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Elder Law Attorney for Palm Beach Gardens, Florida

Your Palm Beach Gardens parent is aging. The right plan protects them and you.

Nursing-home Medicaid, protecting the home, and the incapacity documents that avoid guardianship, for Palm Beach County families, wherever you are.

  • Nursing-home Medicaid, protecting the home and qualifying the right way
  • Durable POA, health-care surrogate, and living will that avoid guardianship
  • For the adult child stepping in, handled by phone and video
Book a free consultation Flat fee from $350 for the incapacity documents, from $3,500 for a Medicaid application, from $6,000 for a Medicaid asset protection trust. See pricing

Your consultation is by phone from Palm Beach Gardens, your signing is online from home, and the firm records your deed in your own county.

Quick Overview

Florida elder law protects an aging Palm Beach Gardens parent's home, savings, and independence, through qualifying for nursing-home Medicaid, keeping the homestead out of estate recovery, and the incapacity documents (from $350 per person) that head off a court guardianship. We handle it by phone and video for Palm Beach County families, wherever you are. Which pieces your parent needs is below.

Topics to Know HideShow

Below, we walk through the 4 issues that decide whether this is the right move for you. Jump to any one.

  1. Elder Law in Palm Beach Gardens: the Local Picture Palm Beach Gardens has the families elder law is built for, aging parents who want to stay in control and adult children helping, often from another state. We handle it by phone and video, wherever you are.
  2. Long-Term Care and Medicaid Skilled nursing runs several thousand dollars a month, and Medicare does not cover long-term care. Giving assets away to qualify usually backfires under the five-year look-back.
  3. Protecting the Home The homestead is generally exempt for Medicaid eligibility, but estate recovery can reach it after death. A lady bird deed keeps the home out of probate and beyond recovery.
  4. Avoiding a Guardianship If a parent loses capacity with no plan, the only route is a slow, public, costly court guardianship. A small set of documents signed while they are competent blocks it.

That’s the quick version. The details below are what decide your situation, and where the costly mistakes hide.

Elder Law in Palm Beach Gardens: the Local Picture

Palm Beach Gardens has a median age of 52 and 33 percent over 65, well above the state average. The city's 60,959 residents drive planning demand that centers on retirees. A median home value of $606,100 in Palm Beach County puts Florida homestead protection at the core of the estate plan.

With a median age around 52, Palm Beach Gardens has the families elder law is built for, aging parents who want to stay in control, protect the home, and pay for care without losing everything, and adult children trying to help, often from another state. We handle all of it wherever you are.

Families here search for this under different names, whether a geriatric attorney, a senior care lawyer, an elder care planning attorney, or simply an attorney for the elderly, and it is all the same work, protecting an aging parent’s home, savings, and right to decide for themselves.

Long-Term Care and Medicaid

Skilled nursing in Florida commonly runs several thousand dollars a month and up, and Medicare doesn’t cover long-term custodial care. Nursing-home Medicaid can, but giving assets away to “qualify” usually backfires under the five-year look-back. There are legitimate ways to protect the home and savings, whether you’re planning ahead or already in a crisis. See Medicaid planning → · check eligibility →

Protecting the Home

The homestead is the family’s biggest asset and is generally exempt for Medicaid eligibility. The real risk is estate recovery after death. A lady bird deed keeps the home out of probate and beyond recovery while your parent keeps full control. See how the home is protected →

Avoiding a Guardianship

If a parent loses capacity with no plan, the family’s only route is a court guardianship, which is slow, public, and expensive. A durable power of attorney, a health-care surrogate, a living will, and a HIPAA authorization, signed while your parent is competent, are the documents that block it. The medical ones are what Florida law calls advance directives, and this whole step is the part of elder law people call incapacity planning. If you have been searching for a guardianship lawyer in Palm Beach County, start with the comparison, because most families need the document a parent can still sign, not a court case. Guardianship vs. power of attorney → · See the full elder-law guide →

Helping a Palm Beach Gardens parent from anywhere.

A free consultation maps the care, the home, and the documents, by phone or video.

Book a free consultation

Notary Services in Palm Beach Gardens

The firm prepares your deed or trust and most clients sign from home by online notarization, with the firm arranging the notary and the two witnesses by video. Some people prefer to sign on paper in person. A Florida deed must be signed in front of two witnesses and acknowledged before a notary, so you need to bring two adult witnesses who are not named in the deed. Do not count on the store to supply witnesses. Call the store first to confirm a notary is on duty that day.

The UPS Store locations in Palm Beach Gardens that list notary services, with posted hours
StoreAddressPhoneHours
The UPS Store #40671 Mile West Of I-95 /Corner Northlake Blvd And Military Trail By Homegoods & Joseph's Market4371 Northlake Blvd, Palm Beach Gardens 33410(561) 622-7117Mon to Fri 8 am to 6:30 pm · Sat 9 am to 4 pm · Sun 10 am to 3 pm
The UPS Store #1303Garden Square Shoppes 1/4 Mile West Of I-95 / Nw Corner Of Pga And Military Trail4521 Pga Blvd, Palm Beach Gardens 33418(561) 624-6300Mon to Fri 8 am to 6:30 pm · Sat 9 am to 4 pm · Sun 10 am to 3 pm

Hours read from each store’s own page on October 30, 2026. Confirm by phone before you go.

Communities We Serve

We work with families across Palm Beach County, and beyond. Any deed in your plan records with the Palm Beach County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller. We are a Miami firm serving Palm Beach Gardens wherever you are; this is not a Palm Beach Gardens office.

Local Senior Resources in Palm Beach Gardens

You don’t have to do this alone, and not all of it is legal. For care navigation, Palm Beach County’s Area Agency on Aging is the Area Agency on Aging of Palm Beach/Treasure Coast. It runs Florida’s Elder Helpline (1-800-96-ELDER) and free SHINE Medicare counseling, your first call for a Medicaid screening, caregiver support, and local senior services. We handle the legal side, the Medicaid-qualifying plan, the deed, the powers of attorney, and coordinate with those resources so nothing falls through the cracks.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do you have an office in Palm Beach Gardens?

No. StepUpLaw is a Miami firm that serves Palm Beach Gardens and Palm Beach County families by phone and video. That works well for adult children handling a Florida parent’s Medicaid, deed, or incapacity plan from out of state.

Will Medicaid take my parent’s Palm Beach Gardens-area home?

The Florida homestead is generally protected for Medicaid eligibility, so it is not sold to qualify. The real risk is estate recovery after death, which runs against the probate estate. A lady bird deed keeps the home out of probate and beyond recovery.

What documents keep my parent out of guardianship?

A durable power of attorney, a designation of health-care surrogate, a living will, and a HIPAA authorization, signed while your parent is clearly competent. Florida courts must consider these less-restrictive alternatives before appointing a guardian.


Updated September 29, 2026. Reviewed by Kevin D. Klagge, Esq., Fla. Bar No. 99502. Attorney Kevin Klagge represents families, businesses, and international clients in estate and tax planning, business structuring, and international law, with a focus on Florida legal tools. He litigates estate and business issues in court. General information about Florida law, not legal advice, and no attorney-client relationship is created. We serve Palm Beach Gardens and Palm Beach County residents wherever they are. Medicaid figures change annually and eligibility turns on your specific facts.

Get a plan in place for your Palm Beach Gardens parent

Book a free consultation with Attorney Kevin D. Klagge, Esq. We’ll map the care, the home, and the documents, and quote a flat fee.