Executor of an Estate in Florida: Duties, Fees, and How You Get Appointed

Florida calls the job “personal representative,” pays it a statutory commission of 3 percent on the first million dollars, and does not let you do a thing until the court issues Letters of Administration. Those three facts answer most of what people arrive here asking.

Being named in a will is not the same as having authority. Being the closest relative is not the same as being entitled to serve. And the compensation is not a favour the family grants you — it is set by statute, it is taxable, and you can decline it.

This page covers what the role actually requires, what Florida executor fees come to, how you get appointed with or without a will, what you may and may not sell, and what happens when a personal representative gets it wrong. Whether you are working out how to become executor of estate in Florida, what the executor of estate is paid here, or how to remove an executor who has stopped answering, the answers are below in the order the questions usually arrive. Every figure and deadline below is tied to the statute or probate rule that produces it.

What Does a Personal Representative Actually Do in Florida?

Executor responsibilities in Florida start with one sentence of statute. Section 733.602(1) sets the standard, and it is a demanding one: a personal representative is a fiduciary who must observe the standards of care applicable to trustees, and must settle and distribute the estate in accordance with the will and the code, and as expeditiously and efficiently as is consistent with the best interests of the estate. In practice that means locating and securing assets, filing an inventory, notifying and dealing with creditors, paying valid claims in the statutory order, handling tax filings, accounting to the beneficiaries, and distributing what is left.

Is a Personal Representative the Same as an Executor?

Yes — Florida just uses a different word. The Florida Probate Code says personal representative throughout; “executor,” “executrix,” “administrator” and “administratrix” are terms from other states and from older practice. A will that names you executor is nominating you as personal representative, and the court order and the Letters will use the Florida term. Florida also issues Letters of Administration in every case, whether or not there is a will, where many states distinguish “letters testamentary” from “letters of administration.”

What Are the Deadlines a Florida Executor Has to Meet?

Eleven of them, and most run from the date the Letters issue rather than the date of death. This is the table to keep beside you.

Deadline	What is due	Authority
10 days after learning of the death	Custodian deposits the original will with the clerk in the county of the decedent’s residence	§ 732.901
Before letters issue	Oath of personal representative; designation of resident agent and the agent’s written acceptance	Fla. Prob. R. 5.320, 5.110
Before letters issue	Bond, unless waived by the will or by the court	§§ 733.402, 733.403
Promptly after letters	Notice of administration served on the surviving spouse, beneficiaries and trustees	§ 733.212
Promptly after letters	Notice to creditors published once a week for two consecutive weeks, plus service on every reasonably ascertainable creditor after a diligent search	§ 733.2121
60 days after letters	Verified inventory filed and served, with date-of-death fair market value for each item	Fla. Prob. R. 5.340
3 months after first publication	Serve the notice to creditors and the death certificate on the Agency for Health Care Administration if the decedent was 55 or older	§ 733.2121(3)(d)
3 months after service	Objections to the will’s validity, venue or jurisdiction — or they are forever barred	§ 733.212(3)
Later of 4 months after the notice of administration or 40 days after a will contest ends	Petition to determine exempt property, or the right is deemed waived	§ 732.402(6)
12 months after letters	Final accounting and petition for discharge (or 12 months from the due date of a federal estate tax return)	Fla. Prob. R. 5.400
2 years after death	Absolute bar on all claims against the estate	§ 733.710

Two of these are traps. The three-month objection window under § 733.212(3) can be extended only for estoppel based on a misstatement by the personal representative about the deadline itself — not for failure to disclose information, not for an affirmative representation about something else, and not for misconduct. And the exempt property petition under § 732.402(6) is a true waiver provision: miss it and the right is gone, not merely delayed.

How Much Does an Executor Get Paid in Florida?

Three percent of the first million dollars, stepping down above that. Section 733.617 entitles a personal representative to a commission payable from estate assets without a court order, calculated on the compensable value of the estate. A commission computed on that basis is presumed reasonable. Executor fees in Florida and personal representative compensation are the same thing under two names: the statute calls it a commission, and it is the figure people mean when they ask about the executor fee in Florida.

Definition — compensable value. The inventory value of the probate estate assets plus the income the estate earns during administration. It is not the decedent’s net worth, not the gross taxable estate, and not the value of everything the family inherits. Every Florida executor fee figure on this page is computed on that number and nothing else.

What Are the Florida Executor Fee Tiers Under Section 733.617?

Four tiers, applied in bands rather than as a single flat rate on the whole estate. This is the Florida executor compensation schedule in full.

Compensable value	Presumed reasonable commission
First $1 million	3%
Above $1 million, up to $5 million	2.5%
Above $5 million, up to $10 million	2%
Above $10 million	1.5%

Worked through at real estate sizes:

Compensable value	Commission
$150,000	$4,500
$300,000	$9,000
$500,000	$15,000
$1,000,000	$30,000
$2,000,000	$55,000
$5,000,000	$130,000

Note what compensable value is not. Assets that pass outside probate — jointly titled property, payable-on-death accounts, anything with a named beneficiary, anything already in a trust — are not in the probate estate and do not enter the calculation.

Florida Executor Fee Calculator

Enter the compensable value of the probate estate. The calculator returns the presumed reasonable personal representative commission under § 733.617 and, beside it, the presumed reasonable attorney’s fee for ordinary services under § 733.6171 — two different schedules that most sources wrongly treat as one.

Are Executor Fees and Attorney Fees the Same in Florida?

No, and this is the single most common error in Florida probate writing. The personal representative’s commission under § 733.617 and the attorney’s fee for ordinary services under § 733.6171 are separate payments, on separate schedules, that diverge above one million dollars.

