Estate Planning for Key Biscayne Families

Estate planning for Key Biscayne households

Estate planning for a Key Biscayne household decides who receives your property, who manages it, and who decides for you if you cannot. Florida law sets default rules, and a written plan can change them within legal limits. If you need an estate planning attorney Key Biscayne families can speak with, this page explains the main tools and where they fit.

Trust Counsel, PL is a Florida trusts and estates law firm. Its only office is in Coral Gables. The firm focuses on estate planning, trust and probate matters, and business succession. We serve clients in Key Biscayne. Leslie V. Marenco is the attorney responsible for this page.

Many island families own a home on the water, investment accounts, a boat, or a share of a closely held business. Each asset can pass under a different rule. A plan that ignores how each asset is titled can produce results you did not intend. Some families also hold property in more than one state or country, which adds another layer. Every plan depends on the facts, so treat this page as a starting point for your own review.

What an estate plan in Florida usually includes

A typical Florida plan includes a will, a revocable trust, a durable power of attorney, and a health care surrogate designation. Each document does a different job, and the right mix turns on your situation.

A will names who receives property that passes under it at death. Florida requires every will to be in writing. The person making the will must sign at the end, or someone may sign for them in their presence and at their direction. The attesting witnesses must sign the will in the presence of the testator and in the presence of each other (Fla. Stat. § 732.502).

A revocable trust holds property during your life. The person who creates the trust, called the settlor, can revoke or amend it unless the trust says it is irrevocable (Fla. Stat. § 736.0602). A trust works best when property is actually titled to it.

A durable power of attorney lets a person you choose act for you on financial matters. Except as otherwise provided under this part, a power of attorney stays in effect after incapacity when it contains the statutory words or similar language showing that intent (Fla. Stat. § 709.2104).

Common planning errors, such as skipping required formalities or forgetting to update beneficiary designations, are described in ACTEC guidance on do-it-yourself planning.

Questions Key Biscayne families ask about estate planning

Whether you need a trust or a will alone turns on what you own and how each asset is titled. The questions below address common estate planning points.

Federal estate tax planning for larger estates

Federal estate tax applies only to estates above a federal exemption amount, so larger estates need a separate review. IRC § 2010(c)(3)(A) sets the basic exclusion amount at $15,000,000, and the statute provides for inflation adjustments for decedents dying in calendar years after 2026.

Planning tools for larger estates include trusts, lifetime gifts, and beneficiary designations. Each tool is reviewed against the asset values, family members, and goals involved. Annual gifts follow their own rules, described in the IRS gift tax FAQs. No planning step can promise a particular tax result. Owners of larger estates often review these tools together with their business plans, so the two stay consistent.

Homestead and waterfront property in Key Biscayne

Florida’s constitution protects a qualifying homestead from forced sale, within size limits. Under Fla. Const. art. X, § 4, a homestead located outside a municipality is protected to the extent of one hundred sixty acres of contiguous land and improvements thereon. Fla. Const. art. X, § 4 reads: “except for the payment of taxes and assessments thereon, obligations contracted for the purchase, improvement or repair thereof, or obligations contracted for house, field or other labor performed on the realty, the following property owned by a natural person:(1) a homestead, if located outside a municipality, to the extent of one hundred sixty acres of contiguous land and improvements thereon, which shall not be reduced without the owner’s consent by reason of subsequent inclusion in a municipality; or if located within a municipality, to the extent of one-half acre of contiguous land, upon which the exemption shall be limited to the residence of the owner or the owner’s family.” Inside a municipality, it covers up to one-half acre of contiguous land, limited to the owner’s residence (Fla. Const. art. X, § 4). Fla. Const. art. X, § 4 reads: “except for the payment of taxes and assessments thereon, obligations contracted for the purchase, improvement or repair thereof, or obligations contracted for house, field or other labor performed on the realty, the following property owned by a natural person:(1) a homestead, if located outside a municipality, to the extent of one hundred sixty acres of contiguous land and improvements thereon, which shall not be reduced without the owner’s consent by reason of subsequent inclusion in a municipality; or if located within a municipality, to the extent of one-half acre of contiguous land, upon which the exemption shall be limited to the residence of the owner or the owner’s family.”

