently; its beneficiaries can be changed by the owner at any time without the beneficiaries' consent.

Can You Sell Your House to a Family Member for $1?

A sale to a family member is still a sale. Florida's documentary stamp tax applies at 70 cents for each $100 of the consideration. Consideration includes the money paid or agreed to be paid, the discharge of a debt, and the balance of any mortgage on the property whether or not the buyer assumes it. A home with $200,000 still owed on the mortgage triggers $1,400 in stamps even if the price is one dollar.

The difference between the sale price and the fair market value is a gift for federal tax purposes. A home worth $400,000 sold for $1 to a child, with no mortgage, is a $399,999 gift. The $19,000 annual exclusion covers a fraction of it. The rest uses part of the giver's $15,000,000 lifetime exemption and requires a Form 709 for that year.

A deed reciting nominal consideration, such as ten dollars and love and affection, draws the minimum tax.

A true gift of unencumbered property with no consideration is not subject to documentary stamp tax. The tax applies when something of value changes hands. A home with a mortgage is never unencumbered, so stamps apply on the mortgage balance at the very least. A seller who accepts a promissory note instead of cash has received consideration in the form of the amount promised to be paid, and stamps apply on that amount as well.

What Is a Lady Bird Deed, the Transfer That Waits?

A lady bird deed (the common name for an enhanced life estate deed) keeps the owner's full control for life. The owner can sell, mortgage, refinance, take out a line of credit, or change the beneficiaries at any time without the consent of anyone named on the deed. At death the home passes to the named beneficiaries without probate.

The basis of property acquired from a decedent is the fair market value at the date of the decedent's death. A home bought for $50,000 and worth $400,000 at death gives the child a $400,000 basis. A sale the next week at $400,000 produces no taxable gain. A gift during life would carry over the $50,000 basis, creating a $350,000 gain on the same sale.

A mortgage, refinance, or home equity line does not defeat the deed. Only a later conveyance of the property does. The owner who takes out a $100,000 line of credit still owns the home, and the beneficiaries named in the lady bird deed still receive it at death, subject to the lien.

The Department of Revenue treats a lady bird deed as not subject to documentary stamp tax, whether the property has a mortgage or not. Recording costs apply, but the stamps do not.

A lady bird deed is not the right tool when a minor child survives the owner. The Florida Constitution says the homestead may not be subject to devise, which means a gift by will, if the owner is survived by a minor child. A lady bird deed passes the home at the owner's death, and that transfer falls within the same bar because the home passes at death rather than during life. The exception allowing a devise to the spouse applies only when there is no minor child.

A married owner who signs a new lady bird deed for the homestead must have the spouse join it. The beneficiaries named on the deed have no present ownership and no say while the owner is alive, but changing the beneficiaries on a homestead deed requires the spouse's signature.

Is Any Transfer to Family Really Tax Free?

The federal gift tax applies to lifetime transfers over the annual exclusion. For 2026 that exclusion is $19,000 per recipient. A married couple splitting gifts doubles it to $38,000, which requires a Form 709 election even though no tax is owed. Any amount above the exclusion uses the giver's lifetime exemption, currently $15,000,000, and requires a Form 709 for that year.

A home worth more than $19,000 uses part of the lifetime exemption when given outright. A $400,000 home gifted to one child uses $381,000 of exemption after the $19,000 exclusion. Filing Form 709 starts the IRS's time limit to revalue the gift. Without it the value stays open.

Florida imposes documentary stamp tax at 70 cents per $100 of consideration. A true gift with no consideration and no mortgage is not subject to the tax. A gift of mortgaged property is taxed on the unpaid mortgage balance. Recording costs apply to every deed.

The homestead's capped assessed value resets to fair market value on the January 1 after a change of ownership. A transfer from parent to child is a change of ownership unless the parent stays on the deed and keeps the homestead exemption, and the child does not apply for a homestead exemption on the property.

The cost nobody prices at signing is the basis the child will have on a later sale. Property received as a gift carries over the giver's basis. A home bought for $50,000 and worth $400,000 at the gift creates a $350,000 gain if the child later sells at $400,000. Property acquired from a decedent at death gets a basis equal to the fair market value at the date of death. The same home inherited at $400,000 value produces no gain on a $400,000 sale.

A gift starts the Medicaid five-year look-back. The look-back period begins on the date of the gift, and a transfer within five years of applying for Medicaid may create a penalty period. What happens after that period depends on other facts covered at the consultation.

What Do Florida's Homestead Rules Require?

A married owner cannot sign a deed to the family home alone. The Florida Constitution requires the spouse to join the deed, whether the home is passing to a child, to a trust or to anyone else. A deed signed by one spouse without the other is void from the start, and recording it does not fix the problem.

When the owner keeps an interest and the home passes at death, whether through a life estate (ownership for life, with the property passing to someone else at death), a lady bird deed, or a deed with a retained interest, a waiver sentence must appear in the deed if the home is going to someone other than the spouse. Florida law provides the language, and substantially similar language also satisfies the requirement. The sentence reads "By executing or joining this deed, I intend to waive homestead rights that would otherwise prevent my spouse from devising the homestead property described in this deed to someone other than me."