Compensable value	Executor commission — § 733.617	Attorney’s ordinary fee — § 733.6171
$40,000 or less	3%	$1,500
Above $40,000, up to $70,000	3%	add $750
Above $70,000, up to $100,000	3%	add $750
Above $100,000, up to $1 million	3%	3% of the value above $100,000
Above $1 million, up to $3 million	2.5%	2.5%
Above $3 million, up to $5 million	2.5%	2%
Above $5 million, up to $10 million	2%	1.5%
Above $10 million	1.5%	1%

Both are computed on the same compensable value, and both are administration expenses paid from estate assets under § 733.707 before anything reaches the beneficiaries. Neither comes out of the personal representative’s own pocket.

Section 733.6171(2) also requires the attorney to disclose in writing, before charging on the statutory schedule, that there is no mandatory fee, that the fee need not be based on the size of the estate, that it is negotiable, and that the personal representative chooses the lawyer. Effective 1 July 2026, Chapter 2026-57 added a fifth disclosure: the personal representative is entitled, at the conclusion of the representation, to a summary of the ordinary and extraordinary services rendered — either total hours devoted to the matter or a detailed summary of the work. An attorney who does not make those disclosures and obtain a timely signature cannot be paid without court approval or the written consent of every interested person. The full breakdown is on our page covering the cost of probate in Florida.

Can an Executor Waive the Fee?

Yes, in whole or in part, and family members frequently do. Section 733.617(4) closes with an express permission: a personal representative may renounce the right to all or any part of the compensation. The same subsection separately allows a personal representative to renounce a compensation provision written into the will and fall back on the statutory schedule instead, where there is no written contract with the decedent about fees.

Are Executor Fees Taxable in Florida?

Yes — and this is why so many family members decline them. A commission is ordinary taxable income to the person who receives it, reportable on their return and deductible by the estate. An inheritance is not taxable income, and inherited assets take a date-of-death basis under IRC § 1014. A beneficiary who is also serving often renounces the commission and simply takes a larger share of the residue, reaching a similar economic result on better tax terms and with less friction in the family. Reimbursement of genuine out-of-pocket expenses — filing fees, certified copies, postage, travel, insurance premiums — is not compensation and is not taxable income.

What Extraordinary Services Are Paid on Top?

Six categories, and the list is open-ended. Section 733.617(3) allows further reasonable compensation for extraordinary services, expressly “including, but not limited to” the sale of real or personal property, the conduct of litigation for or against the estate, involvement in proceedings for the adjustment or payment of taxes, carrying on the decedent’s business, dealing with protected homestead, and any other special services necessary to the administration.

One point of confusion worth heading off. Chapter 2026-57, effective 1 July 2026, added a new extraordinary-services category for involvement in any proceeding to enforce the authority of a personal representative — but it added it to § 733.6171(4)(l), which governs the attorney’s fee, not to § 733.617, which governs the commission. Section 733.617 has not been amended since Chapter 2020-67. The same session law also created § 733.6125, under which a court shall award a prevailing personal representative taxable costs including attorney’s fees in such a proceeding.

Do Two Personal Representatives Mean Two Full Commissions?

Yes, above $100,000 — and this one costs families real money. Under § 733.617(5), where the estate’s compensable value is $100,000 or more and there are two personal representatives, each is entitled to the full commission a sole representative would receive. Where there are more than two, the equivalent of two full commissions is apportioned among them by services rendered. Below $100,000, a single commission is divided among however many serve.

Naming two children as co-representatives to keep the peace can therefore double the fiduciary cost of the estate. On a $500,000 estate that is $30,000 rather than $15,000. If the intent is fairness rather than expense, that is a decision to make deliberately — and it is a decision made in the will, years before anyone runs the numbers.

Can a Lawyer Serving as Personal Representative Be Paid Twice?

Yes, with one significant guard. Section 733.617(6) provides that where the personal representative is a member of The Florida Bar and has rendered legal services in the administration, a fee for those legal services is allowed in addition to the commission. Section 733.617(8) then bars an attorney who prepared or supervised the execution of the will from taking compensation as personal representative under that will, unless the attorney or nominee is related to the testator, or specific written disclosures were made to the testator before signing and acknowledged in a separate writing.

Who Becomes Executor if There Is No Will in Florida?

The surviving spouse first, then whoever a majority in interest of the heirs selects, then the heir nearest in degree. Section 733.301 sets that order of preference for an intestate estate, and where more than one heir of equal degree applies, the court may select the one it finds best qualified.

What Is the Order of Preference, Testate and Intestate?

Three tiers in each column, and they differ depending on whether there is a will. The appointment of executor in Florida follows this order unless everyone entitled agrees on someone else.

Order	With a will	Without a will
First	The personal representative, or successor, nominated by the will or under a power conferred in it	The surviving spouse
Second	The person selected by a majority in interest of those entitled to the estate	The person selected by a majority in interest of the heirs
Third	A devisee under the will; where more than one applies, the court may select the one best qualified	The heir nearest in degree; where more than one applies, the court may select the one best qualified

The middle row is the one families underuse. Where the obvious candidate cannot or will not serve, the beneficiaries or heirs holding a majority interest can simply agree on someone and present that person to the court. Agreement is dramatically cheaper than a contested appointment, and it is available before anyone has filed anything.

The preference is strong, and a court cannot brush past it. In Kavanaugh v. Thomas, 390 So. 3d 751 (Fla. 5th DCA 2024), the Fifth District held that a probate court may decline to appoint the statutorily preferred person only where the record shows that person lacks the qualities and characteristics needed to serve. The trial court had refused to appoint a surviving spouse in an intestate estate; the appellate court reversed, because the record contained no evidence of unfitness. Probate judges retain inherent authority to weigh character, ability and experience — but not without evidence.

Two further rules sit at the end of § 733.301. If letters have been granted and someone entitled to preference was not served with formal notice and has not waived it, the letters may be revoked and new letters granted after formal notice and hearing. And if a will is admitted to probate after letters have already issued, the letters are revoked and new letters granted.

Preference is not the same as qualification, though. Standing first in the order does nothing for someone the statute disqualifies.

