Summary Administration in Florida: When It Fits a Parent’s House

When summary administration is available

Section 735.201 of the Florida Statutes sets two conditions. If there is a will, it must not direct formal administration under chapter 733. And either the value of the entire estate subject to administration in Florida, less property exempt from creditors’ claims, is no more than $150,000, or your parent has been dead for more than two years. It covers a Florida resident’s estate and the Florida estate of someone who lived elsewhere.

The $150,000 figure comes from Chapter 2026-57, Laws of Florida, effective July 1, 2026, which raised the limit from $75,000. Older articles, The Florida Bar’s consumer pamphlet, and some court forms still show $75,000; the statute controls. If your parent died before July 1, 2026, ask the attorney which limit applies. A family that qualifies may still choose formal administration (s. 735.202), and a summary petition can be filed at any stage of a formal case if the estate qualifies then (s. 735.2055).

Does the house count?

Only probate assets count. The Bar’s pamphlet explains that real estate in your parent’s sole name, or held as tenants in common, is a probate asset unless it is homestead; real estate held jointly with right of survivorship, or by spouses as tenants by the entirety, is not a probate asset when a co-owner survives; it passes to the surviving owner or owners. If your parent was the last surviving owner, the house belonged to your parent alone and is usually a probate asset unless it is homestead. If a deed such as a Lady Bird deed passes the home at death, the attorney or title company reads it to confirm whether probate is needed at all.

A protected homestead is exempt from forced sale for most debts, and that protection passes to the surviving spouse or heirs (Florida Constitution, Article X, section 4). Because the statute subtracts exempt property, the homestead often doesn’t count toward the $150,000; the Bar gives homestead as an example of exempt property “in many circumstances.” Whether the home is protected homestead depends on several facts, including whether it was your parent’s domicile or, if not, whether it was inside a city or town and a family member’s domicile, and how it was titled (Rule 5.405(b)); the Florida Constitution also limits how much land qualifies. A Florida probate attorney confirms the status. A house that isn’t protected homestead, such as a rental, counts if it is a probate asset.

How it differs from formal administration

In formal administration under chapter 733, The Florida Bar explains, the court appoints a personal representative (Florida’s term for an executor) and issues letters of administration as proof of that person’s authority. For a family selling the house, the main differences:

The Bar says even a simple formal estate stays open through the three-month creditor period, and about five or six months is reasonable to expect. Fees are from the Sumter County Clerk’s probate fee schedule; check with the clerk where your case is filed. Under the probate venue statute, the case belongs in the county where your parent was domiciled or, for someone domiciled outside Florida, a county where the property is (s. 733.101).

The order, and how a title company uses it

Under s. 735.206(4), the people the order assigns specific assets to are entitled to receive them and have them transferred, so the people named for the house sign the deed to the buyer. After the order, a good-faith buyer who pays value to them takes the property free of all claims of your parent’s creditors and of the rights of the surviving spouse and other beneficiaries.

For a parent who died without a will, Florida’s Uniform Title Standards, published by The Florida Bar’s Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section, say an order of summary administration can be relied on to establish who the heirs are (Standard 5.1), and strongly recommend recording certified copies of the key probate papers in the county where the property is. With a will, the will passes title only once it is admitted to probate, which happens in the summary case (Standard 5.2; s. 735.206(1)).

The order doesn’t pay off a mortgage. Florida’s claim deadlines don’t affect enforcing a mortgage or other lien (s. 733.702(4)), and the two-year limit doesn’t affect a recorded mortgage (s. 733.710(3)). For the loan balance, contact the servicer; the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says it may ask for proof of your right to the home.

Courts publish what they expect. The Fifth Judicial Circuit, which includes Sumter, Lake, and Marion counties, posts a Sumter County summary administration checklist. It asks about a certified death certificate, the original will, an affidavit of heirs, proof that the funeral bill and doctor and hospital bills were paid in full, and formal notice to anyone who didn’t join the petition.

