Out-of-state heirs and Florida property: who can serve, what happens to title, taxes and selling
What an heir who lives outside Florida does in a Florida estate: who may serve as personal representative under § 733.304, when ancillary administration applies, property-tax reassessment, state and federal taxes, selling, and co-owned property, each with its official source.
An heir's address does not change the Florida procedure. The court that handles the estate is chosen by where the decedent was domiciled and where the property sits (§ 733.101(1)), not by where the heirs live. Two situations come up most: a decedent domiciled in Florida with heirs in other states, and a decedent domiciled in another state who owned Florida property.
This page covers who may serve as personal representative from out of state, what an out-of-state heir signs and files, what happens to the title and the property tax bill, which taxes can reach an heir, and what the law provides when several heirs co-own a Florida house. The Sources section lists each citation, last checked October 17, 2026.
- Venue: the county where the decedent was domiciled; if none in Florida, any county where the decedent's property is located (§ 733.101(1)).
- Out-of-state personal representative: allowed only for the relatives listed in § 733.304. A friend or other non-relative who lives outside Florida cannot qualify.
- Attorney: a personal representative must be represented by a Florida-admitted attorney unless the personal representative is the sole interested person (Fla. Prob. R. 5.030(a)).
- Florida estate tax: none for deaths after December 31, 2004 (Florida Department of Revenue).
- Federal estate tax: applies to estates above $15,000,000 for 2026 deaths (IRS). The executor of the estate uses Form 706 (IRS).
Which Florida proceeding applies
The decedent's domicile at death decides the proceeding. Table 1 shows the three Florida paths for a decedent who owned Florida property.
| Situation | Florida proceeding | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Decedent domiciled in Florida, heirs in other states | Probate in the Florida county of domicile. The heirs take part by signing, reviewing and approving, not by living in the county. | § 733.101(1)(a) |
| Decedent domiciled elsewhere, owned Florida assets | Ancillary administration in Florida. The will named PR for Florida property gets letters if qualified; otherwise the foreign PR; the petition attaches an authenticated copy of the foreign proceedings. | § 734.102(1); Fla. Prob. R. 5.470 |
| Decedent domiciled elsewhere, left a will, Florida property of $50,000 or less gross value | The foreign personal representative may file an authenticated transcript in the circuit court of the county where property is located, within 2 years after death. No Florida PR is appointed unless a claim is filed. | § 734.1025(1), (2) |
| Decedent domiciled elsewhere, will probated there, no Florida proceeding | An authenticated copy of the will, executed as chapter 732 requires and admitted to probate elsewhere, may be admitted to record in the Florida county where the real property is located, after 2 years from death or after the domiciliary PR is discharged. | § 734.104(1) |
Ancillary administration follows the same notice-to-creditors and bond rules as an original administration (§ 734.102(4), (5)). The ancillary PR has the same power to manage and sell local property (§ 734.102(7)). See the ancillary probate guide.
Who can serve as personal representative from out of state
A Florida resident who is sui juris at the time of death is qualified to act (§ 733.302). A person not domiciled in Florida can qualify only in the four situations in Table 2 (§ 733.304).
- Preference when there is a will: the person the will nominates, then the person chosen by a majority in interest of those entitled to the estate, then a devisee (§ 733.301(1)(a)). A nominee disqualified under § 733.303(1) is passed over, and letters issue in the § 733.301 order of preference (§ 733.303(2)).
- Preference with no will: the surviving spouse, then the person selected by a majority in interest of the heirs, then the heir nearest in degree (§ 733.301(1)(b)).
- Address and resident agent: before letters issue, the PR files a designation of street, mailing and residence address and a designation of a resident agent for service, with the agent's acceptance (Fla. Prob. R. 5.110(a), (b)). A resident agent is not required if the PR is a corporate fiduciary with a Florida office or a Florida Bar member who lives and has an office in Florida. The agent must live in the county where the proceeding is pending, unless the agent is a Florida resident Bar member (Fla. Prob. R. 5.110(c)).
- Oath: the prospective PR files an oath to faithfully administer the estate before letters are granted (Fla. Prob. R. 5.320).
| Subsection | Who qualifies |
|---|---|
| (1) | A legally adopted child or adoptive parent of the decedent |
| (2) | A person related by lineal consanguinity to the decedent (parents, children, grandparents, grandchildren and so on) |
| (3) | A spouse, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, nephew or niece of the decedent, or someone related by lineal consanguinity to any of them |
| (4) | The spouse of a person otherwise qualified under the section |
Source: § 733.304, Fla. Stat. (2026). Disqualified in any case: a felony conviction, a conviction for abuse, neglect or exploitation of an elderly person or disabled adult, inability to perform the duties, or age under 18 (§ 733.303(1)).
What an out-of-state heir signs and files
An heir who is not the personal representative usually has three tasks: receive the notices the court rules require, sign any waiver or consent, and review the inventory and accounting. Most signature requirements can be met from another state.
