Selling an inherited house starts with who can sign the deed.

We are a title company, not attorneys. This guide is general information, not legal advice. It explains what Florida statutes and courts say about who can sell a house after the owner dies, because that decides whether the sale can be insured. Whether to open probate, what kind, and how to handle an estate are questions for a Florida probate attorney.

When a Florida homeowner dies, the house can only be sold by whoever the law says has the power to convey it. For most property, that's the personal representative, the person the probate court appoints to run the estate. If the will gives them a power to sell, they can sell without a court order. If it doesn't, Florida law says no title passes until the court authorizes or confirms the sale.¹

Homestead is the big exception. A protected homestead isn't part of the probate estate, and a Florida appeals court has held that the personal representative had no power to sell it.² In that situation, the deed comes from the people the homestead passed to, such as the surviving spouse or the heirs.

The owner has died. Was the house protected homestead?

No

The house is an estate asset. The personal representative sells it.

The will gives a power to sell: no court order is needed.s. 733.613(2)

No will, or no power of sale: no title passes until the court authorizes or confirms the sale.s. 733.613(1)

Yes

The house is not an estate asset. Its protection passes to the spouse or heirs.Fla. Const. Art. X, s. 4(b)

The people it passed to sign, such as the spouse or heirs. The personal representative can't sell it.Harrell v. Snyder

A will doesn't move title on its own

Families often assume the will settles who owns the house. Florida's probate code says otherwise:

Until admitted to probate in this state or in the state where the decedent was domiciled, the will shall be ineffective to prove title to, or the right to possession of, property of the testator.

Fla. Stat. s. 733.103(1)³

In plain English: until a court admits the will to probate, it can't be used to show who owns the house.

Who signs depends on what the will says

For property that goes through probate, the personal representative is the seller. The statute gives two routes, and the will decides which one applies.

• If the will gives a specific power to sell real property, or a general power to sell any estate asset, the personal representative may sell "without authorization or confirmation of court."¹
• If there's no will, or no usable power of sale, the personal representative can still sell. But the statute adds: "No title shall pass until the court authorizes or confirms the sale."¹

That second sentence matters at closing. A contract can be signed before the order exists. The deed can't pass title until it does.

A sale under a power of sale or court order leaves estate claims behind

In a sale or mortgage which occurs under a specific power to sell or mortgage real property, or under a court order authorizing or confirming that act, the purchaser or lender takes title free of claims of creditors of the estate and entitlements of estate beneficiaries, except existing mortgages or other liens against real property are not affected.

Fla. Stat. s. 733.613(3)¹

In plain English: the buyer isn't exposed to the estate's creditors or to the heirs' claims. The owner's mortgage and any other liens on the house are a different story. The statute leaves them exactly where they were.

Homestead follows different rules

Florida's Constitution protects a homestead after the owner dies. Its protections "shall inure to the surviving spouse or heirs of the owner." And if the owner leaves a spouse or a minor child, the homestead can't be left by will to someone else, except to the spouse when there's no minor child.⁴

The probate code keeps the homestead out of the estate twice. The personal representative takes possession of the decedent's property "except the protected homestead,"⁵ and the estate's assets are the decedent's property "except the protected homestead."⁶

One detail people miss: a house owned as tenants by the entireties, or in joint tenancy with right of survivorship, is not protected homestead under the probate code.⁷ Spouses signing on a homestead during the owner's lifetime is a separate rule, covered in our guide to homestead spousal joinder.

The court case: a personal representative who sold a homestead

In Harrell v. Snyder, a 2005 decision of Florida's Fifth District Court of Appeal, a personal representative took over a father's homestead and sold it, over one of his daughters' objection. The will gave the personal representative a general power to sell.²

The court looked at the statute that lets a personal representative take possession of property that appears to be protected homestead, and drew a clear line:

While section 733.608(2) gives the personal representative authority to take possession of homestead property to preserve it, it does not grant to the personal representative the power to sell said property.

Harrell v. Snyder, 913 So. 2d 749 (Fla. 5th DCA 2005)²

The court held that the personal representative "acted without legal authority" in selling the house, and reversed that part of the lower court's order.² Today's version of the statute still limits that possession to "the limited purpose of preserving, insuring, and protecting" the property.⁶

The court also described an exception from other Florida decisions: a homestead can become part of the estate when the will specifically orders the property sold and the proceeds divided among the heirs.² Whether a particular will does that is a question for an attorney.

When the owner leaves a spouse and children

If the homestead wasn't left by will in a way the law allows, the statute decides where it goes. When the owner leaves a spouse and one or more descendants, the spouse takes a life estate and the descendants take the remainder.⁸

The spouse can choose instead to take an undivided one-half interest as a tenant in common, with the other half going to the descendants. That election has to be made within 6 months after the death, by recording a notice in the county where the home is.⁸

Either way, the statute names who holds title afterward: the spouse and the descendants. On a sale, that's the list of people the deed has to come from.

Creditor deadlines run in the background

Probate also starts a clock for the decedent's creditors.

• The personal representative publishes a notice to creditors once a week for 2 consecutive weeks.⁹
• Most claims are barred unless filed within 3 months after the first publication, or 30 days after a creditor is served with the notice, whichever is later.¹⁰
• Two years after the death, the estate and the beneficiaries are generally no longer liable for claims against the decedent.¹¹
• None of these deadlines affects a recorded mortgage or other lien on the property.¹⁰¹¹

Smaller estates may use summary administration

Florida has a shorter court process called summary administration. It's available when the estate subject to administration, less exempt property, is worth $150,000 or less, or when the person died more than 2 years ago.¹²

Once the court enters that order, a good-faith buyer who pays value to the people the order assigns the property to "shall take the property free of all claims of creditors of the decedent and all rights of the surviving spouse and all other beneficiaries."¹³ Whether a particular estate qualifies is a question for the family's attorney.