Who Cannot Serve as Personal Representative in Florida?

Four categories, and they are absolute. The Florida executor requirements begin here, because disqualification overrides preference and everything else. Section 733.303 provides that a person is not qualified to act if that person has been convicted of a felony; has been convicted in any state or foreign jurisdiction of abuse, neglect, or exploitation of an elderly person or a disabled adult as defined in § 825.101; is mentally or physically unable to perform the duties; or is under the age of 18.

The elder-abuse ground was added by Chapter 2021-221, effective 1 July 2021, and it is missing from most older articles on this subject. Where the person named in the will is disqualified, § 733.303(2) directs that letters be granted under the § 733.301 preference order instead.

Can an Out-of-State Executor Serve in Florida?

Only a relative can. This is the Florida executor requirement that catches the most families. Section 733.302 sets the baseline: any person who is sui juris and was a resident of Florida at the time of the decedent’s death is qualified to serve — residency measured at the date of death, not at the date of appointment. Everyone else runs into § 733.304, which bars a person not domiciled in Florida from qualifying unless they are:

• A legally adopted child or adoptive parent of the decedent
• Related by lineal consanguinity to the decedent — parent, grandparent, child, grandchild
• A spouse, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, nephew or niece of the decedent, or someone related by lineal consanguinity to any such person
• The spouse of a person otherwise qualified under the section

The practical result: a trusted out-of-state friend named in a Florida will simply cannot serve, while a nephew in Ohio can. There is no waiver and no judicial discretion.

The third category reaches further than most summaries admit, and it is worth reading twice. It covers not only the decedent’s sibling, uncle, aunt, nephew or niece, but anyone related by lineal consanguinity to any such person. A first cousin is the child of the decedent’s aunt or uncle — lineally related to that aunt or uncle — and so falls inside the statute. So does a grand-nephew. Families told flatly that “cousins cannot serve” are often being told something the text does not say. There is also no citizenship requirement anywhere in Part III; § 733.302 asks only whether the person is sui juris and was a Florida resident at the date of death.

Because this catches so many families, it has a page of its own — the out-of-state executor in Florida — covering qualification, the resident agent designation, and bond.

Can the Executor of a Will Also Be a Beneficiary in Florida?

Yes, and it is the norm rather than the exception. An executor and beneficiary being the same person is ordinary in Florida, whether that person serves as sole executor or alongside a co-executor. Most Florida personal representatives are the surviving spouse or an adult child who also inherits, and nothing in the Probate Code prohibits it. Being a beneficiary does not reduce what you owe the others, though, and three consequences follow.

• The fiduciary duty runs to everyone. Under § 733.609 a personal representative’s duty is the same as a trustee’s of an express trust, owed to all interested persons. A larger share does not buy a larger voice.
• You still cannot buy from the estate. Section 733.610 makes a sale to the personal representative voidable regardless of price. Inheriting an asset under the will is distribution; purchasing one is self-dealing.
• The commission and the inheritance are taxed differently. The commission is ordinary income; the inheritance is not. That asymmetry is the practical reason a beneficiary-representative so often renounces the fee under § 733.617(4).

There is one situation where being both changes the whole administration. Where the personal representative is the sole interested person in the estate — sole beneficiary, no other heirs, no unpaid creditors — Florida Probate Rule 5.030 no longer requires counsel. That is the one honest answer to “do I really need a lawyer for this?” that ends in no. It is also narrower than people hope: a single unpaid creditor or one sibling with a residuary interest defeats it.

Can You Hire a Professional or Corporate Executor in Florida?

Yes. You can hire an executor in Florida, and a professional executor is generally a bank or trust company rather than an individual. Section 733.305 authorises Florida trust companies, state banking corporations and state savings associations qualified to exercise fiduciary powers in Florida, and national banking associations and federal savings associations so qualified, to act as personal representative and as curator. A corporate fiduciary is not subject to the individual residency rule in § 733.304, and § 733.402(3) exempts it from bond.

A Florida attorney may also serve, and may be paid both the commission under § 733.617 and a legal fee for services rendered under § 733.617(6) — subject to the § 733.617(8) bar where that attorney drafted the will nominating himself.

The circumstances where a professional fiduciary earns the cost are recognisable:

• Nobody in the family can qualify. The out-of-state friend you trust is barred by § 733.304; the relative who is available is not the one you would choose.
• A blended family or an anticipated contest. A neutral fiduciary removes the appearance of partiality that § 733.504(9) exists to police.
• A business, a portfolio, or property in several states. Carrying on the decedent’s business is extraordinary service under § 733.617(3) whoever does it — the question is who does it competently.
• The named person is elderly, ill, or the last one standing. An incapacity that arrives mid-administration is removal ground 2 and triggers the § 733.3101 duty to give notice.

The middle path is a co-fiduciary structure — a family member alongside a corporate trustee — but price it first. Above $100,000 in compensable value, § 733.617(5) entitles each of two personal representatives to a full commission, so the arrangement that looks like a compromise costs twice.

When Does an Executor Actually Have Authority?

When the court issues Letters of Administration, and not before. Until they issue there is no court appointed executor, only a nominee. Being named in the will confers a right to apply, not a right to act. Banks will not release funds, title companies will not close, and the DMV will not transfer a vehicle on the strength of a will. What they want is the Letters.

What Paperwork Do You File to Become Executor in Florida?

Five filings, and three of them must be on file before the Letters can issue. This is the executor of estate paperwork, in the order a Florida clerk expects it.

