How Do I Claim a Small Estate in Florida?

An estate of $0 or less, per Fla. Stat. §§ 735.201-735.2063, 735.301, 735.303, 735.304.

Florida's small-estate shortcuts are court procedures, not a successor's affidavit presented to the holder of the property. Disposition Without Administration (§ 735.301): available when the estate holds only exempt personal property (§ 732.402 and constitutional exemptions) plus nonexempt personal property not exceeding preferred funeral expenses and reasonable and necessary medical and hospital expenses of the last 60 days of the last illness; on informal application by any interested party, the court authorizes the payment, transfer, or disposition by letter or other writing under the seal of the court, and any person paying or transferring under that authorization is forever discharged from liability (§ 735.301(3)). Intestate estates within the § 735.304(1) limit use a second route: an heir at law entitled to a share under § 732.102 or § 732.103 files a sworn affidavit — signed and verified by the surviving spouse, if any, and the heirs at law — after a diligent search and reasonable inquiry for creditors, serves it in the manner of formal notice on non-joining heirs, on all known or reasonably ascertainable creditors, and, if the decedent was over 55, on the Agency for Health Care Administration, and the court then authorizes the transfer by letter or other writing under the seal of the court (§ 735.304(2)-(3); contents at Fla. Prob. R. 5.425(b)). Summary Administration (§§ 735.201-735.2063): a signed and verified petition by beneficiaries or the person nominated as personal representative, ending in a court order; available when the estate subject to administration (less exempt property) is within the § 735.201(2) limit or the decedent has been dead for more than 2 years.

Both disposition-without-administration routes reach personal property only (§ 735.301(2): "the personal property, tangible or intangible, belonging to the decedent"; § 735.304(3): "the tangible or intangible personal property"). Estates with real property use summary administration (ch. 735, Part I) or formal administration (ch. 733).