- Verification without a notary. When a rule requires a document to be verified, the document may carry an oath, an affirmation, or the statement "Under penalties of perjury, I declare that I have read the foregoing, and the facts alleged are true, to the best of my knowledge and belief" (Fla. Prob. R. 5.020(e)).
- Documents that need a notary. The personal representative's oath is "under oath" (Fla. Prob. R. 5.320). A Florida online notary physically in Florida may notarize a signer located in another state by audio-video technology, if the signer agrees to a Florida notarial act under Florida law (§ 117.265(1), (2), (3)). The notary must be registered with the Florida Department of State.
- Filing. The Florida Courts E-Filing Portal is the statewide access point for filing court documents online.
- Witnesses to the will. If an attesting witness lives outside Florida, the court may appoint a commissioner, including a notary in that witness's state, to take the witness's oath to prove the will (Fla. Prob. R. 5.230).
- Safe-deposit box. A bank must allow a personal representative who presents a copy of the letters of administration to open a box made available to fiduciaries, unless the lease or the writings under which the fiduciaries act provide otherwise. The bank may allow an agent that all the fiduciaries authorize in a signed writing (§ 655.933).
Selling or keeping inherited Florida real estate
Death vests the heirs' right to intestate property and a devisee's right under a will (§ 732.101(2), § 732.514). Estate property other than protected homestead remains available to pay claims, expenses, taxes and devises (§ 733.608(1)). The personal representative has the right to take possession or control, and may leave real property with the person entitled to it unless the administration needs it (§ 733.607(1)).
- Will gives a power of sale: the PR may sell, mortgage or lease real property without court authorization or confirmation (§ 733.613(2)).
- No power of sale, or no will: the PR may sell if it is in the best interest of the estate, but no title passes until the court authorizes or confirms the sale (§ 733.613(1)).
- Buyer protection: a buyer under a specific power of sale or a court order takes title free of creditors' claims and beneficiaries' entitlements, except existing mortgages and liens (§ 733.613(3)).
- Protected homestead: the PR does not take possession of it under § 733.607(1), and § 733.608(2) lets the PR secure an unoccupied house only for preservation while homestead status is determined. If the decedent left a spouse and descendants, the spouse takes a life estate and the descendants a vested remainder, unless the spouse elects a one-half tenancy in common within 6 months of death (§ 732.401(1), (2)). See what a homestead really protects.
- Sale mechanics and income tax: see selling an inherited Florida home and stepped-up basis.
Florida property tax after the transfer
A transfer to an heir is a change of ownership for property-tax purposes unless an exception applies. Table 3 compares the two outcomes for an out-of-state heir.
| Heir's use of the home | Assessment rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Heir makes it a permanent residence and applies for homestead | Assessed at just value as of January 1 of the year after the change of ownership. After that, annual increases are limited to the lower of 3 percent or the change in the Consumer Price Index. Exceptions to the reassessment cover transfers to a surviving spouse, transfers to a spouse or minor child under § 732.401, and a transfer on the owner's death to a permanent resident dependent on the owner. | § 193.155(1), (3)(a) |
| Heir keeps it as a second home or rental (nonhomestead residential, nine or fewer units) | Assessed at just value as of January 1 of the year after the change of ownership, then increases for non-school levies are limited to 10 percent a year. | § 193.1554(1)-(3), (5) |
The homestead exemption requires legal or beneficial title and a good-faith permanent residence on January 1, and an application to the county property appraiser on or before March 1 (§ 196.031(1)(a), § 196.011(1)(a)). The Department of Revenue states the exemption lowers taxable value by as much as $50,000 (Florida Department of Revenue, Homestead Exemption).
The homestead exemption goes to a person who makes the Florida home a permanent residence. An heir who lives in another state and uses the house as a vacation home does not qualify. Art. VII, § 6(b), Fla. Const., allows not more than one exemption for an individual or family unit.
Taxes that can reach an out-of-state heir
Table 4 separates taxes imposed by Florida, by the federal government and by other states. State inheritance taxes are set by statute in each state, so the page of the state involved controls.
| Tax | Rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Florida estate or inheritance tax | None. The Florida estate tax was eliminated for deaths after December 31, 2004. The Florida Constitution bars state estate and inheritance taxes above the federal credit. | Florida DOR; Art. VII, § 5(a), Fla. Const. |
| Federal estate tax | Basic exclusion amount of $15,000,000 for 2026. The executor of the decedent's estate uses Form 706 to figure the tax. | IRS, Estate tax; IRS, About Form 706 |
| Income tax basis when the heir sells | Basis of inherited property is generally its fair market value at the date of death. | IRS Pub. 551; 26 U.S.C. § 1014 |
| Pennsylvania inheritance tax | 0 percent to a surviving spouse; 4.5 percent to direct descendants and lineal heirs; 12 percent to siblings; 15 percent to other heirs. | Pennsylvania Department of Revenue |
| New Jersey | Inheritance tax is imposed. The estate tax is not imposed for deaths on or after January 1, 2018. | NJ Division of Taxation |
| Kentucky | Inheritance tax by class of beneficiary; no estate tax. Class A (spouse, parent, child, grandchild, brother, sister, half-siblings) is listed on the department page. | Kentucky Department of Revenue |
| Nebraska | Inheritance tax. For immediate relatives, 1 percent of the value received in excess of $100,000 for deaths on or after January 1, 2023. | Neb. Rev. Stat. § 77-2004 |
| Iowa | Inheritance tax does not apply to deaths on or after January 1, 2025. | Iowa Department of Revenue |
| New York estate tax on a nonresident decedent | The estate of a nonresident must file if it includes New York real or tangible property and the federal gross estate plus includible gifts exceeds the basic exclusion amount, $7,350,000 for 2026 deaths. | NY Tax Department |
Checked October 17, 2026. State rates and exemptions change; the department pages linked above state the current rule for each state.