1. The original will, deposited with the clerk. Within 10 days of learning of the death, in the county where the decedent lived (§ 732.901). A photocopy is not a substitute except through a separate and expensive lost-will proceeding.
2. The Petition for Administration, with the death certificate, and the will’s self-proving affidavit where it has one.
3. The oath of personal representative. Florida Probate Rule 5.320 requires it before letters are granted. An individual’s oath now certifies, under penalty of perjury, that the personal representative is 18 or older, has never been convicted of a felony, has never been convicted anywhere of abuse, neglect or exploitation of an elderly person or disabled adult, and is mentally and physically able to perform the duties. It also states a continuing duty to file and serve notice if any disqualifying event later occurs.
4. The designation of resident agent and the agent’s written acceptance. This one is widely misreported. Rule 5.110 requires every personal representative to file it before letters issue — not only nonresidents. There are exactly two exceptions: a corporate fiduciary with an office in Florida, and a member of The Florida Bar who is a Florida resident with a Florida office. If the agent is not a Bar member, the agent must reside in the county where the proceedings are pending, and the designation must give the agent’s street, mailing and residence addresses. If the agent dies, resigns or becomes unable to act, a successor must be appointed within 10 days of notice. The designation and the oath may both be incorporated into the petition.
5. Bond, unless waived. See the next section.

Then the Letters issue, and only then does the job begin.

Is a Bond Required for a Personal Representative in Florida?

Yes by default, but it is waived in most estates. An executor bond, also called a probate bond or a surety bond, guarantees the estate against a fiduciary who mishandles it. It is not a fee. Section 733.402 requires every fiduciary to whom letters are granted to execute and file a bond with surety, payable to the Governor and conditioned on faithful performance, unless the requirement has been waived by the will or by the court. The bond is joint and several. Banks and trust companies authorised to serve as personal representative are exempt outright.

Section 733.403 sets the amount — a penal sum the court deems sufficient after considering the gross value of the estate, the personal representative’s relationship to the beneficiaries, exempt property and any family allowance, the type and nature of the assets, known creditors, and liens and encumbrances. Florida Probate Rule 5.235 puts that determination at the point of appointment.

What that means in practice:

• One sentence in the will removes the cost. A waiver-of-bond clause is standard drafting and saves the family a premium that recurs for the life of the administration. If you are writing a will rather than administering one, this is the cheapest line in it.
• The estate pays the premium, not the personal representative personally — it is an administration expense.
• Practice varies by circuit. Some Florida courts require bond in every formal administration regardless of the will’s language, and a nonresident personal representative is materially more likely to be bonded. Ask before you promise a family there will be no premium.
• The court can change its mind either way. On the petition of any interested person or on its own motion, § 733.402(4) lets the court waive bond, require it, increase or decrease it, or demand additional surety.
• Failing to post it is a removal ground. “Failure to give bond or security for any purpose” is ground 6 under § 733.504.

How Many Certified Copies of the Letters Should You Order?

More than you think — ten is not excessive. Every institution holding an estate asset will want its own certified copy of the Letters, and ordering them one at a time from a clerk’s office is slower and dearer than ordering ten at the outset. Certification runs about $2 per document plus $1 per page in the major counties, so a full set costs very little compared with the delay of not having one.

Do You Need a Lawyer to Be an Executor in Florida?

Almost always, yes. An executor of estate attorney is not optional in most Florida administrations. Florida Probate Rule 5.030(a) requires every personal representative to be represented by an attorney admitted to practice in Florida, with two exceptions: where the personal representative remains the sole interested person in the estate, and where the personal representative is themselves a Florida Bar member, who may appear on their own behalf. A family of three siblings has more than one interested person, so the exception does not apply. There is no small-estate exception and no exception for families who agree on everything.

Two clarifications that come up on every first call. The requirement applies to all personal representatives, not only nonresidents — that is a persistent myth. And the attorney represents the personal representative, not the beneficiaries; the fee is nonetheless an administration expense paid from estate assets under § 733.707, ahead of general creditors and before any distribution. The family does not fund it personally.

What Powers Does a Florida Personal Representative Have?

Broad ones, exercisable without asking the court first. Section 733.603 directs the personal representative to proceed expeditiously with the settlement and distribution of the estate without adjudication, order, or direction of the court, except where the code or the court requires otherwise — while preserving the right to invoke the court’s jurisdiction to resolve questions. Section 733.602(1) makes the probated will the personal representative’s authority to administer.

Section 733.612 then enumerates 28 categories of transaction a personal representative may undertake without a court order, acting reasonably for the benefit of interested persons — retaining the decedent’s assets, performing or compromising contracts, investing funds, acquiring or disposing of assets other than real property, insuring estate assets against damage and against liability, employing lawyers, accountants and appraisers, and making partial distributions among them. The section was amended by Chapter 2026-57 effective 1 July 2026 without change to the substantive scope of those powers.

That autonomy is the point of the office and also its danger. Acting without a court order is permitted; acting wrongly is still a breach.

What Property May the Personal Representative Take Possession Of?

Everything except protected homestead. Section 733.607(1) gives the personal representative the right to take possession or control of the decedent’s property except protected homestead. The homestead carve-out is the one that surprises people: the family home, where it qualifies as protected homestead, is not the personal representative’s to possess, secure, rent out, or sell in the ordinary course.

The statute also allows the personal representative to leave tangible personal property or real property with the person presumptively entitled to it, unless possession is needed for administration — useful where a beneficiary is already living in a house or using a vehicle. And since the 2024 amendment it expressly confers no right to, and forbids knowingly taking control of, a surviving spouse’s one-half share of property governed by the Florida Uniform Disposition of Community Property Rights at Death Act.

How Do You Sign Documents as Personal Representative?

Signing as executor is not the same as signing as yourself. Always in the representative capacity, naming the estate — because § 733.619 makes that the line between the estate’s liability and yours. A personal representative is not individually liable on a contract properly entered into as a fiduciary, except a contract for attorney’s fees, unless the personal representative fails to reveal the representative capacity and identify the estate in the contract. Sign “Jane Doe, as Personal Representative of the Estate of John Doe, deceased” — never just “Jane Doe.”

