Online living trust in Florida: the signing rule most people miss, and the homestead catch

Florida is a state where living trusts are popular, especially with retirees who moved there and want to keep their home out of Florida probate. Online trusts work in Florida, but Florida has two rules that generic online instructions can miss: how a trust must be signed, and who can inherit a homestead.

This page quotes both from Florida’s statutes, then compares the online services for a Florida household. Statute text comes from the Florida Senate’s statutes site; prices come from each company’s own pages, read on the date in the facts table. This is general information, not legal advice.

The signing rule: sign your trust like a will

In most states, a living trust is signed before a notary. Florida adds a requirement. Florida Statutes 736.0403 says the testamentary aspects of a revocable trust, meaning the provisions that dispose of property at your death, are “invalid unless the trust instrument is executed by the settlor with the formalities required for the execution of a will.”

Florida’s will statute, 732.502, sets those formalities: you sign at the end, “in the presence of at least two attesting witnesses”, and the witnesses sign “in the presence of the testator and in the presence of each other.”

The practical rule for Florida: sign your trust before two adult witnesses who are not beneficiaries, and a notary. The notary is needed anyway for deeds and is commonly expected by banks. The two witnesses are what make the trust’s death provisions valid in Florida.

The trust code applies this rule to trusts created after it took effect, which covers any trust you make online today. Check that your online service’s Florida signing instructions include witnesses; if they mention only a notary, add two witnesses.

The homestead catch

Florida protects a homeowner’s family in a way that overrides your documents. Florida Statutes 732.4015 says the homestead “shall not be subject to devise if the owner is survived by a spouse or a minor child or minor children”, except that the homestead “may be devised to the owner’s spouse if there is no minor child.”

What that means in practice:

• Married, no minor children: you can leave the home to your spouse. Leaving it to anyone else is restricted.
• A minor child survives you: you cannot freely leave the home, even to your spouse.
• Single, no minor children: the restriction does not apply.

This matters most for second marriages, where people often want the house to go to their own adult children. An online trust cannot get around Florida’s homestead statute. If your wishes conflict with it, see a Florida estate planning attorney; spouses can sometimes waive homestead rights in a written agreement.

When can a Florida estate skip full probate?

Florida’s simplified procedure, summary administration, is available under 735.201 when the estate subject to administration in Florida “does not exceed $75,000 or that the decedent has been dead for more than 2 years.” The value counted excludes property exempt from creditors. A home in your own name usually pushes an estate past that limit, which is why a funded trust is the usual tool.

Can you sign remotely in Florida?

Florida does allow remote witnessing through audio-video technology under its remote online notarisation law. But the law excludes vulnerable adults: remote witnessing “is not effective for witnessing the signature of a principal who is a vulnerable adult”, and the signer must be told that documents witnessed by video “are not valid” if they are one. For many older Floridians, signing in person is simply safer.

A mobile notary who brings witnesses is the easiest way to sign in person. Trust & Will’s partner charges $170 to $210, depending on your plan.

Which online trust fits a Florida household?

Service	One person	Couple	Funding help
Quicken WillMaker & Trust Plus	$149	Same plan	None
GoodTrust	$149	Each adult at no extra cost	None published
LegalZoom Basic Trust	$399	$499	Deed service, $249, plus state filing fees
Trust & Will	$499	$599	Deed partner, $140 per deed, plus recording fees; mobile notary

FreeWill’s trust is California-only, so it is not an option in Florida; its free will is.

Who should use which

• Retired couple, one Florida home, simple wishes: WillMaker Plus for price, or Trust & Will if you want the notary to come to you and the deed done for you.
• Single homeowner: any of the four; choose by how much help you want.
• Second marriage, house meant for your own children: see a Florida attorney because of the homestead rule; our blended families page explains the wider issue.
• Property in Florida and another state: a trust holding both avoids probate in both states.

Your next steps

1. Check your homestead situation: spouse, minor children, and what you want for the house.
2. Choose a service and make the trust and pour-over will.
3. Sign before two witnesses and a notary, in person; our signing guide has the steps.
4. Deed the home into the trust and record it with the county.
5. Retitle accounts or add the trust as payable-on-death beneficiary; our funding guide covers each asset.