Understanding Florida Personal Representative Pay

Florida Personal Representative Fee: How Compensation Works

The short answer: Florida’s personal representative is paid reasonable compensation

Florida has no single typical executor fee. Under Fla. Stat. § 733.617, a personal representative (often called an executor) is entitled to a commission payable from the estate assets without court order as compensation for ordinary services, based on the compensable value of the estate: the inventory value of the probate estate assets and the income earned by the estate during administration.

Many search results show percentage charts. The statute says the personal representative gets a commission payable from estate assets without court order. That commission is based on the estate’s compensable value.

The compensable value is the inventory value of the probate estate assets plus the income the estate earns during administration. The statute also allows extra pay for extraordinary services, such as selling real or personal property. A personal representative can also give up all or part of the pay.

If the will sets compensation by specific criteria, other than a general reference to commissions allowed by law or words of similar import, the personal representative is paid under that provision, but a personal representative may renounce the will’s provisions and be entitled to compensation under the statute if there is no written contract with the decedent regarding compensation (except for references to the regularly published schedule of fees in effect at the decedent’s date of death). The number that applies to your situation comes from the estate’s facts, as the sections below explain.

Why there is no single typical figure

The amount reflects the actual work of the administration. Two estates of the same size can produce very different pay. The work drives the number, not a fixed rate.

Consider two estates. One has a bank account, a quick house sale and one heir. Another has real property in more than one county, a business interest, tax questions and disputed creditor claims. The second estate needs far more time and skill.

The statute’s review factors reflect that difference. A court considers how promptly, efficiently and skillfully the administration was handled.

Beneficiaries can ask the court to act. On petition of any interested person, the court may increase or decrease compensation for ordinary services if the facts and circumstances warrant it. The court can also award pay for extraordinary services.

When two personal representatives serve and the compensable value reaches the statutory threshold, each is entitled to the full commission. If the value is below that threshold and there is more than one personal representative, one full commission is split by the services each one rendered.

Online calculators give estimates. They cannot read your inventory, your tax filings or the will. Any calculator result is a starting point for discussion, not a final answer.

Executor fees, attorney fees and court costs are separate

Three different charges can appear in an estate. The personal representative’s pay is one. Attorney fees for legal work are another. Court costs and administrative expenses are the third.

Keeping them apart helps you see which line you are questioning. Each charge follows its own rule.

Attorneys for personal representatives are entitled to reasonable compensation payable from estate assets without court order, except that an attorney who intends to charge a fee based on the subsection (3) schedule must first make the written disclosures required under Fla. Stat. § 733.6171(2)(b). If those disclosures are not made, the attorney may not be paid for legal services without prior court approval of the fees or the written consent of all interested parties. Fla. Stat. § 733.617(6) provides that, except as otherwise provided in that section, if the personal representative is a Florida Bar member who has rendered legal services in connection with the administration of the estate, a fee for those legal services is also allowed in addition to the personal representative fee.

A lawyer who also serves in a fiduciary role can create two roles. Under Fla. Stat. § 733.617(8)(a), an attorney serving as a personal representative, or a person related to the attorney, is not entitled to compensation for serving as a personal representative if the attorney prepared or supervised the execution of the will that nominated the attorney or person related to the attorney as personal representative, unless an exception applies. Under Fla. Stat. § 733.617(8)(a), an attorney serving as a personal representative, or a person related to the attorney, is not entitled to compensation for serving as a personal representative if the attorney prepared or supervised the execution of the will that nominated the attorney or person related to the attorney as personal representative, unless the attorney or person nominated is related to the testator, or the attorney makes the required disclosures to the testator before the will is executed.

Ask for an itemized accounting of every charge against the estate. Each line should match one category.

Who pays the personal representative and attorney fees, and when

Compensation and attorney fees are paid from the estate’s assets. Fla. Stat. § 733.617 says the commission is payable from the estate assets without court order.

Payment order also matters. Under Fla. Stat. § 733.707, the first class the personal representative must pay covers costs, expenses of administration, compensation of personal representatives, and their attorneys’ fees. That class comes before later classes of claims.

Timing is handled during administration. The estate accounting shows what was paid. Under Fla. Stat. § 733.604, an accounting filed with the clerk is confidential. Under Fla. Stat. § 733.604, an accounting filed with the clerk is confidential, but it shall be disclosed by the custodian for inspection or copying to the personal representative, the personal representative’s attorney, or an interested person, or by court order upon a showing of good cause.

Check the court file and every accounting you receive. Don’t assume when a payment was made or why. For the wider list of duties and entitlements, read personal representative rights in Florida.

How beneficiaries and heirs can question a fee

Beneficiaries and heirs can ask for an explanation and can ask the court to review a fee. Start with a written request. Under Fla. Stat. § 733.604, a beneficiary who asks in writing gets a written explanation of how an asset’s inventory value was set. A residuary beneficiary or heir in an intestate estate gets this for all inventoried assets; any other beneficiary gets it regarding all assets distributed or proposed to be distributed to that beneficiary.

If an appraisal was done, the beneficiary can receive a copy. The personal representative must tell each beneficiary about this right.

Court review is the next step. Under Fla. Stat. § 733.6175, a court may review whether hiring a person was proper and whether the pay was reasonable. The personal representative and the person hired carry the burden of proof. Fla. Stat. § 733.6175 reads: “(2) Court proceedings to determine reasonable compensation of the personal representative or any person employed by the personal representative, if required, are a part of the estate administration process, and the costs, including attorneys’ fees, of the person assuming the burden of proof of propriety of the employment and reasonableness of the compensation shall be determined by the court and paid from the assets of the estate unless the court finds the requested compensation to be substantially unreasonable.”

Anyone found to have received excessive compensation from an estate may be ordered to make refunds. Attorney disclosures are another point to check. Under Fla. Stat. § 733.6171, an attorney who intends to charge a fee based on the statutory schedule must make written disclosures and obtain the personal representative’s timely signature acknowledging them.

If the required disclosures were not made, the attorney may not be paid for legal services without prior court approval or the written consent of all interested parties. Ask whether that signature is on file.

Fee disputes can grow into broader probate or trust disputes. Questions about whether a will is valid are one example. If the will itself is in question, timing matters. Read about contesting a will in Florida and the time limit.

What a reader should gather before discussing the estate with a lawyer

Before you talk with a lawyer, gather a few key documents. Collect the will or trust, the death certificate, a list of known assets and debts, and any fee statements or accountings you have received.

Note the Florida county where the estate is being administered. The county affects where the case is filed. Write down your questions about each charge, so you can point to the exact line.

Trust Counsel’s attorneys can serve individually as trustee or personal representative. The firm advises and represents trustees, personal representatives and beneficiaries.

Leslie V. Marenco is the responsible lawyer for this page. Trust Counsel, PL has its only office in Coral Gables, Florida. Bring the accounting, the will and your list of questions to that first conversation.

Talk through your situation with Trust Counsel

If someone you loved has died and you’ve been named personal representative, you may be learning this role while still grieving. A fee question can feel like one more item on a long list. You don’t have to work through it alone.

Trust Counsel, PL offers a free, confidential first consultation with no obligation to continue. Call (305) 707-7126 or schedule online to talk through your estate.

Frequently Asked Questions