Selling a Condo in Probate in Port St. Lucie: HOAs, Estoppel Letters and 55+ Communities
Selling a condo in probate in Port St. Lucie adds a second set of rules to the court process: the association’s. This guide explains how estoppel letters, buyer approval, unpaid dues, special assessments and 55+ occupancy rules work when the seller is an estate, and who does each part.
This guide explains how the real estate side of probate usually works in Florida. It is not legal or tax advice. Every estate is different, so confirm your next step with a Florida probate attorney and, for taxes, a CPA.
The Short Answer
When selling a condo in probate, the estate deals with the association much as a living owner would. Someone with legal authority requests the estoppel letter, the buyer applies for any required approval, and unpaid dues are paid from the sale at closing. What changes is who signs, and when the court lets them.
- A condo association must issue an estoppel certificate within 10 business days, statutory base fee cap $250, adjusted for inflation (Florida Statutes, section 718.116).
- An HOA has the same 10 business day deadline and $250 statutory base cap (Florida Statutes, section 720.30851).
- A new condo owner is jointly and severally liable with the previous owner for unpaid assessments (section 718.116(1)(a)).
- A condo approval fee for a sale has a base cap of $150 per applicant, adjusted for inflation (Florida Statutes, section 718.112(2)(k)).
- A condo resale buyer may cancel within 7 days, excluding weekends and holidays, after receiving the association documents (Florida Statutes, section 718.503(2)).
- Condo buildings of three or more habitable stories need a milestone inspection at 30 years, or 25 near salt water if the local agency requires it (Florida Statutes, section 553.899).
- Florida 55-and-over housing needs at least 80 percent of occupied units with one occupant 55 or older (Florida Statutes, section 760.29(4)).
In this guide
- What changes when selling a condo in probate in Port St. Lucie?
- Who can ask for the estoppel letter after the owner dies?
- Who pays the dues while the estate is open?
- Does the association have to approve the buyer?
- What documents does the estate give the buyer?
- Milestone inspections and special assessments on Hutchinson Island
- An estate home in a 55+ community
- Jensen Beach and the county line
- The usual order of an estate condo sale
- Questions for the attorney and the association
- Frequently asked questions
What changes when selling a condo in probate in Port St. Lucie?
If you are reading this, someone you love has died and left a condo or a home in an association. I am sorry. The association side of the sale follows written rules, and most of them do not change because the owner passed away.
What changes is the seller. It is now the estate, or in some cases the heirs, and their power to sign comes from the court.
A personal representative is the person the probate court appoints to manage the estate. Families often say executor. Letters of Administration are the court paper that proves that authority, and associations and title companies ask for a certified copy.
A will that gives the personal representative a power of sale lets that person sell real property without a court order (Florida Statutes, section 733.613(2)). Without that power, title does not pass until the court authorizes or confirms the sale (section 733.613(1)). Our guide on when a personal representative needs court approval explains the difference.
Many Port St. Lucie condo owners lived in their unit full time and claimed it as homestead. Protected homestead passes to the heirs or devisees, and the personal representative mainly preserves and insures it (Florida Statutes, section 733.608). In practice, the heirs who hold title sign the deed. Read how homestead works in probate before anyone signs a listing.
A seasonal unit on the island is often different. If the owner lived in another state, it was probably not a Florida homestead, and the personal representative may sell it as an estate asset. The attorney decides which path applies. The association just wants proof of who has authority.
Who can ask for the estoppel letter after the owner dies?
An estoppel certificate is a signed statement from the association that lists what the owner owes and what is coming due. Most people call it the estoppel letter. It tells the closing agent how much to pay the association from the sale.
For condos, it shows the regular assessment and whether it is paid, every amount owed, upcoming charges, open violations, and whether the association has approval or first refusal rights (Florida Statutes, section 718.116(8)). The HOA form asks similar questions (section 720.30851).
Both statutes let the owner, the owner’s designee, a mortgagee or the mortgagee’s designee request it. Neither names a personal representative. Ask the probate attorney and the closing title agent who should sign the request for this estate. Often the closing agent asks as the designee once it has the court papers.
Cost and timing
The association must issue the certificate within 10 business days. The base fee cap is $250, plus up to $100 for delivery within 3 business days, plus up to $150 if the account is delinquent (section 718.116(8)). Those are the base figures in the statute. The caps adjust every 5 years for inflation, and the Department of Business and Professional Regulation publishes the adjusted amounts on its website, so ask the closing agent for the current figure.
The delinquent add-on matters in estates. Dues often go unpaid for a few months after a death, before anyone has authority to pay them.
A certificate delivered by hand or electronically is effective for 30 days, or 35 days if mailed. If the court order comes late and closing slips, the closing agent orders an update. A listing agent in a probate sale usually warns the family about that second fee at the start.