Co-owned Florida property: the heirs property statute
When heirs take title together as tenants in common and cannot agree, any cotenant may ask the circuit court for partition. Property that qualifies as "heirs property" follows the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act in §§ 64.201-64.214, which applies to partition actions filed on or after July 1, 2020 (§ 64.203(1)).
Property is heirs property if it is real property held in tenancy in common, no binding agreement governs partition, at least one cotenant got title from a relative, and 20 percent or more of the interests or of the cotenants are relatives or heirs (§ 64.202(6)).
| Step | What the statute provides | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Value | The court orders an appraisal by a disinterested Florida-licensed appraiser, unless all cotenants agree on a value, or the court finds the appraisal's cost outweighs its evidentiary value, in which case it determines value after an evidentiary hearing. A party may object to an appraisal within 30 days after the court's notice. | § 64.206(1)-(5) |
| 2. Buyout | If a cotenant asked for a sale, the other cotenants may elect to buy that cotenant's interest within 45 days after the court's notice, at the appraised value times the fractional ownership. | § 64.207(1)-(3) |
| 3. Payment | Electing cotenants pay into court on a date set not sooner than 60 days after the notice of who is buying. | § 64.207(5) |
| 4. Division in kind | If no buyout occurs, the court orders partition in kind unless commissioners appointed under § 64.061 consider the § 64.209 factors and find that division in kind will prejudice the cotenants as a group. | § 64.208(1) |
| 5. Sale | Otherwise the court orders a sale, an open-market sale by a licensed broker unless sealed bids or an auction are more economically advantageous. | § 64.208(2), § 64.210(1), (2) |
A written agreement among all cotenants that governs partition removes the property from the definition of heirs property (§ 64.202(6)(a)).
Sources
Last checked: October 17, 2026. Statutes are cited to the 2026 Florida Statutes on the Florida Senate site; the text was read on the Florida Legislature's Online Sunshine site.
- § 733.101, Fla. Stat. (2026). Venue of probate proceedings.
- §§ 733.301, 733.302, 733.303 and 733.304, Fla. Stat. (2026). Preference in appointment; who may be appointed; persons not qualified; nonresidents.
- §§ 733.607, 733.608 and 733.613, Fla. Stat. (2026). Possession of the estate; general power of the personal representative; right to sell real property.
- §§ 734.102, 734.1025 and 734.104, Fla. Stat. (2026). Ancillary administration; nonresident decedent's testate estate of $50,000 or less; foreign wills.
- §§ 732.101, 732.401 and 732.514, Fla. Stat. (2026). Intestate estate; descent of homestead; vesting of devises.
- § 655.933, Fla. Stat. (2026). Access to safe-deposit boxes by fiduciaries.
- § 117.265, Fla. Stat. (2026). Online notarization procedures.
- §§ 193.155 and 193.1554, Fla. Stat. (2026). Homestead assessments; nonhomestead residential assessments.
- §§ 196.011 and 196.031, Fla. Stat. (2026). Annual application for exemption; exemption of homesteads.
- §§ 64.201-64.214, Fla. Stat. (2026). Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act.
- § 64.061, Fla. Stat. (2026). Commissioners; special magistrate.
- Art. VII, § 5, Fla. Const.. Estate, inheritance and income taxes.
- Fla. Prob. R. 5.020, 5.030, 5.110, 5.230, 5.320 and 5.470, Florida Probate Rules, October 15, 2026 edition, The Florida Bar.
- Florida Department of Revenue, Florida Estate Tax and Homestead Exemption, accessed October 17, 2026.
- IRS, Estate tax, About Form 706 and Publication 551, accessed October 17, 2026.
- Florida Department of State, Remote Online Notary Public and Florida Courts E-Filing Portal, accessed October 17, 2026.
- State tax pages, accessed October 17, 2026: Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Kentucky, Nebraska, Iowa, New York.
What people ask us about this.
Do I have to travel to Florida for a probate?
Can I be personal representative if I live outside Florida?
Can a house be sold while the estate is in probate?
Will I owe Florida tax on a Florida inheritance?
Does the Save Our Homes cap pass to an heir?
What if the heirs disagree about keeping or selling the house?
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