Ongoing Community Education Initiatives
Probate and Estate Planning Initiative
About
Alachua County has nearly $550 million in property value at risk of entering the costly and lengthy probate legal process. This includes about 1700 heirs’ property parcels and about 1400 parcels with one remaining owner with no indication of estate planning. Due to the significance of this data, our office created our Probate and Estate Planning Summit. This event features an interactive panel discussion led by representatives from the Alachua County Property Appraiser’s office, the Alachua County Tax Collector, the University of Florida Levin College of Law, Three Rivers Legal Services Inc., and the Federation of Southern Cooperatives. Each panelist will discuss how their respective offices are directly impacted by the extensive probate process and how many individuals can opt to create estate plans that allow assets to pass outside of the probate process.
This project was formed by using a dual data-driven approach that identified all the parcels classified as heirs’ property throughout the county and parcels with only one remaining owner listed on the property, suggesting a lack of proper estate planning. After successfully analyzing both data sets, two heat maps were created to showcase the “hot spot” areas in the county most affected by these issues.
Speakers and Participants
What is Probate and Estate Planning?
Probate: is the legal process through which a deceased person’s estate is properly distributed to heirs and designated beneficiaries and any debt owed to creditors is paid. The court oversees the process to ensure that the estate is properly administered.
Estate Planning: is the act of putting together a financial plan that will constitute a document like a will and manage your estate after your death or incapacitation.