The association cannot collect more than the certificate states from someone who relies on it in good faith (section 718.116(8)(c)). That is why no closing happens on a stale estoppel. Our estoppel certificate guide for sellers covers the rest.
Who pays the dues while the estate is open?
Dues do not stop when the owner dies. In a condo they often pay for building insurance, the roof and the reserves, whether anyone lives in the unit or not.
Families often believe the debt dies with Mom, or that it stays with the estate and never reaches the buyer. The statute says otherwise. A condo owner is liable for assessments that come due while he or she owns the unit, and the new owner is jointly and severally liable with the previous owner for unpaid assessments due up to the transfer (Florida Statutes, section 718.116(1)(a)). The HOA rule is the same (Florida Statutes, section 720.3085(2)).
Jointly and severally liable means the association can collect the full amount from either owner. No buyer or title insurer accepts that risk, so past-due dues are paid at closing from the sale, as the estoppel shows.
The association also holds a lien on the unit. For a condo, it generally relates back to the recording of the declaration, though against a first mortgage it starts only when a claim of lien is recorded (section 718.116(5)(a)).
Paying dues before the sale
Who pays between the death and the closing is a question for the probate attorney. For an estate asset, the personal representative usually pays from the estate account. For protected homestead, the heirs may pay, or the personal representative may advance costs to protect the property and recover them later (section 733.608). The attorney also watches the creditor claim period.
Current dues avoid late fees, interest and the delinquent estoppel add-on, all of which come out of the heirs’ share.
In Tradition, an estate home may carry HOA dues plus Community Development District assessments on the county tax bill. The closing agent handles the two in different ways.
Does the association have to approve the buyer?
Some associations approve every buyer. Others do not review sales at all. The answer is in the declaration of condominium or the recorded covenants.
Association approval is a board review before a sale, usually with an application, a fee and sometimes an interview. A right of first refusal lets the association buy the unit on the same terms instead of the buyer. Both appear on the estoppel as yes or no answers.
A condo may charge a sale approval fee only if it must approve the transfer and its documents provide for a fee. The base cap is $150 per applicant, adjusted every 5 years for inflation, and spouses count as one applicant (Florida Statutes, section 718.112(2)(k)). The buyer usually pays it. HOA approval fees come from each community’s documents.
How approval fits with the court
If the court must authorize or confirm the sale, the board’s review and the court order run on separate clocks. Neither waits for the other.
A listing agent in a probate sale usually reads the declaration before listing and notes the approval period. The contract then allows time for both steps, and the buyer applies right after signing, so the two can finish close together. Having certified letters, or the attorney’s letter on homestead title, ready for the manager saves a round of emails.
A board can deny a buyer for reasons its documents allow, and must apply its rules the same way to every applicant under fair housing law. If a denial happens, the attorney should read the documents.
What documents does the estate give the buyer?
Florida gives condo and HOA buyers a right to the association’s documents. The estate steps into the seller’s role, and the management company usually supplies the papers for a fee.
On a condo resale, the buyer is entitled at the seller’s expense to the declaration, articles, bylaws and rules, the annual budget and financial statement, the milestone inspection summary where it applies, the latest structural integrity reserve study or a statement that none exists, and the question and answer sheet (Florida Statutes, section 718.503(2)). The buyer may cancel within 7 days, excluding weekends and legal holidays, after signing and receiving them. That right ends at closing.
For an estate, delivering the documents with the contract starts that window early, well before the court order.
In a mandatory HOA, the seller gives a disclosure summary before the contract. If not, the buyer may cancel within 3 days after receiving it, or before closing if sooner (Florida Statutes, section 720.401).
| Topic | Condo (Chapter 718) | HOA (Chapter 720) |
|---|---|---|
| Estoppel deadline and base fee | 10 business days; $250 base, inflation‑adjusted | 10 business days; $250 base, inflation‑adjusted |
| Buyer liable for past-due dues | Yes, with the previous owner | Yes, with the previous owner |
| Sale approval fee | Only if required; $150 base per applicant, inflation‑adjusted | Set by community documents |
| Documents for the buyer | Governing documents, budget, milestone summary and reserve study where applicable | Disclosure summary |
| Buyer’s cancellation window | 7 days after documents; ends at closing | 3 days after summary, or closing if sooner |
| Who signs for the estate | Personal representative, or the heirs if protected homestead | Same |
Disclosure of known defects still applies, even when the personal representative knows little about the unit. Our overview of how probate home sales work in Florida covers that.
How do milestone inspections and special assessments affect an estate condo on Hutchinson Island?
Hutchinson Island is the barrier island east of Port St. Lucie, between the Indian River Lagoon and the Atlantic. Much of its housing is in mid-rise and high-rise condo buildings, many of them decades old and close to salt water.