A minor child adds another layer. The Florida Constitution says the homestead "shall not be subject to devise if the owner is survived by spouse or minor child," with an exception allowing a devise to the spouse only when there is no minor child. A lady bird deed or any deed that passes the home at the owner's death cannot send the home to anyone (spouse included) if a minor child survives. An outright lifetime gift deed with both spouses joining is a sale or gift during life (what the Constitution calls alienation) and is not barred by this rule.

The Rogers case from 2025 shows what a missing sentence costs. A husband signed a quitclaim deed for both himself and his wife, using a power of attorney he said she had given him, and conveyed the home to himself for life with the remainder (the part that passes at death) to a buyer. The deed lacked the waiver language required by Florida law. The trial court held the deed void. The appeals court affirmed, noting that "such language, or even substantially similar language, was not included in the quit-claim deed here." The trial court noted, and the appeals court called it proper, that any remaining claims the buyer may have regarding the money he allegedly paid likely belong in probate court as claims against the husband's estate.

Gift Now or Inherit Later?

Four routes exist, and each treats control, taxes and Medicaid differently. A deed now gives the child ownership immediately, which means the child takes your basis and the five-year Medicaid look-back begins. Adding a child to the deed creates a shared ownership, with the same basis and Medicaid consequences, and the property-tax cap survives only if you keep the homestead exemption and the child does not apply for one. A $1 sale triggers documentary stamp tax on any mortgage balance. The difference between price and value counts as a gift. A lady bird deed keeps you in control for life and passes the home at death with a stepped-up basis and without probate or the Medicaid look-back.

Swipe the table sideways to compare all four routes.

What Florida Courts Have Said

Three cases show the ways a family deed can go wrong.

A stepmother in the Passio case signed a quitclaim deed to her stepson. She later sued to cancel it, saying she was defrauded and believed the document was a will. A trial without a jury ended with the court cancelling the deed. The appeals court affirmed, finding that "there is evidence which, if believed by the chancellor, is ample to support the judgment." The opinion does not say who prepared the deed or what the property was worth.

The Mayer case from 1985 is a story of convenience and loss. A son used his veteran's benefits and the proceeds of another home to build a house in late 1947 or early 1948 for himself and his mother. She sold it in 1970, put the money toward a Key Largo home titled with her second husband, took sole title at their 1979 divorce, and then quitclaimed the Key Largo house to herself and her son as joint tenants with right of survivorship. In 1981, ill and planning to move near him in Fort Lauderdale, she planned to sell. He quitclaimed his interest back to her so she could sell the property more easily. She died in 1982 before the sale, having signed a will leaving half the property to a religious organization. The trial court found the son's deed was a convenience for the sale, but refused a constructive trust (a remedy that gives ownership to someone the court finds was wrongly deprived of it). The appeals court reversed and restored the son's joint tenancy with survivorship, finding that "[t]he relationship between plaintiff and his mother, as evidenced by the origin of the property, the numerous conveyances between the two, the purpose and intent of the conveyances, and the kinship of the parties, all point to a confidential relationship which was misused by the mother, even if by mistake, so that imposition of a constructive trust is justified." A convenience deed without a written understanding leaves both parties exposed.

The Rogers case from 2025 is about a missing sentence. A husband signed a quitclaim deed for himself and his wife, using a power of attorney he said she had given him, conveying their home to himself for life with the remainder to a buyer. The buyer said he paid $100,000 and a $50,000 note. The deed lacked the waiver language required when a homestead passes at death to someone other than the spouse. The trial court held the deed void, and the appeals court affirmed, noting that "such language, or even substantially similar language, was not included in the quit-claim deed here." Any remaining claims the buyer may have regarding the money he allegedly paid likely belong in probate court.

How Do You Sign a Deed to a Family Member, Step by Step?

A deed to a family member follows the same steps as any other Florida deed. The process moves from confirming the facts to drafting, signing and recording.

Start by confirming title. Pull a copy of the recorded deed that put the property in the current owner's name. The legal description (the words that identify the parcel) on the new deed must match exactly. Confirm the mortgage balance, because a gift of mortgaged property carries documentary stamp tax on that balance.

Confirm homestead and marital status next. A married owner's spouse must join the deed for homestead property under the Florida Constitution, and if the owner keeps an interest and the home passes at death to someone other than the spouse, the waiver sentence must appear in the deed itself. A minor child surviving adds another layer, and a lady bird deed is not available then.

Draft the deed with the legal description from the prior deed, the correct grantors (the people signing the deed) and grantees (the people receiving the interest), the type of interest being conveyed and any survivorship language. Florida law requires the grantor to sign in the presence of two subscribing witnesses. The deed is also acknowledged before a notary, which is required for recording. Signing from home is now possible. Remote witnesses may witness an electronic signature by audio-video communication technology, and a witness remote from the signer must verbally confirm that he or she is a resident of and physically located within the United States or a territory of the United States at the time of witnessing. A deed is not among the documents that require the extra screening questions for wills and powers of attorney.

