Florida property and family wealth — across borders, handled right.
Foreign buyers, overseas families, and Florida owners with ties abroad face a second layer of rules most local firms never touch: FIRPTA withholding, foreign-ownership reporting, U.S. estate tax on a single condo, and probate that has to open twice. Truestead Law closes the gap — combining Florida real estate and estate counsel with cross-border tax-aware structuring.
Serving clients across Florida and abroad — by video, phone, and appointment. Consultations available with translation arranged.
One firm for both sides of the transaction.
Cross-border matters fail when they're split across people who don't talk to each other — a realtor who doesn't know FIRPTA, a closing agent who's never seen a foreign-owner affidavit, an estate planner who forgets that a $60,000 exemption applies. Truestead keeps the Florida real estate, the U.S. tax exposure, and the estate plan in one set of hands, and brings in foreign-law co-counsel or of-counsel when a matter reaches into another country's law.
Arthur Simpson, Esq. — Attorney & Realtor®, CIPS. A Florida attorney and licensed real estate broker (Florida Bar #529265) who also holds the CIPS (Certified International Property Specialist) designation — the NAR credential for cross-border real estate — and is a member of the International Law Section of The Florida Bar. He is the founder of GCRID, the Global Coalition for Real Estate, Investment & Development. That combination is rare: one advisor who is both the lawyer and the international property specialist on your Florida transaction.
Backed by GCRID — a global real estate coalition.
Arthur Simpson is the founder of GCRID — the Global Coalition for Real Estate, Investment & Development — which publishes daily intelligence on every major cross-border real estate corridor: FIRPTA developments, foreign-buyer trends, SB 264 compliance, and international deal structuring.
For a foreign buyer or an overseas family, that means your Florida matter is handled by someone plugged into the global market — not just the local one.
Explore GCRID →Attorney & Realtor® · Global Property Advisor
- → Florida Bar attorney — real estate & estate (#529265)
- → Licensed Florida real estate broker
- → CIPS — Certified International Property Specialist (NAR)
- → International Law Section, The Florida Bar
- → Founder, GCRID (gcrid.org)
Cross-border Florida matters we take on.
Representation for non-U.S. buyers of Florida homes, condos, and investment property — title, contract review, entity titling, and a closing that survives later tax and immigration scrutiny.
For foreign sellers and the buyers who must withhold: correct 15% / 10% / 0% determinations, withholding certificates (Form 8288-B) to free up trapped cash, and clean IRS remittance. FIRPTA guide →
Florida's foreign-ownership law restricts certain buyers near military and agricultural land. We screen the deal, prepare the required buyer affidavit, and keep your purchase compliant. Foreign-buyer guide →
Plans for non-resident owners and mixed-nationality families — minimizing U.S. estate tax on U.S.-situs assets (a $60,000 exemption, not $13.99M), coordinating with foreign wills and treaties. Cross-border estate guide →
When an owner living abroad or in another state dies holding Florida property, we open and resolve the Florida ancillary administration and clear title. Ancillary probate guide →
Choosing and forming the right vehicle — LLC, corporation, or trust — to hold Florida real estate for liability, privacy, FIRPTA, and estate-tax efficiency. Holding-structure guide →
EB-5: turning a Florida real estate investment into a green card.
The EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program lets a foreign national and their immediate family pursue U.S. permanent residency by making a qualifying investment — generally $800,000 in a targeted employment area, or $1,050,000 otherwise — that creates at least 10 U.S. jobs. For many international clients, Florida real estate development is the vehicle.
Where Truestead fits. We handle the side we're built for: the real estate, the investment-entity structuring, source-of-funds documentation on the property side, FIRPTA and tax coordination, and title — and we associate qualified immigration co-counsel for the visa petition itself (Forms I-526E and I-829). You get the property specialist and the lawyer in one relationship, with the immigration filing handled by a vetted specialist, all coordinated.
Through GCRID, we also connect investors to the cross-border corridors and project intelligence that make an EB-5 decision an informed one. Read the EB-5 & Florida real estate guide →
EB-5 is immigration law. Truestead structures the investment, entity, real estate, and tax side and coordinates a qualified immigration attorney for the petition — we do not file the visa petition itself.
Clear scope, clear fees, no surprises across time zones.
Flat or hourly — agreed in writing first. Transactional cross-border work (closings, FIRPTA certificates, entity formation, estate documents) is quoted up front. You know the scope and the fee before we begin, and we work around your time zone.