Creditors: what the family takes on

Summary administration moves creditor work to the front and leaves some risk with the people who receive assets. Under s. 735.206:

• Property that isn’t exempt from creditors’ claims and that the recipients still hold, such as a house that isn’t protected homestead, stays liable for claims against your parent until they are barred.
• A known or reasonably ascertainable creditor who wasn’t notified and provided for can still enforce the claim and, if it wins, recover attorney’s fees from those who joined the petition.
• Recipients are personally liable for a share of lawful claims, up to the value each received, not counting exempt property.
• Two years after the death, neither the estate nor the recipients are liable for a claim unless enforcement proceedings were started (see also s. 733.710).
• An heir or beneficiary left out of the order can enforce their rights against those who obtained it.

After the order, whoever obtained it may publish a notice to creditors; once proof of publication is filed, claims from creditors who weren’t known or reasonably ascertainable are barred unless filed within 3 months (s. 735.2063). If your parent received Medicaid, tell the attorney early. In summary administration, any known or reasonably ascertainable creditor, which can include Florida’s Agency for Health Care Administration, must be served with the petition before the order (s. 735.206(2)); your attorney decides who must be served. In formal administration, if your parent was 55 or older, the personal representative must serve the notice to creditors and a copy of the death certificate on the Agency within 3 months after first publication, unless it has already filed a claim (s. 733.2121(3)(d)).

If the house was your parent’s protected homestead

A protected homestead is handled apart from other estate property. In a formal case it is excluded from the property the personal representative takes possession of (s. 733.607) and from the assets held for paying debts (s. 733.608(1)). A home owned as tenants by the entirety, or jointly with right of survivorship, isn’t protected homestead (s. 731.201(33)).

Florida Probate Rule 5.405 lets any interested person ask the court to determine homestead status. The order must describe the property, decide whether it was protected homestead, and if so, name who is entitled to it and define each person’s interest. A summary petition must list protected homestead separately (Rule 5.530(a)(8)), and Sumter County’s probate checklists include one for determining homestead status in formal and summary administration.

The title standards explain why this matters: during an administration, the heirs’ deed of protected homestead isn’t marketable unless a final order determining homestead has been entered or the personal representative releases control and estate taxes are cleared. A personal representative can’t sell an intestate parent’s homestead when heirs survive, because title passes to them at death.

If your parent had moved out, for example to live near family or in a care setting, tell the attorney, because the homestead petition must state whether the home was your parent’s domicile (Rule 5.405(b)(8)). See the homestead inheritance guide for who inherits.

Plain-language steps for selling the house

1. Find the deed and any will.Whoever holds the original will must deposit it with the clerk within 10 days of learning of the death (s. 732.901).
2. Ask a Florida probate attorney which path fits.Summary, formal, a homestead determination, or a combination. The Florida Bar’s Lawyer Referral Service is at 1-800-342-8011.
3. Gather what the court will ask for.Death certificate, original will, asset values, and creditor information. Your attorney confirms your county’s list.
4. Protect the house meanwhile.Keep insurance, utilities, and yard care in place. Ask a CPA about a date-of-death appraisal; IRS Publication 551 says inherited property’s basis is generally its fair market value at death.
5. Get the order recorded.Follow the title company’s instructions for recording certified copies.
6. Sell with the right signers.The people named in the order or homestead order sign the deed. Mo can prepare pricing and a marketing plan meanwhile. Your attorney confirms who may sign a listing agreement or sales contract before the order is entered; set a closing date once the attorney confirms when the order will be entered.

Where Mo fits

Mo Mufti is a Florida REALTOR® with LPT Realty, LLC, not an attorney. He doesn’t prepare petitions, decide whether an estate qualifies, judge creditor claims, or determine homestead status. Working with your attorney and title company, he can price the house, compare as-is with light preparation, manage access and showings for family out of state, and send written updates to whoever has authority. See also the estate-property guide, inherited homes, a parent’s home in The Villages, and selling from out of state.