If you want your Florida home to pass to your kids without the cost and delay of probate — but you don't want to give up an ounce of control while you're alive — the Lady Bird deed is one of the most powerful tools in the state. It's also widely misunderstood. Here's what it does, what it doesn't, and when it makes sense.
- A Lady Bird deed lets you keep full control of your home during life.
- It passes to your heirs automatically at death — avoiding probate.
- It generally preserves homestead and Medicaid benefits (unlike an outright gift).
- You can still sell or refinance anytime; it's revocable.
What a Lady Bird deed actually does
A Lady Bird deed — formally an enhanced life estate deed — splits ownership across time. You keep an enhanced life estate, meaning you retain complete control: you can live there, sell it, mortgage it, or revoke the deed entirely, all without anyone's permission. At your death, the property passes automatically to the beneficiaries you named (the 'remaindermen') — outside of probate.
The big advantages
- Avoids probate for the home, saving your heirs time and expense.
- Keeps your homestead exemption and Save Our Homes cap intact, because you still own and control it.
- Generally Medicaid-friendly — because you keep control, it's typically not a disqualifying transfer (unlike gifting the home away).
- Revocable — change your mind anytime.
- Heirs may receive a step-up in tax basis at your death.
Free Florida Closing Calculators
See all Florida title calculators →
How it's different from the alternatives
A regular life estate gives up control — you'd need the remaindermen's consent to sell. An outright quitclaim gift to your kids gives up control and can create gift-tax, Medicaid, and capital-gains problems. The Lady Bird deed keeps you fully in charge while still avoiding probate — that's its magic.
💡 It's a tool, not a whole plan. A Lady Bird deed handles one property well, but it isn't a substitute for a full estate plan. Pair it with advice from an estate or elder-law attorney.
What happens when you sell (or your heirs do)
Because you kept control, you can sell or refinance anytime — the beneficiaries' future interest simply drops away at closing, and your title company clears it. When your heirs later sell, a clean title search and the right owner's title insurance confirm the transfer was valid. We handle both.
Have a Closing Question?
Leave your name, phone, and email — our team will help you close on time across all 67 Florida counties.
Planning Ahead or Selling an Inherited Home?
Atlantic Title Firm handles deeds, title searches, and closings that keep your title clean across all 67 Florida counties.
General information, not legal, tax, or Medicaid-planning advice. Lady Bird deeds are powerful but fact-specific; consult a Florida estate-planning or elder-law attorney to confirm it fits your goals, and your title agent for the closing details.
