Estate planning in Boca Raton does not have to mean a binder full of documents you never look at again. The smartest way to build a plan is to first decide which overall approach fits your life, then work the checklist for that approach. Here are the three main paths and the steps each one requires under Florida law.
Approach A: Beneficiary-Only (the Minimalist Plan)
Some Boca residents rely entirely on beneficiary designations and joint ownership. It is cheap and avoids probate for those assets. The catch: it leaves gaps for anything without a named beneficiary and gives you no plan for incapacity.
- List every account and confirm primary and contingent beneficiaries are current.
- Check titling on your home and accounts (joint with right of survivorship, payable-on-death).
- Confirm your homestead status, since Florida’s Article X, Section 4 protections affect how a residence can pass.
Approach B: Will-Based Plan
A will is the foundation most people picture. In Florida, assets passing under a will go through probate, either summary administration (for smaller or older estates under Chapter 735) or formal administration (Chapter 733).
- Sign a will meeting Florida section 732.502 requirements: in writing, signed by you, witnessed by two people who sign in your presence.
- Name a personal representative who qualifies under Florida law (a Florida resident, or a close relative if out of state).
- Add a durable power of attorney under Chapter 709 and a designation of health care surrogate.
- Name guardians for minor children.
- Consider a Lady Bird (enhanced life estate) deed to pass your Boca home without probate while keeping control during life.
Approach C: Trust-Based Plan
A revocable living trust under Chapter 736 sidesteps probate entirely for funded assets and keeps your affairs private, which appeals to many Boca families with property here and elsewhere.
- Create and sign the trust, then fund it by retitling accounts and real estate into the trust.
- Pair it with a “pour-over” will as a backstop for anything left out.
- Keep the same incapacity documents: durable POA and health care surrogate.
- Coordinate homestead treatment, since transferring a homestead into a trust must be done carefully to preserve protections and tax benefits.
Cross-Cutting Steps for Every Plan
No matter which path you choose, do these: inventory your assets and debts; note that Florida imposes no state estate or inheritance tax (so your focus is probate avoidance and control, not state death taxes); review your elective-share exposure if you are married, since a surviving spouse can claim 30% under section 732.2065; and store originals where your personal representative can find them.
When to Get a Florida Attorney Involved
Use this checklist to organize your thinking, then bring it to a licensed Florida estate planning attorney. The right professional can tell you which of these three approaches actually fits your Boca Raton assets and family, and make sure each document is valid and works together.
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For more on our Florida practice, see our overview of Florida estate planning. Morgan Legal Group's affiliated New York office also handles .
