The Estate Inventory and Accounting: A Miami Personal Representative’s Checklist

If a Miami probate court has appointed you as personal representative, two documents will define much of your job: the estate inventory and the accounting. They are how you prove to the Miami-Dade Circuit Court and the beneficiaries that you handled the estate honestly. Use the checklist below to stay organized and on schedule under the Florida Probate Code.

Step 1: File the Inventory on Time

Under Florida law, the personal representative must file a verified inventory within 60 days after Letters of Administration are issued. For a formal administration filed at the Miami-Dade probate division, that clock starts the day the court signs your Letters, not the day you locate every asset. Calendar the deadline immediately.

• List all assets the decedent owned at death that are subject to probate.
• State the estimated fair market value of each asset as of the date of death.
• Identify real property by legal description, not just the street address.

Step 2: Know What Goes On the List (and What Doesn’t)

The inventory covers probate assets only. In Miami estates, that distinction matters because so much property passes outside probate.

• Include: solely owned bank accounts, brokerage accounts with no beneficiary, the decedent’s car, business interests, and real estate titled in the decedent’s name alone.
• Generally exclude: jointly held property with survivorship, payable-on-death accounts, life insurance with a named beneficiary, and assets held in a revocable trust.
• Homestead caution: a Miami homestead often passes outside probate to heirs, but courts may still want it disclosed. Ask the court for guidance before omitting it.

Step 3: Value Assets Carefully

For routine accounts, statements dated near the death suffice. For a South Florida condo, waterfront home, or a family business, a formal appraisal protects you. Because Miami real estate values swing, a defensible date-of-death valuation reduces the risk a beneficiary later challenges your numbers.

Step 4: Serve the Inventory on Interested Persons

You must serve the inventory on the surviving spouse, beneficiaries, and anyone else entitled to it. A beneficiary who requests backup documentation for any listed item is entitled to it, so keep clean records from day one.

Step 5: Keep the Accounting From the Start

The accounting tracks everything that happens after you take office. Do not reconstruct it at the end; build it as you go.

• Open a dedicated estate bank account and route all income and expenses through it.
• Log income received: interest, dividends, rent from a Miami rental, refunds.
• Log disbursements: funeral costs, attorney and personal representative fees, taxes, and creditor payments.
• Record every distribution to beneficiaries with dates and amounts.

Step 6: Prepare the Final Accounting

Before the estate closes, Florida requires a final accounting unless every beneficiary waives it in writing. It must reconcile the starting inventory to the ending balance: assets on hand, gains, losses, receipts, and disbursements. In a cooperative Miami family, written waivers can speed closing considerably, so ask early whether beneficiaries will sign.

Remember that Florida imposes no state estate or inheritance tax, so your accounting will not include a Florida death-tax line. Larger estates may still face the federal estate tax, which is handled separately from these probate filings.

Consult a Florida Attorney

Inventory and accounting errors can expose a personal representative to personal liability. Because these rules are specific to Florida and to Miami-Dade court practice, speak with a licensed Florida probate attorney before you file. This article is general information, not legal advice.