A Florida revocable living trust and a will both direct who receives your property after death, but they operate differently: a properly funded revocable trust lets assets pass to beneficiaries without probate court, while a will must be admitted to probate before anything is distributed. For most Fort Lauderdale families with meaningful assets, real estate, or privacy concerns, a revocable trust paired with a “pour-over” will is the stronger fit; for modest estates, a well-drafted will alone may be enough.
I’ve sat across the table from a lot of South Florida families trying to answer one deceptively simple question: do I need a trust, or will a will do? The honest answer is that it depends on what you own, how complicated your family is, and how much you care about keeping your affairs out of the public record. Let me walk through how each document actually works under Florida law, and then we’ll talk about who should choose which.
What a Florida Will Actually Does
A last will and testament is a written document, governed by Chapter 732 of the Florida Statutes, that names who inherits your property, appoints a personal representative (Florida’s term for an executor), and can nominate a guardian for minor children. To be valid in Florida, it must be signed by the testator at the end and witnessed by two competent witnesses who sign in the testator’s presence and in the presence of each other. Florida does not recognize holographic (handwritten, unwitnessed) wills, even if they’d be valid in another state.
Here’s the part people miss: a will doesn’t avoid probate. It’s the instruction manual for probate. When you die with a will, your personal representative files it with the circuit court in the county where you lived, opens a probate estate, notifies creditors, and eventually distributes what’s left under court supervision. In Broward County, even an uncomplicated formal administration commonly runs several months to a year, and the file is public.
The Florida homestead wrinkle
If your primary residence is your Florida homestead, your will’s power over it is sharply limited. Under Florida Statute 732.401 and Article X, Section 4 of the Florida Constitution, you generally cannot devise homestead away from a surviving spouse or minor child. I’ve watched well-meaning wills get partially overridden because they ignored these protections. This is one area where Fort Lauderdale homeowners trip up constantly.
What a Revocable Living Trust Does
A revocable living trust is an arrangement you create during your lifetime, governed largely by the Florida Trust Code in Chapter 736. You are the grantor, the trustee, and the beneficiary while you’re alive and competent—so day to day, nothing changes. You still buy, sell, refinance, and spend as you always have. The difference shows up when you become incapacitated or die.
Because the trust technically owns your assets, those assets don’t go through probate when you pass. Your named successor trustee simply steps in and administers the trust according to its terms—privately, without a judge, and usually far faster than a probate estate. The word “revocable” matters: you can amend or tear up the trust any time you want while you’re alive. It gives you control without locking you in.
Funding is everything
This is the single most important thing I tell trust clients, and it’s where DIY plans fall apart: an unfunded trust does nothing. The trust only governs assets that have actually been retitled into its name—your home, brokerage accounts, business interests, certain bank accounts. If you sign a beautiful trust and never move your house deed into it, that house goes through probate anyway. Funding takes work, and it’s the work most online forms quietly skip.
- Real estate: a new deed transferring the property into the trust.
- Financial accounts: retitling, or in some cases beneficiary/transfer-on-death designations that coordinate with the plan.
- Business interests: assigning LLC or corporate membership interests into the trust.
- Tangible property: an assignment of personal property.
The pour-over will: your safety net
Even with a trust, you still sign a will—a “pour-over” will. It catches anything you forgot to fund into the trust and directs it back into the trust at death. Think of it as the net under the trapeze. It doesn’t avoid probate for those leftover assets, but it makes sure they end up under the trust’s terms rather than passing under Florida’s intestacy rules.
Side-by-Side: Trust vs. Will for Florida Families
- Probate: Funded trust avoids it; a will guarantees it.
- Privacy: Trusts stay private; probate files are public record anyone can read.
- Incapacity: A trust handles you becoming incapacitated through your successor trustee; a will only operates at death and does nothing for incapacity (you’d need a durable power of attorney).
- Speed: Trust administration can begin immediately; probate waits on court schedules and creditor periods.
- Out-of-state property: A trust can hold real estate in other states, avoiding a second “ancillary” probate—a real issue for snowbirds with a place up north.