The same section works in the estate’s favour in litigation: claims on contracts entered into as fiduciary, on obligations arising from ownership or control of estate property, and on torts committed in the course of administration may be asserted against the estate by proceeding against the personal representative in that capacity, whether or not the personal representative is individually liable.

Can an Executor Sell a House During Probate?

Usually yes, but the authority has to exist before the contract does, and homestead is the exception that catches people. Where the property is not protected homestead and the will grants a power of sale — or the court authorises it — the personal representative can sell, and the buyer takes through a personal representative’s deed. Where the property is protected homestead, § 733.607 keeps it outside the personal representative’s possession, and its disposition runs through the heirs and the homestead rules rather than the administration. The mechanics, including who signs and what the title company will require, are covered in selling a house during probate.

What Is a Personal Representative’s Deed?

It is the instrument a personal representative uses to convey estate real property, and it is not a warranty deed. The difference matters to both sides of a closing. A warranty deed carries covenants: the seller warrants good title and defends against claims. A personal representative’s deed conveys whatever interest the estate holds and warrants only that the signer is acting within the authority of the office — no personal warranty of title.

That is appropriate, because a personal representative is transferring someone else’s property in a representative capacity and should not be personally guaranteeing a chain of title they had no part in. Buyers usually address the gap with title insurance rather than by demanding warranties the fiduciary cannot responsibly give.

Can an Executor Sell a Car Before Probate Closes?

Often yes, but check whether it is exempt property first. A vehicle is ordinarily an estate asset the personal representative may possess and sell under § 733.607. Two things come first, though.

Section 732.402 makes two motor vehicles exempt property, each under 15,000 pounds gross vehicle weight, held in the decedent’s name and regularly used by the decedent or members of the decedent’s immediate family as their personal motor vehicles. Those vehicles belong to the surviving spouse, or, if there is no surviving spouse, the decedent’s children — not to the estate, and not to the personal representative to sell. The same section also exempts household furniture, furnishings and appliances in the decedent’s usual place of abode up to $20,000 net value, all § 529 qualified tuition programs, and all benefits under § 112.1915.

The exemption is not automatic. Under § 732.402(6) the persons entitled are deemed to have waived it unless a petition for determination of exempt property is filed by the later of four months after service of the notice of administration, or 40 days after the termination of any proceeding involving the will’s construction, admission to probate or validity. Second, confirm the Letters have issued, because the title transfer will require them. Our page on transferring a vehicle after death sets out the forms.

Can a Personal Representative Sell Property Without the Heirs’ Consent?

Often, yes — and this is a frequent source of family conflict. Where the will confers a power of sale, or the court authorises the sale, the personal representative does not need every beneficiary to agree. Section 733.603 contemplates acting without court direction, and requiring unanimity would make most administrations impossible. Beneficiaries are not without recourse: they can object, seek review, and hold the personal representative to account. But the default is not a veto.

The same logic reaches distributions. In Hinson v. Hinson, 422 So. 3d 230 (Fla. 3d DCA 2025), the Third District confirmed that a personal representative holding express discretion under the will to distribute in kind may exercise it without the court substituting its own judgment, absent evidence of prejudice to the estate or other inequity.

The exceptions are the ones already noted — protected homestead, which is not the personal representative’s to sell, and exempt property, which belongs to the spouse or the children.

How Do You Become the Executor of an Estate in Florida?

Six steps, in order. This is how to become executor of estate in Florida from a standing start.

1. Confirm you can qualify. Florida residency at the date of death under § 733.302, or one of the § 733.304 family categories if you live elsewhere, and clear of the four § 733.303 disqualifications.
2. Deposit the original will with the clerk in the county where the decedent lived, within 10 days of learning of the death.
3. Retain Florida counsel, which Rule 5.030 requires unless you are the sole interested person or a Florida Bar member.
4. File the petition for administration, with the death certificate and the original will.
5. File the oath, the designation of resident agent and its acceptance, and address bond. All must be on file before letters issue.
6. Receive the Letters of Administration — and order several certified copies at once.

How Do You Become Executor When There Is No Will?

The route is the same, but the priority question replaces the nomination question. Becoming executor of estate without a will turns on statutory priority rather than on anything the decedent wrote down. With no will there is nobody named, so § 733.301’s intestate order decides: surviving spouse, then the person selected by a majority in interest of the heirs, then the heir nearest in degree. You petition for letters of administration in that capacity, and where more than one heir of equal degree applies, the court may select the one it finds best qualified.

The practical advice is the same in every version of this: get the heirs to agree before anyone files. A majority in interest can simply select someone, and that costs a fraction of a contested appointment where two siblings each petition and the court has to choose. Heirs who do not want the job can sign a waiver of preference and a consent to the applicant’s appointment, which turns a potential fight into a paperwork exercise.

What if the Named Executor Does Not Want to Serve?

Nobody is compelled to accept the job. A person nominated in a will may decline, in which case the will’s alternate or successor takes priority under § 733.301, and failing that the beneficiaries holding a majority interest may select someone. Declining early is far better than accepting and resigning later, because a resignation under § 733.5036 requires a final accounting of whatever administration has already occurred.

What Happens if the Personal Representative Dies or Is Removed?

A successor is appointed and the estate continues. Where a personal representative is removed, § 733.5061 directs the court to appoint a successor personal representative, or a curator to serve until a successor is appointed. Where the named executor predeceased the testator or cannot serve, the will’s alternate takes first priority under § 733.301(1)(a), and if the will names none, the preference order runs on to the majority-in-interest selection and then to the devisees.

Whoever takes over is entitled to the estate’s records and property. A removed personal representative must deliver both immediately, or within the time the court orders, and is subject to contempt for failing to do so.

What Are the Other Names for This Role?

Eight of them turn up in Florida probate files, and they are not interchangeable. Estate executor, probate executor and personal representative all describe the same office in Florida; only the last is the statutory term.