The constitution also limits how a homestead can pass. If the owner is survived by a spouse or minor child, the homestead is not subject to devise, except that it may go to a spouse when no minor child survives (Fla. Const. art. X, § 4). In lieu of a life estate, the surviving spouse may elect to take an undivided one-half interest in the homestead as a tenant in common, and the election must be made within 6 months after the decedent’s death and during the surviving spouse’s lifetime (Fla. Stat. § 732.401).

Joint ownership changes the picture. The homestead descent rules do not apply to property held as tenancy by the entirety or in joint tenancy with rights of survivorship (Fla. Stat. § 732.401).

Business succession and ownership transfer planning

Business succession planning decides who will own, manage, or receive an owner’s business interest after retirement, incapacity, or death. ACTEC guidance for business owners says succession plans and buy-sell agreements can designate successors, address ownership and asset distribution, and support business continuity.

A buy-sell agreement sets terms for transferring an owner’s interest. An operating agreement governs how an LLC is managed and how interests move. These documents should match the owner’s personal plan. If a trust holds business interests, the trust terms and the company papers need to line up.

Trust Counsel focuses on business succession planning for owners who want their business and personal estate plans coordinated. The firm reviews the company documents alongside the will, trust, and beneficiary forms.

Ways to protect assets in Florida

Asset protection in Florida has legal limits. A transfer made to put property out of reach of existing creditors can be challenged.

A second rule applies to transfers made without reasonably equivalent value. A transfer made by a debtor without receiving a reasonably equivalent value in exchange can be fraudulent as to a creditor whose claim arose before the transfer was made if the debtor was insolvent at that time or became insolvent as a result of the transfer (Fla. Stat. § 726.106).

The homestead protection described above is one example of a built-in shield. Asset protection planning works best as part of a broader estate plan that also protects heirs. No strategy can promise to protect a particular asset, and each option turns on timing and the claims involved.

Planning for families with property or heirs abroad

Families with property, accounts, or heirs in more than one country need their Florida documents reviewed alongside foreign rules. Trust Counsel advises domestic and foreign families, so the firm can review how Florida documents fit a cross-border situation.

Property in another country often follows its own laws. A lawyer licensed in that country may be needed for that property. Florida also has a specific rule for wills signed outside the state.

Some matters may be referred to another lawyer or firm. If a matter may be referred, the firm will say so before any referral is made.

Trustees, personal representatives, and fiduciary services

The firm advises and represents trustees, personal representatives, and beneficiaries. Anyone named in these roles takes on legal duties, and guidance on those duties helps them carry the role out correctly.

Trust Counsel’s attorneys can serve individually as trustee or personal representative. The firm itself does not act in either role. A beneficiary is an heir in an estate without a will, or a devisee under a will (Fla. Stat. § 731.201). Fla. Stat. § 731.201 reads: “The term “beneficiary” does not apply to an heir at law or a devisee after that person’s interest in the estate has been satisfied.”

The role requires settling and distributing the estate under the will and Florida’s probate code (Fla. Stat. § 733.602). A personal representative is not liable for an act of administration or distribution that was authorized at the time (Fla. Stat. § 733.602).

Trust administration and estate administration support covers the day-to-day steps of carrying out a trust or estate. Beneficiaries also have rights, and the firm represents them in disputes over trusts and estates.

Next steps for Key Biscayne estate planning

Before a first meeting, gather your current will or trust, property deeds, account beneficiary designations, and business documents. Also list family members and the people you are considering for trustee or personal representative. Clear records make the review faster and more useful.

Trust Counsel offers a free first consultation, which is confidential and carries no obligation to continue.

If you are about to sign your first plan, or you need to coordinate a waterfront home, a boat, or a family business in Key Biscayne, contact Trust Counsel, PL through the firm’s contact page or call (305) 707-7126 to book your consultation.