Selling a House When There's No Will in Florida (Intestate Succession)
3 min read · Last updated 2026-08-03 · Reviewed by Camilo Palacio, Licensed Florida Real Estate Professional (License #3280644, REALTOR®)
No will doesn't stop a house from selling in Florida, but it does add a step: a judge has to confirm who inherits before anyone can sign, and Cash Flow Deals is one option once that authority is settled. Florida's intestate succession law decides the order of heirs, and homestead property often follows a different rule than everything else the decedent owned.
| Factor | Traditional Listing | Cash Flow Deals |
|---|---|---|
| Timeline | Heirs must first be determined by the probate court through intestate succession, then a personal representative appointed, before a listing can even go live. | Net price can be locked once heirs are known, even while the court is still confirming who has authority to sign. |
| Repairs | Nobody's been living in or maintaining a house tied up in an intestate estate, and a buyer's inspector often finds it. | Net price locked before repairs are scoped, so months of an empty house don't reopen the number. |
| Fees / Costs | Listing agent commission (negotiable since the 2024 NAR settlement) plus probate court costs to establish who inherits. | One flat fee, itemized as a separate line on the closing statement through Silver Door Realty. |
Who Inherits When There's No Will
Florida law doesn't leave an estate to guesswork when someone dies without a will. Florida Statutes Section 732.102 covers the surviving spouse's share: if all of the decedent's descendants are also descendants of the surviving spouse, and the spouse has no other descendants, the spouse inherits everything. If either side has descendants from outside that marriage, the spouse gets half and the descendants split the other half. Florida Statutes Section 732.103 covers everyone else: descendants first, then parents, then siblings and their descendants, then grandparents' kindred split evenly between the paternal and maternal sides. None of this happens automatically. A court has to determine heirs before anyone has legal authority to sell.
Why the House Itself Follows a Different Rule
If the house was the decedent's homestead, Florida's constitutional homestead protections change the outcome. Under Florida Statutes Section 732.401, when there's a surviving spouse and descendants, the default rule gives the spouse a life estate in the homestead with the descendants holding the remainder interest, not outright ownership split evenly. The surviving spouse can instead elect to take an undivided one-half interest as a co-owner with the descendants, but that election has to be filed within six months of the death and becomes permanent once made. This is one of the more commonly missed steps in an intestate estate, and it directly affects who has to sign to sell the homestead.
How a Locked Price Helps an Intestate Estate
Cash Flow Deals is a Florida real estate investor that locks in a net price for a seller's house before repairs are scoped, using a novation-based, flat-fee process arranged through its licensed FL brokerage partner, Silver Door Realty — not a traditional listing, and not a brokerage itself. An intestate estate often means a house nobody's been maintaining, sitting empty while the court sorts out who inherits. The one exception: if something structural surfaces that was not visible or disclosed before we signed — foundation issues, hidden moisture, old wiring, cast-iron drain failure — we re-cost it and bring the number back to you. You decide. You can walk away. We disclose what we know at offer time so this almost never happens. A firm number, agreed on early, means the sale is ready to close the moment the court confirms who has authority to sign.
Cash Flow Deals' Process for an Intestate Sale
Cash Flow Deals' Process: 1. Request your net-price walkthrough, even while heirship is still being determined. 2. Get the locked net price in writing, so the number is ready once authority is settled. 3. Confirm which heirs the court has recognized and who's been appointed to act for the estate. 4. Silver Door Realty's licensed agent matches a real FHA or conventional buyer whose own lender funds the purchase. 5. Title transfers once, directly from the heirs or the estate to the buyer, at the locked number.
What to Confirm With a Florida Probate Attorney
Intestate succession has more moving parts than most people expect, especially when homestead property, blended families, or estranged relatives are involved. This page explains the general order of inheritance under Florida Statutes Sections 732.102, 732.103, and 732.401, not legal advice for a specific family. A licensed Florida probate attorney can confirm exactly who qualifies as an heir in your situation and who needs to be appointed before a sale can legally proceed.
Common questions
Who becomes personal representative when someone dies without a will in Florida?
Florida Statutes Section 733.301 sets a preference order: the surviving spouse first, then whoever a majority in interest of the heirs selects, then the heir nearest in degree to the decedent. A court still has to formally appoint that person before they can act.
Does a house automatically go to the surviving spouse if there's no will?
Not automatically, and not always entirely. If the decedent had descendants from outside the marriage, the spouse's intestate share can drop to half, and homestead property follows its own rule under Florida Statutes Section 732.401 rather than the general intestate succession statute. Confirm the specific outcome with a Florida probate attorney.
Can heirs sell the house before the court formally confirms who inherits?
Generally no. Whoever signs the contract needs actual legal authority, either as a court-appointed personal representative or, in some summary administration cases, as a determined beneficiary named in a court order.
Is homestead property treated differently in an intestate estate?
Yes. Under Florida Statutes Section 732.401, homestead property descends under its own constitutional rule rather than the general intestate succession statute, which can mean a surviving spouse gets a life estate instead of outright ownership.