Lady Bird deed (enhanced life estate deed) or revocable trust for a Florida homestead: probate, Save Our Homes, creditor protection, devise limits and Medicaid estate recovery under Florida statutes

A “Lady Bird deed” is the common name for an enhanced life estate deed. The deed’s effect comes from the language of the deed itself and from the homestead provisions of the Florida Constitution and Statutes. A revocable living trust is a trust under chapter 736. This post compares the two against the statutes that apply to a Florida homestead, and it states where the cited text does not answer a question.

What each tool does

Question	Lady Bird deed	Revocable trust holding the home
Is the home a probate asset?	The deed’s terms control. A homestead that is protected is not an asset available to the personal representative, § 733.608(1), Fla. Stat. (2026).	The home is trust property only if the deed into the trust is recorded. Unfunded property stays in the probate estate.
Homestead tax exemption	Persons holding title under “other estates therein limited in time by deed” can qualify, § 196.041(1), Fla. Stat. (2026), and legal or beneficial title qualifies, § 196.031(1)(a).	Legal or beneficial title in equity qualifies, § 196.031(1)(a), but the cited text does not mention trusts. Ask the property appraiser how a trust-held home is recorded.
Limits on devising the homestead	Art. X, § 4(c), Fla. Const.	Art. X, § 4(c), Fla. Const., applies; the owner includes the grantor of a revocable trust evidenced by a written instrument at death. § 732.4015(2)(a), Fla. Stat. (2026).
Other assets	Covers only the real property described in the deed.	Can hold other assets that are titled in the trust.
Control after death	Title passes under the deed’s terms.	The trustee distributes under the trust terms, chapter 736.

Homestead rules that apply to either choice

• Forced sale: Art. X, § 4(a), Fla. Const., exempts the homestead from forced sale under process of any court, with the constitution’s listed exceptions.
• Devise limit: Under Art. X, § 4(c), “The homestead shall not be subject to devise if the owner is survived by spouse or minor child,” except that it may be devised to the spouse if there is no minor child. § 732.4015(1), Fla. Stat. (2026) repeats this limit.
• Trust treatment: § 732.4015(2) defines “owner” to include the grantor of a trust described in § 733.707(3) that is evidenced by a written instrument in existence at death, and defines “devise” to include “a disposition by trust” of the portion that would be the grantor’s homestead. A homestead placed in a revocable trust is therefore treated as a devise for this limit.
• Deeds: The cited statutes do not state whether a deed that reserves a life estate and a power to sell is treated as a devise under Art. X, § 4(c). Confirm current case law before relying on a deed to avoid the devise limit when there is a surviving spouse or minor child.

Save Our Homes assessment cap

§ 193.155(3), Fla. Stat. (2026), resets the assessment to just value after a “change of ownership,” defined as “sale, foreclosure, or transfer of legal title or beneficial title in equity to any person,” subject to exceptions. The listed exceptions include:

• A transfer between legal and equitable title or equitable and equitable title, if no additional person applies for a homestead exemption. § 193.155(3)(a)1.b.
• A deed where the owner is listed as both grantor and grantee and other individuals are added as grantees, unless an added grantee applies for a homestead exemption. § 193.155(3)(a)1.c.
• A transfer between spouses. § 193.155(3)(a)2.
• A transfer by operation of law to the surviving spouse or minor child under § 732.401. § 193.155(3)(a)3.

The statute has no exception that names a transfer to a trust. Whether a specific deed or trust transfer resets the assessment depends on the instrument and on the property appraiser’s treatment. The county property appraiser is the official source for that answer.

Medicaid estate recovery

§ 409.9101, Fla. Stat. (2026), sets the following limits on Medicaid estate recovery.

• No recovery is enforced if the recipient is survived by a spouse, a child under 21, or a disabled child. § 409.9101(6).
• No debt is enforced against property exempt from creditors under the state constitution or laws. § 409.9101(7).
• Real property is not transferred to the agency in any instance. § 409.9101(10).
• A hardship waiver for an heir requires that the heir currently resides in the decedent’s residence, resided there at the time of death, has made it his or her primary residence for the 12 months immediately preceding death, and owns no other residence. § 409.9101(8)(a)1.-4.

The subsections cited here do not address life estates or trusts. Whether a deed or a trust keeps a specific asset outside a Medicaid claim is a question for the Florida Department of Children and Families and the Agency for Health Care Administration, which administer eligibility and recovery.

Other considerations

• Will deposit: A will’s custodian must deposit it with the clerk within 10 days after learning the testator has died. § 732.901(1), Fla. Stat. (2026). The cited statutes do not require a trust instrument to be filed.
• Trustee for minors: A trust names a trustee who holds property under the trust terms, chapter 736. A deed transfers title to the named grantee under the deed’s terms.

Sources

1. Fla. Const. art. X, § 4, Homestead; exemptions: https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Constitution#A10S04 (supports forced-sale exemption and “The homestead shall not be subject to devise if the owner is survived by spouse or minor child”).
2. Fla. Stat. § 732.4015, Devise of homestead: https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2026/732.4015 (supports “owner” and “devise” definitions including trusts).
3. Fla. Stat. § 733.608, General power of the personal representative: https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2026/733.608 (supports exclusion of protected homestead from estate assets in subsection (1)).
4. Fla. Stat. § 733.707, Order of payment of expenses and obligations: https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2026/733.707 (supports revocable trust description in subsection (3)).
5. Fla. Stat. § 196.031, Exemption of homesteads: https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2026/196.031 (supports “legal title or beneficial title in equity” qualifying).
6. Fla. Stat. § 196.041, Exemption of homesteads: https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2026/196.041 (supports persons holding estates “limited in time by deed”).
7. Fla. Stat. § 193.155, Homestead assessments: https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2026/193.155 (supports change-of-ownership definition and exceptions).
8. Fla. Stat. § 409.9101, Medicaid estate recovery: https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2026/409.9101 (supports subsections (6), (7), (8)(a), (10)).
9. Fla. Stat. § 736.0402, Requirements for creation of trust: https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2026/736.0402 (supports trust creation requirements).
10. Fla. Stat. § 732.901, Deposit of wills: https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2026/732.901 (supports the 10-day deposit requirement).
11. Fla. Stat. § 689.11, Conveyances by spouses: https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2026/689.11 (reviewed; it addresses deeds between spouses and does not address Lady Bird deeds).

Last checked: October 19, 2026.