Hiring a Estate Planning Attorney in Florida

A basic revocable living trust in Florida costs roughly $4,320$6,480 when drafted by an attorney, based on the typical 10-15 hours of attorney work at $432 per hourClio Legal Trends Report 2025Verified Jan 1, 2025. Online services offer trust packages for $300–$700, though they generally don't include attorney advice or review of your specific situation. See the Florida trust cost calculator for a detailed breakdown.

Even if you create a revocable trust in Florida, you generally still need a will — most commonly a "pour-over" will that captures any assets you forgot to retitle into the trust. Whether a trust adds enough value over a will-only plan depends on your situation: real property, blended families, and out-of-state assets are the most common reasons. The trust-or-will tool walks through the decision.

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.