I can’t say this enough: There are many situations where you do not need letters of administration. Many. Yes, the bank or customer service agent you are talking to says you do…but they are just reading from a policy manual or a list of predefined answers. They are not probate lawyers. They aren’t always right. That’s what the legal department …
Real Estate Agents: A Primer on Florida Probate Property
Download a PDF optimized copy of this article here. Off the top of my head, real estate assets make up about 75% of the estates we handle. With over 600 probate cases under our belt, that’s roughly 450 real estate transfers throughout the State of Florida. Many of these properties are either sold during probate administration or shortly after the …
ALERT: Confirm Designated Beneficiary on Your Bank Account!
In the past year, we’ve had at least 5 calls requesting our Florida probate representation for just a regular checking account. If the deceased owner of the account had simply confirmed the designated beneficiary, probate could have been avoided. Here’s the rub: The original owners of those accounts had designated beneficiaries on those accounts but the bank either lost the …
5 Common Myths about Florida Probate Law
Let’s explore some common (popular?) myths about Florida probate law shall we? 1. Mom had a Will so we don’t have to go through probate. Unfortunately, dying with a Will (Testate) has no bearing on whether or not probate is necessary. The decision to probate an estate rests solely on the existence of assets that are “locked” or otherwise held …
The Problem with Florida Probate Forms
Every now and again, we are asked where forms can be downloaded. I honestly don’t know the answer because our forms are from a repository that caters only to attorneys. The problem with Florida probate forms is that they are designed for attorney use only – to make our jobs more efficient. However, when a website distributes them to the …
Why You Need Probate to Sell Real Estate
Here’s a frequently asked question that deserves a slightly more intricate answer: “I’m clearly a child of (the decedent). Why can’t I just sign a quit claim deed over to myself so I can sell this property?” Short answer: You do not (yet) have the legal authority to sign or otherwise transfer property on the decedent’s behalf. Additionally, you can’t …