Buying off-plan in Florianópolis 2026: payments, protections and launches

What buying "na planta" means

Buying off-plan means acquiring a unit before or during construction. In Brazil it is governed by the Lei de Incorporações (Lei 4.591/1964), and there is a golden rule for the buyer: the developer may only sell units after registering the memorial de incorporação at the Registro de Imóveis (art. 32). The instrument you sign is a contrato de promessa de compra e venda (promise-to-purchase agreement), which can be noted in the margin of the incorporation and gives you an enforceable real right over the future unit. First check, then: that the project has its incorporation registered.

Patrimônio de afetação: your main safety net

It is the most important protection and the least known to the foreign buyer. The patrimônio de afetação (introduced by Lei 10.931/2004) separates the land, the funds and the receivables of that project from the rest of the builder's assets: if the company goes bankrupt on another project, that money can only be used to finish and deliver your building. Now the fine point: it is an optional regime for the developer, established by a term registered on the project's matrícula. Not every launch adopts it. That is why you should verify on the matrícula whether the specific development is "afetado" before signing.

If something goes wrong: the distrato law

What happens if the buyer wants or needs to cancel? The Lei do Distrato (Lei 13.786/2018), in force since late 2018, set the rules. As a general rule, the developer may withhold up to 25% of what was paid; if the project is under patrimônio de afetação, the withholding can reach 50% —though in several cases the STJ found that 50% abusive and brought it closer to 25%, so treat it as a ceiling, not a guaranteed outcome—. The brokerage commission is deducted separately. Under the afetação regime, the refund of the balance is paid within 180 days. And if you signed at a sales stand, you have a 7-day right of withdrawal with a full refund.

Delivery deadlines and delays

The same law allows a 180-day tolerance over the contractual delivery date, without penalty, provided it is clearly agreed. Past that period, the buyer can rescind the contract or claim compensation on the order of 1% of what was paid per month of delay. It is a clause worth reading with a magnifying glass in the contract, because it defines what happens if the build runs late.

How you pay and why the installment adjusts

The typical scheme combines down payment + monthly installments + balloon payments (balões) + the keys installment at delivery, often financed directly by the developer during construction. A point that surprises the foreign buyer: during construction the balance is adjusted by the INCC (Índice Nacional da Construção Civil, from FGV), the natural index while building is under way; in Santa Catarina some developers use the regional CUB-SC. It is not interest: it is the update of the construction cost. To put it in scale, the INCC accumulated +6.78% in the twelve months to September 2025, above the IPCA over the same period. Only when you receive the keys does the financing usually migrate to a bank loan (SBPE/SFH), with rates that apply from delivery, not during construction.

The market pulse: a record cycle

Buying off-plan in Floripa today happens in a very active market. In the first quarter of 2025, Florianópolis launched 1,637 units (+36.3% year over year) and sold 1,942 (+97%), leading among the southern capitals, with an average price on the order of R$ 11,340/m². The Norte da Ilha is the launch focus, with dozens of developments under way. It is a context of national records —Brazil launched more than 453,000 units in 2025— and of Santa Catarina at all-time highs. A prudent reading: part of those "VGV records" also reflects rising prices, not just more volume; growth and appreciation go together, not provenly caused one by the other.

The foreign buyer, in short

To buy off-plan you need a CPF (obtainable even from abroad with a valid passport) and for the funds to enter through a foreign-exchange contract (contrato de câmbio) via an institution authorized by the Central Bank, declaring "property acquisition" and documenting the source of the money. For an individual buying an urban property for personal use, the RDE registration at the Central Bank is not legally required (unlike corporate investment), though it later eases repatriation. All of the above is general information: verify every clause of the contract and the project's status with a lawyer before signing.

Sources

• Lei 4.591/1964 (art. 32, memorial de incorporação) — Planalto.
• Lei 10.931/2004 (patrimônio de afetação) — Planalto; IRIB; Migalhas.
• Lei 13.786/2018 (distrato: 25%/50% withholding, 180-day tolerance, 1%/month, 7-day withdrawal) — Câmara dos Deputados; Projuris; STJ case law via Migalhas.
• INCC (FGV) +6.78% 12m to Sep-2025; CUB-SC as the regional index — CBIC; cvcrm.
• CBIC / CRECI-SC — Floripa launches and sales Q1 2025; Brazil 2025 records.
• Receita Federal / Banco Central — CPF and câmbio for the foreign buyer (Lei 14.286/2021).