One firm responsible to you. When a matter reaches into another country's law — a foreign will, a tax treaty position, local-law title questions — we associate qualified co-counsel or of-counsel and remain responsible for the Florida side of your matter. You're told in writing who is doing what.
Built to hold up later. A foreign-buyer closing isn't done when the deed records — it has to survive the eventual sale (FIRPTA), the owner's death (estate tax and probate), and any immigration or reporting review. We structure for all of it at the start.
Consult
We map your situation — who owns what, where you're tax-resident, and what you're trying to do — and flag the cross-border issues.
Structure
We recommend the titling, entity, and estate approach that fits the transaction and your tax position, in writing.
Execute
We handle the Florida closing, FIRPTA filings, entity formation, or estate documents — coordinating foreign counsel where needed.
Protect
We leave you with a plan that anticipates the sale, the estate, and the reporting that comes years later.
Whether a particular transaction or plan is right for you depends on facts only an attorney and your tax advisor can evaluate after reviewing your specific situation, residency, and home-country law. This page is general information, not legal or tax advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship. We coordinate with your accountant or engage a cross-border tax professional where a matter requires it.
From the closing table to the next generation.
Buying in Florida is the beginning, not the end. We're also a Florida estate, real estate, and elder law firm — so the same firm that closes your purchase can title it to protect you from U.S. estate tax, build the trust that keeps it out of double probate, and counsel the family that inherits it. One relationship, across the whole arc of owning property in Florida from abroad.
Latest from GCRID
Daily cross-border real estate intelligence from GCRID — the Global Coalition for Real Estate, Investment & Development, founded by Arthur Simpson.
- Chinese Buyers Are Back: Inside the $13.7B U.S. ReturnJuly 22, 2026 · GCRID Intelligence
- The Dubai Drawdown: GCC Capital Is Returning to U.S. Luxury MarketsJuly 21, 2026 · GCRID Intelligence
- Mexico Corridor 2026: Texas, Cash Buyers, and Sheinbaum-Era Capital FlightJuly 20, 2026 · GCRID Intelligence
- The Week in Corridors: Money Is Moving in Both Directions — July 17, 2026July 17, 2026 · GCRID Intelligence
- Africa's Capital Story Just Inverted — And the U.S. Is WatchingJuly 15, 2026 · GCRID Intelligence
Cross-border Florida questions, answered.
Yes. There's no citizenship or residency requirement to buy most Florida real estate, and foreign nationals can own outright. The exception is Florida's SB 264 (Fla. Stat. §§ 692.201–692.205), which restricts certain buyers tied to a short list of "countries of concern" from buying agricultural land or property near military and critical infrastructure, with broader limits on buyers domiciled in China. A buyer affidavit is now required at closing. Most foreign buyers are unaffected — we confirm before you sign.
The default is 15% of the gross sales price, withheld by the buyer and sent to the IRS. It's 10% if the price is $300,001–$1,000,000 and the buyer will use it as a residence, and 0% at $300,000 or less for a buyer-residence. Because withholding is on the gross price, not your gain, it often exceeds the actual tax — so we apply for a withholding certificate (Form 8288-B) to reduce it to what's really owed and free up your cash.
Potentially a large one. A non-resident, non-citizen who dies owning Florida real estate directly gets a U.S. estate-tax exemption of just $60,000 — not the ~$13.99M U.S. citizens get — with rates up to 40%. A $700,000 condo held in your own name could generate a six-figure U.S. estate-tax bill. The right holding structure or an applicable treaty can reduce or remove that exposure, but it has to be set up correctly, ideally before purchase.
Usually yes, for the Florida real estate. Florida real property owned by someone who lived in another state or country generally must pass through Florida ancillary administration (Fla. Stat. § 734.102) to clear title — even when a foreign will exists and probate is opening in the home country. A revocable trust, the right deed, or a holding entity set up in advance can avoid a separate Florida probate entirely.
It depends on your goals — liability, privacy, FIRPTA mechanics, and especially U.S. estate-tax exposure pull in different directions, and the "obvious" answer (a U.S. LLC) does not by itself solve the estate-tax problem for a foreign owner. We evaluate your residency, home-country law, and plans for the property, then recommend a structure in writing and coordinate with your tax advisor.
Tell us about your Florida property and where you call home.
A focused consultation to map the cross-border issues and the path forward — buying, selling, planning, or settling an estate. We work across time zones.