Term	What it means in Florida
Personal representative	The correct Florida term, used throughout the Probate Code, whether or not there is a will
Executor / executrix	Terminology from other states and older practice for someone administering under a will. Florida courts will call you personal representative
Administrator / administratrix	Other states’ term for someone administering an intestate estate. Florida does not distinguish
Co-personal representatives	Two or more serving together. Above $100,000 in compensable value, each of two is entitled to a full commission under § 733.617(5)
Successor personal representative	The person appointed under § 733.5061 after a resignation or removal, and to whom records and property must be delivered
Curator	A temporary appointee who preserves the estate where there is a delay or dispute over who should be appointed
Administrator ad litem	Appointed under § 733.308 for a specific proceeding where the personal representative is unable to represent the estate — for instance where the estate must sue the personal representative
Ancillary personal representative	Appointed in Florida for a decedent domiciled elsewhere who owned Florida property

The administrator ad litem matters more than it looks. Where the personal representative is the person the estate has a claim against, § 733.308 is the mechanism that lets the estate pursue it without the conflicted fiduciary controlling both sides — a cleaner route in some cases than a removal petition under § 733.504.

One more term worth knowing, because it describes what happens when someone acts without any appointment at all. Section 733.309 abolishes liability to creditors as executor de son tort, but provides that anyone taking, converting or intermeddling with a decedent’s property is liable to the personal representative or curator, once appointed, for the value of everything taken and for all damages caused to the estate. Emptying a parent’s house before letters issue is not a grey area.

How Long Does an Executor Have to Settle an Estate in Florida?

The better part of a year for a straightforward formal administration, driven mainly by the creditor period rather than by anything the personal representative controls. Section 733.603 requires proceeding expeditiously, and that word is doing real work — unexplained delay is what “wasting or maladministration” looks like in a removal petition. Florida Probate Rule 5.400, as amended effective 1 October 2026, now states the outer limit expressly: the final accounting and petition for discharge must be filed and served within 12 months after the letters issue, or within 12 months of the due date of a federal estate tax return where one is filed, unless the court extends the time for cause after notice.

The realistic timetable, and what pushes an estate past it, is set out in how long probate takes in Florida. Where the estate is small enough, summary administration avoids the appointment question altogether, because no personal representative is appointed at all.

When Do an Executor’s Powers Begin, and Do Earlier Acts Count?

Section 733.601 answers both. The duties and powers of a personal representative commence upon appointment — but the powers relate back to give acts done before appointment, where beneficial to the estate, the same effect as acts done after. A personal representative may also ratify and accept acts done by others on the estate’s behalf where those acts would have been proper for a personal representative.

That is the provision that rescues the family member who changed the locks, paid the homeowner’s insurance premium, and kept the lights on in the three weeks before the court acted. Those acts are validated retroactively if they benefited the estate. It is not, however, licence to distribute or sell before appointment — those are not preservation, and § 733.309 is waiting for anyone who treats them as though they were.

What Is the Homestead Lien Almost Nobody Knows About?

A statutory security interest that reimburses a personal representative for money spent protecting a home they are not allowed to possess. Protected homestead is outside the personal representative’s possession under § 733.607 — but somebody still has to insure an empty house and stop it deteriorating.

Section 733.608(2) resolves it. Where property that reasonably appears to be protected homestead is not occupied by a person who appears to have an interest in it, the personal representative is authorised but not required to take possession for the limited purpose of preserving, insuring and protecting it, pending a determination of homestead status. Rents may be collected for the account of the heir or devisee, though there is no duty to make the property productive.

And § 733.608(3) makes it fundable: where the personal representative spends money or incurs obligations to preserve, maintain, insure or protect that property, the personal representative is entitled to a lien on the property and its revenues to secure repayment, including fees and costs. The lien takes priority from the date and time a notice of lien is recorded in the county’s official records, and the notice must state the personal representative’s and attorney’s name and address, the legal description, the decedent’s name and each apparent interest holder, and that the expenditures stand secured.

The lien terminates on the earliest of a recorded satisfaction, the personal representative’s discharge, one year from recording unless a proceeding to determine the debt or enforce the lien has been filed, or an order releasing it. Section 733.608(11) adds that the personal representative is not liable for declining to take possession or spend on the homestead at all.

Note the limit that runs through all of this: the personal representative’s authority over protected homestead is confined to preservation, insurance and protection pending a homestead determination. It is not authority to administer, sell or encumber the property as an estate asset.

Can an Executor Buy Estate Property?

Not without authorisation, and paying full price does not cure it. Section 733.610 is short and severe. Any sale or encumbrance to the personal representative, or to the personal representative’s spouse, agent, or attorney, or to any corporation, entity or trust in which any of them holds a substantial beneficial or ownership interest — and any transaction affected by a conflict of interest on the personal representative’s part — is voidable by any interested person, except one who consented after fair disclosure.

There are exactly two safe harbours: the will or a contract entered into by the decedent expressly authorised the transaction, or the court approved it after notice to interested persons. Note what is not a safe harbour — paying fair market value. A personal representative who buys the estate’s house at a defensible price, without authorisation or court approval, has still entered a voidable transaction.

Is an Executor Personally Liable for a Breach of Fiduciary Duty?

Yes, and the losing side pays the other side’s legal fees by statute. Section 733.609 is the provision every personal representative and every beneficiary should read. A personal representative’s fiduciary duty is the same as that of a trustee of an express trust, and the personal representative is liable to interested persons for damage or loss resulting from breach.

Then the sentence that changes the economics of these disputes: “In all actions for breach of fiduciary duty or challenging the exercise of or failure to exercise a personal representative’s powers, the court shall award taxable costs as in chancery actions, including attorney’s fees.” Not may — shall. And the court may direct payment from a party’s interest in the estate, or enter a judgment satisfiable from that party’s other property, or both.

The cut runs in both directions. A beneficiary who proves a breach is not funding the fight out of their own inheritance. A beneficiary who brings a weak challenge to a personal representative’s proper exercise of power is exposed to the other side’s fees.