A milestone inspection is a structural inspection of a condo or cooperative building with three or more habitable stories. The first is due by December 31 of the year the building turns 30, then every 10 years. The local building agency may move the first one to 25 years because of conditions such as closeness to salt water (Florida Statutes, section 553.899). Ask the building department where the building sits, or the association manager, whether a 25-year deadline applies.
A structural integrity reserve study is a study of the money the association must save for the roof, structure and other major parts. If the reports show repairs, the board may raise dues or levy a special assessment, which is a one-time charge to owners for a specific cost.
Installments that come due while the estate owns the unit are an estate cost. Installments due after closing are a contract question between buyer and seller, and the estoppel shows what is pending.
Timing is the hard part. The buyer reads the milestone summary and reserve study during the 7 day window and may ask for a credit or cancel. A personal representative who already took a price to the court may then need the attorney again.
So a listing agent usually requests the reports and recent board minutes before pricing an island condo. Our page on selling a condo after the milestone inspection explains how buyers read them. For an empty unit, our guide on insurance for an unoccupied estate home lists the questions for the insurance agent.
What is different about an estate home in a 55+ community?
Port St. Lucie has several age-restricted communities, usually with an HOA and an approval step for new residents. After a death, families ask two things: can one of us move in, and who can buy it?
Housing for older persons is a legal category that lets a community limit occupancy by age. In Florida, at least 80 percent of occupied units must have at least one occupant 55 or older, and the community must publish its policies and verify ages under HUD rules (Florida Statutes, section 760.29(4)).
Inheriting the home and living in it are separate questions. An heir can receive title through the estate. Who may occupy it depends on the community’s recorded rules, which the manager can provide and the attorney can review.
For the sale, the rules shape the process, not the choice of buyer. The home is marketed to the public, and the association applies its rules to every applicant the same way.
- Ask the manager for the buyer’s age verification form early.
- Check whether the board requires an interview and how often it meets.
- Confirm whether club or social fees are separate from dues, and whether any are owed.
- Ask whether a capital contribution is due from the buyer at closing.
Our guide to selling a home in a 55+ community covers the steps for any seller. An estate adds the court paper and the signer question.
Does a Jensen Beach or south Hutchinson Island condo change the county?
It can. Hutchinson Island crosses a county line. The northern part, east of Fort Pierce and Port St. Lucie, is in St. Lucie County. The southern part, reached by the Jensen Beach Causeway, is in Martin County, as is Jensen Beach itself.
First, the court. Florida places probate in the county where the person was domiciled (Florida Statutes, section 733.101), so a Port St. Lucie resident’s case is usually in St. Lucie County even if the condo is in Martin County. With no Florida domicile, the case goes to a county where the property is located. Both counties are in the 19th Judicial Circuit, but each has its own Clerk of the Circuit Court; Martin County’s has a Probate and Guardianship division (Martin County Clerk). See our guide on probate in Martin County.
Second, the building department. Milestone deadlines come from the agency where the building sits, so an oceanfront tower south of the line answers to Martin County.
The deed is recorded where the property sits, with documentary stamp tax of 70 cents per $100 of the price (Florida Statutes, section 201.02). A low-rise building under three habitable stories is outside the milestone rule, but the declaration and the estoppel still apply.
In what order does an estate condo sale usually happen?
The attorney sets the legal order. This is how the real estate side usually lines up with it. Treat it as a sequence, not a schedule.
Confirm who has authority
The attorney confirms whether the unit is protected homestead or an estate asset, and whether the will gives a power of sale. The family gets certified letters or the homestead order.
Secure the unit and keep dues current
Someone tells the management company about the death and gives a mailing address. Keys, fobs and gate codes are collected.
Collect the association package
The listing agent requests the governing documents, budget, approval application, milestone summary, reserve study and recent minutes.
Price with the reports in hand
A written pricing analysis compares recent sales in the same building or community and adjusts for dues, assessments and condition.
Sign a contract that fits the court
The contract allows time for board approval and any court order. The attorney reviews it before anyone signs.
Deliver documents and start approval
The buyer receives the documents right away and submits the approval application.
Order the estoppel and the court order
The closing agent requests the estoppel close to closing. Where needed, the attorney files for the court order in parallel.
Close and hold the proceeds as directed
The closing agent pays the association from the sale. Net proceeds go where the attorney directs until distribution is allowed.
What should the family ask the attorney and the association?
The attorney answers legal questions. The manager answers questions about the building and the account. The listing agent connects the two.
For the probate attorney
- Is the condo protected homestead, an estate asset or trust property?
- Who signs the listing, the association application and the deed?
- Does the sale need a court order?
- May the estate pay dues and assessments now, and from which account?