Record the signed deed in the county where the property sits. Recording gives public notice.

What Each Route Costs

A deed to a family member has two parts to the cost, the attorney's fee and the government charges.

A quitclaim, warranty or life-estate deed is a flat fee from $399, plus recording. A lady bird deed (the enhanced life estate deed) is a flat fee from $399 for one owner and from $449 for a couple, plus recording. A deed revocation or amendment is a flat fee from $250, plus recording. A deed into a trust is a flat fee from $550, plus recording, and that includes review of the trust.

Recording charges are set by state law and are the same everywhere in Florida. The first page costs $10.00 and each additional page costs $8.50, with $1.00 for each name over four.

Documentary stamp tax applies when there is consideration. The tax runs at 70 cents per $100 of consideration. Consideration includes the money paid or agreed to be paid, the discharge of an obligation, and the amount of any mortgage or other encumbrance whether or not the underlying debt is assumed. A true gift of unencumbered property with no consideration draws no tax. A gift of mortgaged property is taxed on the unpaid mortgage balance.

A lady bird deed is not subject to documentary stamp tax under the Department of Revenue's reading, even if the property has a mortgage.

Common Mistakes Families Make

Gifting a house with a large gain destroys the step-up in basis. Property held until death gets a basis equal to "the fair market value of the property at the date of the decedent's death". A lifetime gift carries over the giver's basis instead. A parent who bought for $50,000 and gifts when the home is worth $400,000 hands the child $350,000 of built-in gain. Keeping the property until death or using a lady bird deed preserves the step-up.

Adding a child to the deed without survivorship language creates a tenancy in common. Florida's statute says a transfer "to two or more shall create a tenancy in common, unless the instrument creating the estate shall expressly provide for the right of survivorship". Tenants in common do not pass their shares to each other automatically; each share goes through that owner's estate.

A $1 deed on a mortgaged house triggers documentary stamp tax on the full mortgage balance. The statute includes "the amount of any mortgage, purchase money mortgage lien, or other encumbrance, whether or not the underlying indebtedness is assumed."

Leaving out a spouse's joinder voids the deed under the Florida Constitution. Leaving out the waiver sentence voids a deed that keeps an interest and passes the home at death. The Rogers case showed what happens when a husband tried to convey the couple's homestead for life with the remainder to a buyer without including the waiver language. The court held the deed void.

A convenience deed with no written understanding invites a later fight. The Mayer family spent years in court after a son gave his interest back to his mother to make a sale easier, only to learn she had signed a will giving half the property to a religious organization.

Frequently Asked Questions

Common Situations

A widow wanted to leave her house to her two adult children equally. She signed a lady bird deed naming both children as beneficiaries, keeping her homestead exemption for life. Two years later her daughter asked about buying a rental property. The widow could have changed the lady bird deed to leave a larger share to her son without the daughter's signature or consent. When the widow died, both children received the house with a stepped-up basis at fair market value and avoided probate entirely.

A father added his daughter to his deed so she could sell the house if he needed care. No survivorship language appeared in the deed, so they held the property as tenants in common. When he changed his mind two years later, the daughter had to sign a deed back to him. Had he signed a lady bird deed instead, he could have changed the beneficiary without her signature, and the transfer would have waited until his death.

Sources of Law

• IRC §1014 (stepped-up basis for property acquired from a decedent); §1015 (carryover basis for lifetime gifts); §1012 (cost basis for purchased property). (retrieved 2026-08-11)
• IRC §2503(b) (2026 annual gift-tax exclusion, $19,000 per recipient) and §2010 (lifetime gift/estate exemption, $15,000,000, made permanent by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act); IRC §2512 (a transfer for less than full consideration is a gift to the extent of the difference). Florida imposes no state gift, estate, or inheritance tax.
• Fla. Stat. §201.02: documentary stamp tax on deeds, measured by consideration (including mortgage balances taken subject to). flsenate.gov (retrieved 2026-08-11)
• Fla. Stat. §689.01: execution of deeds; §689.15: no right of survivorship between co-owners unless the instrument expressly provides it. flsenate.gov (retrieved 2026-08-11)
• Medicaid transfer-of-asset rules: 42 U.S.C. §1396p(c) (5-year look-back); Florida DCF ESS Policy Manual §1640.0613.01 (a lady bird deed is treated as no transfer). (retrieved 2026-08-11)
• Fla. Stat. §409.9101: Medicaid estate recovery, limited to the probate estate. (retrieved 2026-08-11)

Updated on October 27, 2026. Reviewed by Kevin D. Klagge, Esq., Fla. Bar No. 99502. General information about federal and Florida law and our posted fees, not legal or tax advice, and no attorney-client relationship is created. The right route depends on your specific facts, which we confirm at a free consultation.