There is a ceiling on the exposure, though. In Brush v. Coppelli, 407 So. 3d 518 (Fla. 5th DCA 2025), the Fifth District held that liability under § 733.609(1) is limited to the damage or loss actually resulting from the breach — the injured party cannot end up better off than they would have been had the breach never occurred. Where the estate never held enough to satisfy a creditor’s judgment in full, the personal representative’s personal liability is capped at what that creditor would have recovered from a properly administered estate under the § 733.707 priority scheme, not the face amount of the judgment.

Can a Personal Representative Be Removed?

Yes, and on twelve enumerated grounds — plus one that is mandatory. Executor misconduct is the usual reason families ask about this, but it is not the only route to remove an executor. Section 733.504 opens by requiring removal: a personal representative shall be removed and the letters revoked if he or she was not qualified to act at the time of appointment. Beyond that, removal is discretionary on any of the listed causes.

What Are the Twelve Grounds for Removal Under Section 733.504?

These, in the statute’s own order.

#	Ground
1	Adjudication that the personal representative is incapacitated
2	Physical or mental incapacity rendering them incapable of discharging their duties
3	Failure to comply with any order of the court, unless superseded on appeal
4	Failure to account for the sale of property, or to produce and exhibit the assets of the estate when required
5	Wasting or maladministration of the estate
6	Failure to give bond or security for any purpose
7	Conviction of a felony
8	Insolvency of, or appointment of a receiver or liquidator for, a corporate personal representative
9	Holding or acquiring conflicting or adverse interests against the estate that will or may interfere with administration — expressly not applicable to a surviving spouse exercising the elective share, family allowance or exemptions
10	Revocation of the probate of the will that authorised the appointment
11	Removal of domicile from Florida, where domicile was a requirement of appointment
12	Qualified at appointment but not now entitled to appointment

Ground 5 does most of the work in practice. “Wasting or maladministration” is where the sitting-on-it cases live — the estate that has not moved in two years, the property left uninsured, the accounting that never arrives. Ground 9 is the self-dealing route, and its carve-out matters: a surviving spouse who elects the elective share has not thereby acquired an adverse interest justifying removal.

Note also what is not a ground. Beneficiaries disliking the personal representative, disagreeing with the pace, or objecting to the fee are not on the list. The fee has its own remedy — § 733.617(7) lets any interested person petition the court to increase or decrease the commission, and the court weighs nine factors including promptness and skill, the responsibilities assumed, the complexity of the issues, and any delay in payment.

How Does a Removal Proceeding Work?

Florida Probate Rule 5.440 governs. The court may remove on its own motion, or any interested person may commence a proceeding by petition, which must state the facts constituting the grounds and be filed in the court with jurisdiction over the administration.

Due process is not optional. In Maestrales v. Maestrales, 417 So. 3d 34 (Fla. 4th DCA 2025), the Fourth District held that removing a personal representative without notice and an opportunity to be heard is a due process violation and fundamental error. The probate court had removed the personal representative on its own motion at a hearing noticed for a different issue; the appellate court reversed and ordered reinstatement, subject to removal on good cause after proper notice and hearing.

The order either way is appealable immediately — Gnaegy v. Morris, 389 So. 3d 642 (Fla. 3d DCA 2023), confirms that a ruling on a removal petition is a final, appealable order reviewed for abuse of discretion.

The consequences of removal are immediate and enforceable. A removed personal representative must file an accounting within 30 days, and must immediately — or within the time the court orders — deliver all estate records and all estate property to the remaining personal representative or the successor fiduciary. Failure to do either subjects the removed personal representative to contempt proceedings.

What Can Beneficiaries Do When the Executor Will Not Act?

More than most beneficiaries realise, and the statute puts the legal fees on the losing side. You do not have to sue an executor to get movement; most of these levers work long before a lawsuit. If you are watching an estate go nowhere, these are the levers, roughly in order of escalation.

• Demand the inventory. Rule 5.340 requires a verified inventory within 60 days of the letters, served on the surviving spouse, on each heir at law in an intestate estate, on each residuary beneficiary in a testate estate, and on any other interested person who asks in writing. Ask in writing. Missing that deadline is documentary evidence for everything that follows.
• Compel an accounting. Failure to account for the sale of property, or to produce and exhibit the assets of the estate when required, is removal ground 4 in its own right.
• Object within the window. Objections to the will’s validity, venue or jurisdiction die three months after service of the notice of administration under § 733.212(3), and the period is extendable only for estoppel based on a misstatement about the deadline itself.
• Petition to adjust the fee. Section 733.617(7) lets any interested person ask the court to decrease a commission on the nine statutory factors.
• Petition for removal under § 733.504, with the facts constituting the grounds stated in the petition per Rule 5.440.
• Surcharge for breach. Section 733.609 imposes personal liability for loss caused by breach and makes the fee award mandatory. A surcharge proceeding seeks a personal judgment, so the fiduciary must be served personally as an individual, not merely in the representative capacity.

Who counts as an “interested person” is broader than beneficiaries often assume. In Carmel v. Fleischer, 391 So. 3d 907 (Fla. 4th DCA 2024), the Fourth District held that a beneficiary of a testamentary trust is an interested person under § 731.201(23) with standing to file a surcharge petition against the personal representative and to object to the final accounting and petition for discharge.

One caution before filing. Section 733.609’s fee award is mandatory in all actions challenging the exercise of — or the failure to exercise — a personal representative’s powers. A weak challenge to a fiduciary who was acting properly exposes the challenger to the other side’s fees. Get the facts first. Our Florida probate litigation page covers what these cases look like from both sides.

When Must a Personal Representative Resign?