For the association or manager
- What is the balance, including late fees?
- Is a special assessment approved or under discussion?
- Does the board approve buyers, and is there a right of first refusal?
For taxes, the IRS generally sets the basis of inherited property at its fair market value on the date of death (IRS Publication 551). Ask a CPA how that applies. For the wider picture, see our probate real estate help in Port St. Lucie.
Jeannie works with families in English and Spanish, which helps when one sibling prefers to read the details in Spanish.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Often yes, once someone has legal authority. A personal representative with Letters of Administration can usually list the unit, and a will with a power of sale may allow the sale without a court order. Without that power, the court must authorize or confirm the sale before title passes. Your probate attorney confirms which applies.
A Florida condo or HOA association must issue the estoppel certificate within 10 business days of a request. The statutory base fee cap is $250, adjusted every 5 years for inflation, with up to $100 more for expedited delivery and up to $150 more if the account is delinquent. It is effective for 30 days, or 35 if mailed.
Florida law makes a new condo or HOA owner jointly and severally liable with the previous owner for unpaid assessments that came due before the transfer. Because of that, buyers and title companies insist that past-due dues be paid at closing from the sale proceeds, using the amounts shown on the estoppel certificate.
If the declaration gives the board approval rights, it can deny an applicant for reasons its documents allow, applied the same way to every applicant. A condo approval fee may not exceed a base of $150 per applicant, adjusted every 5 years for inflation.
Inheriting title and living in the home are separate questions. A 55-and-over community in Florida must keep at least 80 percent of occupied units with at least one resident 55 or older and follow written occupancy policies. Whether a particular heir may live there depends on the community’s recorded rules. Ask the manager for them.
The owner on the date each installment comes due owes it, so installments due while the estate holds the unit are an estate cost. Installments due after closing are usually divided by the purchase contract. The estoppel certificate lists approved assessments and their due dates, so both sides can see them before closing.
Yes. The estate, as seller, must provide the declaration, bylaws, rules, budget, financial statement and, where they apply, the milestone inspection summary and the structural integrity reserve study. Until the buyer receives them, the contract is voidable, and the buyer may cancel within 7 days, excluding weekends and holidays, after receiving them. That right ends at closing.
A calm first step for the estate’s condo
You do not need to have every answer before you call. Jeannie can start with the association package and a written pricing analysis, and coordinate with your probate attorney and the title company so the court and the association move in step.
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Jeannie Jacobson, REALTOR®, RE/MAX Gold, (772) 877-0268, English and Spanish
Sources
- Florida Statutes, section 718.116, Assessments; liability; lien and priority; interest; collection, Florida Legislature, http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0718/Sections/0718.116.html (accessed October 2026)
- Florida Statutes, section 718.112, Bylaws (paragraph (2)(k), transfer fees), Florida Legislature, http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0718/Sections/0718.112.html (accessed October 2026)
- Florida Statutes, section 718.503, Developer agreements; resale of units; disclosure, Florida Legislature, http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0718/Sections/0718.503.html (accessed October 2026)
- Florida Statutes, section 720.30851, Estoppel certificates, Florida Legislature, http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0720/Sections/0720.30851.html (accessed October 2026)
- Florida Statutes, section 720.3085, Payment for assessments; lien claims, Florida Legislature, http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0720/Sections/0720.3085.html (accessed October 2026)
- Florida Statutes, section 720.401, Prospective purchasers subject to association membership requirement; disclosure, Florida Legislature, http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0720/Sections/0720.401.html (accessed October 2026)
- Florida Statutes, section 553.899, Mandatory structural inspections for condominium and cooperative buildings, Florida Legislature, http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0500-0599/0553/Sections/0553.899.html (accessed October 2026)
- Florida Statutes, section 760.29, Exemptions (housing for older persons), Florida Legislature, http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0760/Sections/0760.29.html (accessed October 2026)
- Florida Statutes, section 733.613, Personal representative’s right to sell real property, Florida Legislature, http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0733/Sections/0733.613.html (accessed October 2026)
- Florida Statutes, section 733.608, General power of the personal representative, Florida Legislature, http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0733/Sections/0733.608.html (accessed October 2026)
- Florida Statutes, section 733.101, Venue of probate proceedings, Florida Legislature, http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0733/Sections/0733.101.html (accessed October 2026)
- Florida Statutes, section 201.02, Tax on deeds and other instruments relating to real property, Florida Legislature, http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0200-0299/0201/Sections/0201.02.html (accessed October 2026)
- Probate and Guardianship, Martin County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, https://www.martinclerk.com/199/Probate-Guardianship (accessed October 2026)
- Publication 551, Basis of Assets, Internal Revenue Service, https://www.irs.gov/publications/p551 (accessed October 2026)