Hiring an Estate Administration Attorney in Florida

Estate administration in Florida typically runs 6–9 months for simple estates and 12–24 months for complex ones. The minimum timeline is largely set by the creditor claim period (3 months), during which the executor can't safely distribute assets. Living trusts bypass this entirely because they don't go through probate. The Florida estate settlement plan walks through the steps.

Florida sets executor compensation on a statutory schedule that is presumed reasonable — about $15,000 on a $500,000 estate, roughly 3.0%Fla. Stat. § 733.617Verified Sep 8, 2026. Executors can also waive their fee entirely or accept a reduced amount. When the executor is a family member who is also a beneficiary, waiving the fee is common because beneficiary distributions aren't taxed as income while executor fees are. See the Florida executor fee calculator.

Estate planning attorneys in Florida average $440 per hourClio Legal Trends Report 2025Verified Jan 1, 2025 for wills and estates work. Flat-fee packages run roughly $1,320–$2,640 for a simple individual will and $4,320–$6,480 for a basic revocable trust. Online and DIY services cost $30–$300 for the same documents — see the will cost calculator for a side-by-side comparison.

Florida doesn't have a traditional small-estate affidavit, but estates under $150,000 may qualify for Summary Administration, a faster and cheaper alternative to formal probate. Whether you need an attorney for the summary procedure depends on the situation; for full formal probate, most families retain counsel.

In Florida, the situations where retaining counsel is typically worth the cost are: blended families with children from prior relationships; ownership of a business, rental property, or significant investment assets; special-needs dependents who need a special-needs trust to preserve benefits; substantial property held in multiple states. If none of these describe your situation, the simpler online and DIY tools are often enough.