Immediately on knowing they were not qualified at the time of appointment — and promptly on notice of anything that would disqualify them now. Section 733.3101 is the trap for a personal representative whose circumstances change. A personal representative who was qualified but knows they would not now be qualified must promptly file and serve a notice setting out the reasons, stating that any interested person may petition to remove them — and an interested person served with that notice has 30 days to petition.

Subsection (3) supplies the teeth. A personal representative who fails to comply is personally liable for costs, including attorney fees, incurred in any removal proceeding if removed. That liability extends to a personal representative who did not know but should have known the facts requiring resignation or notice, and it is cumulative to any other liability provided by law. The oath under Rule 5.320 makes the point unavoidable, because it states the continuing duty on its face.

In plain terms: a felony conviction, a move out of Florida where domicile was required, or an incapacity that arrives mid-administration is not something to wait out. Disclosing it costs nothing. Being removed after concealing it costs the fees on both sides, personally.

How Does a Personal Representative Resign Voluntarily?

By filing and serving a final accounting under § 733.5036. Resignation is cleaner than removal and available without any accusation. Once liability has been determined and satisfied, the personal representative, attorney and any others employed have been compensated, and there is evidence that undistributed estate assets have been delivered to the successor fiduciary, the personal representative is discharged, the bond released and the surety discharged.

That is the route for someone who took the job and found it beyond them — a common and entirely respectable outcome, particularly where the estate turns contentious or the appointee’s health changes.

What Should a Personal Representative Do in the First Thirty Days?

Seven things, and the last one saves more money than the other six combined.

• Secure the original will. Florida requires it deposited with the clerk in the county of the decedent’s residence within 10 days. A photocopy is not a substitute except through a separate and expensive lost-will proceeding.
• Order certified death certificates in quantity. Ten is not excessive. Every institution wants its own.
• Secure and insure the property. Change locks, confirm the homeowner’s carrier knows the house is now vacant, keep utilities on. Where the property is unoccupied protected homestead, § 733.608 authorises possession for preservation and gives a lien for what you spend — but the lien only takes priority from recording, so record the notice.
• Do not distribute anything. Not the car to the son who always drove it, not the jewellery, not a cent. Florida sets a statutory order of payment and a personal representative who pays out of order can be personally liable.
• Do not pay the decedent’s debts out of your own pocket, and do not commingle. Open a separate estate account with its own EIN once the Letters issue.
• Identify what is not a probate asset. Joint accounts, payable-on-death designations, beneficiary-designated retirement and insurance, trust property. These are not yours to administer, and they are not in the compensable value your commission is based on. Our page on building a thorough list of assets works through the sort.
• Keep records from day one. You owe an accounting, and reconstructing eighteen months of transactions afterwards is the single most avoidable expense in a contested administration.

Where Do Personal Representatives Get Into Real Trouble?

Five recurring places, and none of them involve bad intentions.

• Distributing before the creditor period closes. The pressure from siblings arrives early and the claims timetable does not care. See Florida probate creditors.
• Buying estate property. Voidable under § 733.610 regardless of price, absent authorisation in the will or court approval after notice.
• Letting the estate sit. “Wasting or maladministration” is ground 5 for removal, and inaction over a long enough period is exactly what it describes.
• Treating the estate account as available cash. Commingling converts an ordinary administration into a fiduciary claim, and § 733.609 puts the fees on the losing side.
• Going quiet with the beneficiaries. Most removal petitions are preceded by months of unanswered messages. Communication is not a legal duty in itself, but its absence is what turns a disagreement into a filing.

What Are the Common Misunderstandings About the Executor’s Role?

Nine, and each one has cost somebody money.

• “The will names me, so I can start.” Authority begins on appointment, not nomination. Preservation acts relate back under § 733.601; distribution and sale do not.
• “I have to be paid what the statute says.” The commission is a presumption, and it may be renounced in whole or in part under § 733.617(4).
• “The commission is tax free like an inheritance.” It is ordinary taxable income. That is precisely why many family members waive it.
• “Executor fees and lawyer’s fees are the same 3 percent.” Two statutes, two schedules, and they diverge above $1 million. Compare § 733.617 with § 733.6171.
• “Naming both my children keeps it fair.” Above $100,000 in compensable value it also means two full commissions under § 733.617(5).
• “I control the house.” Protected homestead is outside your possession under § 733.607, and your authority under § 733.608 stops at preserving it.
• “Beneficiaries have to agree before I sell.” Generally not, where the will or the court grants the power.
• “I can handle it without a lawyer if the family agrees.” Rule 5.030 requires Florida counsel unless you are the sole interested person or a member of The Florida Bar — and it applies to residents and nonresidents alike.
• “Anyone I trust can serve.” An out-of-state friend cannot. Section 733.304 is a closed list of family relationships.

Talk to a Florida Probate Attorney About Serving as Personal Representative

Whether you have been named in a will, you are the closest relative and there is no will, or you are a beneficiary watching a personal representative do nothing, the first conversation is short and it settles most of it: can this person qualify, what does the estate actually contain, and what is the realistic timetable.

Bring the death certificate, the original will if you have found it, a rough list of assets with an indication of how each is titled, and the names of everyone who stands to inherit. If you have already been served with anything from a court, bring that too and note the date.

Lorenzo Law represents personal representatives and beneficiaries in probate and probate litigation throughout Florida, including Miami-Dade and Broward County. Call 305-224-6811 or reach out through our contact page. Hablamos español.

Related reading: the cost of probate in Florida · out-of-state executors · surviving spouse rights · how long probate takes · summary administration · Florida probate creditors · Florida probate litigation · specific bequests of tangible property · Florida non-probate assets · contesting a Florida will · how to choose a trustee in Florida

This page explains Florida statutes and probate rules for general informational purposes. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Citations reflect Florida law in effect as of August 2026, including Chapter 2026-57 (effective 1 July 2026) and the Florida Probate Rules as amended in In re Amendments to Florida Probate Rules, 434 So. 3d 1007 (Fla. 2026), effective 1 October 2026.