How to Make a Valid Will in Palm Beach, FL

Picture Margaret, a retiree in a Palm Beach condo near the Intracoastal. She printed a will off the internet, signed it at her kitchen table while a neighbor watched from the doorway, and tucked it in a drawer. When she passed, the Palm Beach County probate court rejected it. The neighbor never actually signed. Florida is strict about execution, and a small misstep can undo your entire plan.

Here is how to do it correctly, using the rules in Florida Statute §732.502.

Who Can Make a Will in Florida

You must be at least 18 years old (or an emancipated minor) and of sound mind. “Sound mind” means you understand what you own, who your natural heirs are, and the effect of signing. Most Palm Beach residents creating a will after retirement easily meet this bar, but if there is any history of cognitive decline, an attorney may document capacity carefully.

The Signing Requirements That Trip People Up

Florida demands a precise choreography. The will must be:

• In writing (handwritten or typed — but note Florida does not recognize unwitnessed handwritten “holographic” wills, even if valid in another state);
• Signed by you at the end of the document;
• Signed in the presence of two witnesses; and
• Signed by those two witnesses in your presence and in the presence of each other.

Margaret’s will failed because everyone was not in the room together at the same moment. The presence requirement is literal. In Palm Beach, where families often gather at the home or a clubhouse, it is easy to assemble two adults to witness — just make sure no one steps out mid-signing.

Make It Self-Proving

A self-proving affidavit, authorized by §732.503, is the single most valuable add-on. You and both witnesses sign a notarized statement attached to the will. This lets the court admit the will without tracking down witnesses years later — a real concern when neighbors move away from a seasonal community like Palm Beach. Without it, your personal representative may have to locate witnesses or take depositions.

What Your Will Should Actually Cover

Name a personal representative (Florida’s term for executor). Florida law restricts who can serve — generally a Florida resident, or a spouse, child, parent, sibling, or other close relative regardless of where they live. A close friend in New Jersey cannot serve unless related; many Palm Beach snowbirds learn this too late. Also name a guardian if you have minor children, and dispose of your residuary estate clearly.

What a Will Cannot Do in Florida

Your homestead — your primary Palm Beach residence — passes under Florida’s constitutional homestead protections (Art. X, §4) and descent rules, not always as your will directs. If you have a surviving spouse or minor child, you generally cannot freely devise the homestead to someone else. Likewise, jointly titled accounts and beneficiary-designated assets pass outside the will entirely.

Storing and Updating It

Keep the original signed will somewhere safe but accessible — the original is required for probate, and a lost original creates a legal presumption it was revoked. Revisit it after marriage, divorce, a new grandchild, or a move. Florida’s good news: there is no state estate or inheritance tax, so updates are about people and assets, not state death taxes.

Consult a Florida Attorney

Florida’s execution and homestead rules are unforgiving of DIY mistakes, as Margaret’s family discovered. Before you sign, have a licensed Florida estate planning attorney serving Palm Beach review your will so it holds up in probate.