Questions worth asking before the listing

These don't tell a family what to do. They're the facts the deed will depend on, and they're easier to collect before there's a contract.

• Has a probate case been opened, and who is the personal representative?
• Does the will give a power to sell real property, or will the sale need a court order?
• Was the house the owner's homestead, and has a court decided its homestead status?
• Did the owner leave a spouse or a minor child?
• Was the house titled with someone else, as tenants by the entireties or with right of survivorship?
• Is there a mortgage or other lien on the property?

The answers come from the family and their probate attorney. A title company works from the paperwork those answers produce: the court's orders and the recorded documents.

The short version

A will doesn't move title until it's admitted to probate. For property in the estate, the personal representative sells, either under a power of sale in the will or with a court order, and without one of those no title passes. A protected homestead isn't an estate asset, and a Florida appeals court has held that a personal representative had no power to sell one, so the deed comes from the people it passed to instead. Creditor deadlines run in the background, but recorded mortgages and liens survive them.

We're not attorneys, and the family's lawyer decides how the estate is handled. If you're listing an inherited house and want to know what the title side will need to see, call us early. It's far easier to sort out before there's a signed contract.

Common questions

Who can sell a house after the owner dies in Florida?

For property that goes through probate, the seller is the personal representative, the person the probate court appoints to run the estate. Under Florida Statute 733.613, the personal representative can sell without a court order if the will grants a power to sell, and otherwise no title passes until the court authorizes or confirms the sale. A protected homestead is different, because it is not an asset of the probate estate. This is general information, not legal advice.

Does a personal representative need court approval to sell a house in Florida?

It depends on the will. Florida Statute 733.613(2) lets the personal representative sell real property without authorization or confirmation of court when the will confers a specific power to sell real property or a general power to sell any estate asset. If there is no will, or the will gives no usable power of sale, section 733.613(1) says no title shall pass until the court authorizes or confirms the sale.

Can a personal representative sell homestead property in Florida?

Generally not, under Florida's statutes and case law. The probate code excludes the protected homestead from the property the personal representative takes possession of and from the estate's assets. In Harrell v. Snyder (Fla. 5th DCA 2005), the court held that the statute letting a personal representative take possession of a homestead to preserve it does not grant the power to sell it. The court noted an exception recognized in other decisions where the will specifically orders the property sold.

Is a will enough to sell an inherited house in Florida?

No. Florida Statute 733.103(1) provides that until a will is admitted to probate in Florida or in the state where the person was domiciled, the will is ineffective to prove title to, or the right to possession of, the person's property. The will has to go through the court before it can be used to show who owns the house.

How long do creditors have to file claims against a Florida estate?

Under Florida Statute 733.702, most claims must be filed within 3 months after the first publication of the notice to creditors, or 30 days after a creditor is served with the notice, whichever is later. Section 733.710 adds an outer limit of 2 years after the death. Neither deadline affects a recorded mortgage or other lien on the property.

Does a buyer of an estate house take it free of the old mortgage?

No. Florida Statute 733.613(3) says a buyer under a specific power of sale or a court order takes title free of claims of the estate's creditors and entitlements of the beneficiaries, but it adds that existing mortgages or other liens against the real property are not affected.

Sources

Every factual claim above is drawn from the sources below. Statutory figures and deadlines were read from the official source rather than from secondary coverage. Sources last checked November 3, 2026.

1. Fla. Stat. s. 733.613 — the personal representative's right to sell real property, with and without a court order The Florida Senate Retrieved November 3, 2026
2. Harrell v. Snyder, 913 So. 2d 749 (Fla. 5th DCA 2005) — a personal representative has no power to sell protected homestead CourtListener (Free Law Project) Retrieved November 3, 2026
3. Fla. Stat. s. 733.103 — a will is ineffective to prove title until admitted to probate The Florida Senate Retrieved November 3, 2026
4. Florida Constitution, Article X, Section 4 — homestead protections and the limits on devising a homestead The Florida Senate Retrieved November 3, 2026
5. Fla. Stat. s. 733.607 — possession of the estate, except the protected homestead The Florida Senate Retrieved November 3, 2026
6. Fla. Stat. s. 733.608 — estate assets exclude the protected homestead; possession only to preserve it The Florida Senate Retrieved November 3, 2026
7. Fla. Stat. s. 731.201(33) — definition of protected homestead The Florida Senate Retrieved November 3, 2026
8. Fla. Stat. s. 732.401 — descent of homestead to a surviving spouse and descendants, and the 6 month election The Florida Senate Retrieved November 3, 2026
9. Fla. Stat. s. 733.2121 — notice to creditors and how it is published The Florida Senate Retrieved November 3, 2026
10. Fla. Stat. s. 733.702 — deadlines for filing claims, and the carve-out for mortgages and liens The Florida Senate Retrieved November 3, 2026
11. Fla. Stat. s. 733.710 — the 2 year limit on claims against an estate The Florida Senate Retrieved November 3, 2026
12. Fla. Stat. s. 735.201 — when summary administration is available The Florida Senate Retrieved November 3, 2026
13. Fla. Stat. s. 735.206 — effect of a summary administration order, including on later buyers The Florida Senate Retrieved November 3, 2026