- Cost timing: A trust costs more to set up and fund now; a will costs less now but shifts cost and delay to your family later.
- Contestability: Both can be challenged, but trusts are often harder to attack and keep family disputes out of the public eye.
Who Should Lean Toward a Trust
For the high-net-worth and asset-protection-minded clients we see in Fort Lauderdale, the calculus usually favors a revocable trust. You’re a strong candidate if you own a home or other real estate, hold significant brokerage or business assets, own property in more than one state, have a blended family, want privacy, or want a seamless plan if you ever lose capacity.
Sophisticated planning often layers other structures on top of the revocable trust. Families looking to protect a home while preserving Medicaid eligibility sometimes explore home transfers and retained life estate strategies, and those receiving public benefits may need a pooled income trust to preserve eligibility while still using their income. The specifics differ between New York and Florida, but the planning principles—control, protection, and avoiding court—travel well across state lines, and our colleagues handle these tools every day.
A revocable trust, I should be clear, is not a creditor-shield or a tax-dodge by itself. Because you keep control, the assets remain yours for estate-tax and creditor purposes. Asset protection comes from additional tools layered onto the foundation—and Florida happens to offer strong protections of its own, including homestead and tenancy-by-the-entireties. The trust is the chassis; the protection strategies bolt on.
When a Will Is Genuinely Enough
I don’t push trusts on everyone. If your estate is modest, your assets already pass by beneficiary designation (retirement accounts, life insurance, payable-on-death accounts), and you don’t own real estate that would trigger probate, a clean will plus those designations may do the job at lower cost. Young families with limited assets often start with a solid will to name guardians, then graduate to a trust as wealth accumulates. Estate planning is not a one-and-done purchase; it should evolve with your life.
How to Decide—and Get It Done Right
The right answer comes from looking at your actual balance sheet, your family dynamics, and your goals, not from a template. A good Florida estate planning attorney will map your assets, identify what would otherwise hit probate, account for homestead, and recommend the lightest structure that accomplishes your goals. If a trust makes sense, the firm should also handle—or quarterback—the funding, because an unfunded trust is an expensive false sense of security.
Our Fort Lauderdale practice focuses on exactly these decisions for asset-conscious families. You can learn more about our approach to Florida estate planning, or read our overview pages on Florida wills and what to expect from the Florida probate process. When you’re ready to talk specifics, reach out to schedule a consultation and we’ll tell you straight whether a will, a trust, or a combination fits your family.
There’s no trophy for the most elaborate plan. The goal is a plan that quietly works on the worst day of your family’s life—when they’re grieving and the last thing they should be doing is fighting a court calendar.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a revocable living trust avoid probate in Florida?
Yes, but only for assets that are actually titled in the trust’s name. A funded revocable trust passes those assets to beneficiaries through your successor trustee without probate court. Any asset you forget to fund into the trust will still go through probate, which is why a pour-over will and careful funding are essential.
Do I still need a will if I have a Florida revocable trust?
Yes. You should sign a pour-over will alongside your trust. It captures any property you didn’t transfer into the trust during your lifetime and directs it back into the trust at death. It also lets you nominate a guardian for minor children, which a trust cannot do.
Is a revocable living trust more expensive than a will?
Usually yes, upfront. A trust costs more to draft and fund than a simple will. But a will sends your estate through probate, which carries court, attorney, and personal representative costs plus months of delay. For many Florida families with real estate or larger estates, the trust saves money and time overall.
Can a Florida will control my homestead property?
Only within limits. Under the Florida Constitution and Statute 732.401, you generally cannot leave homestead away from a surviving spouse or minor child. These protections can override what your will says, so homestead requires specific planning rather than a generic devise.
Does a revocable trust protect my assets from creditors or estate taxes?
No, not by itself. Because you keep full control of a revocable trust, the assets remain yours for creditor and estate-tax purposes. Asset protection and tax planning come from additional tools layered on top, along with Florida’s own homestead and tenancy-by-the-entireties protections.
For more on our Florida practice, see our overview of powers of attorney in Florida. Morgan Legal Group's affiliated New York office also handles special needs planning in New York.