The Chameleon Is Too Big (And Cannot Be Subdivided)

When a person dies, their home may be too big to be considered a homestead under Florida law. This could cause problems if the home cannot be divided and the estate is facing financial troubles or disagreements among the beneficiaries. This is because the homestead property is protected from being used to pay debts or other expenses. The courts in Florida have not clearly addressed this issue, so it can be complicated to figure out what should happen in these situations. In Florida, if a homestead is bigger than the legal limit, the owner gets the residence and a size-restricted portion of the land. This was confirmed in the Fort v. Rigdon case. If the land can’t be divided, the owner should still get a proportionate amount of the homestead. Two cases, In Re Kellogg and In Re: Quraeshi, imply this, but they don’t actually address the issue. In the case of Quraeshi and Kellogg, the courts didn’t discuss how the proceeds of the sale should be divided. The proportionate methodology used to divide the proceeds is flawed because it doesn’t consider the value of the home, only the land. This goes against the principle that the value of the home should be the main focus. The value of a protected homestead decreases as the land it’s on gets bigger. This goes against Florida’s law that aims to protect the surviving spouse and family. To solve this problem, the home and the land it’s on should be valued separately. This way, the value of the protected homestead will stay the same no matter how big the land is. This solution is simple and fair, and it will bring consistency to the process. If a person dies without a will and owns a home, the surviving spouse may have the right to live in the home for the rest of their life, or may inherit a portion of the home along with the children of the person who passed away. This may depend on whether the home is considered “protected” or “nonprotected” under the law. The method used to determine this can have a big impact on how much the surviving spouse receives. In Florida, when someone dies without a will, their spouse usually gets everything if they have no kids together or if all their kids are also the spouse’s kids. But if they have kids with someone else, the spouse only gets half. The part of the house that is protected as a homestead goes to the spouse, and they can choose to share it with the kids or just have it for their lifetime. The rest of the house goes to the spouse. Figuring out the value of the house can be tricky, especially if it’s bigger than what the law allows as protected. There are also rules about how to split the house if it can’t be divided. This is important because the spouse may get more money depending on how the value is calculated. Overall, dealing with property and money when someone dies without a will can be complicated, especially when it comes to the family home. When someone dies, their home is protected from being taken to pay off their debts. This protection is for the family and the state, and is supposed to help families during tough times. Even if the person left behind a will saying their home should be sold, the law says the home should go to their family instead. If the person who died has a spouse, the spouse will usually get half of the value of the home, even if it’s worth a lot of money. This protection is important for families who are dealing with the loss of a loved one. This column is from the Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section. It aims to teach its members about duty and serving the public, improving how the law is practiced, and advancing legal knowledge.

Source: https://www.floridabar.org/the-florida-bar-journal/the-chameleon-is-too-big-and-cannot-be-subdivided/