Buying new or resale in Florianópolis: warranties, hidden costs and what makes sense

With the same budget in Florianópolis you'll be able to choose between a new unit (ready or off-plan) and a resale. There's no single answer: new comes with legal protections resale no longer has, and resale brings certainty, immediate possession and no index adjusting your balance. It's best to decide with the law and the costs in plain view.

What only new brings: legal protections

Buying from a developer triggers a package of warranties that a resale that's "years past" no longer offers:

• 5-year warranty: the Civil Code (art. 618) holds the builder liable for the soundness and safety of the construction for five non-reducible years, and the STJ reads "soundness and safety" broadly (habitability, installations, functionality).
• Patrimônio de afetação (Law 10.931/2004): it ring-fences that project's assets and revenue from the rest of the developer, so what you pay goes toward that project —a protection if the developer stumbles elsewhere. It's optional: check for it in the registry.
• Memorial de incorporação (Law 4.591/64): the developer must register it before selling. It's the first document an off-plan buyer needs to confirm exists.
• Distrato (Law 13.786/2018): if you cancel, the developer keeps up to 25% of what you've paid, or up to 50% if there's a patrimônio de afetação. Note: that 50% cap is being disputed at the STJ (2025), with divided panels —treat it as unsettled, not closed.
• Construction delay: there's a contractual tolerance of up to 180 days; past that, you can stay in the contract and collect 1% of what you've paid per month of delay, or terminate with a full refund.

A resale more than five years old no longer carries that construction warranty, and it makes up for it with something else: certainty. You see the actual property, the built building, the neighbors and the real fees, and you move in right away.

The hidden cost of new: the INCC

The appeal of off-plan is getting in cheaper and "paying as it's built." But during construction your balance with the developer doesn't sit still: it's adjusted month by month by the INCC (Índice Nacional de Custo da Construção, FGV). In the 12 months to August 2026 the INCC-M accumulated +6,56% —decelerating, but still near +0,6% to +1,0% per month. On a typical 24- to 36-month build, that's several points added to the unpaid balance before you get the keys. There's no bank interest during construction, but there is this adjustment; the bank's interest only starts at handover.

The usual off-plan payment structure is a down payment + installments during construction of around 20% to 30%, with the remaining 70% to 80% financed through a bank after you receive the keys (market reference). For context on why new launches cost what they cost: the CUB-SC (construction cost, Sinduscon-SC) stood at R$ 3.151/m² in August 2026.

Closing costs: similar, but budget for them

Florianópolis's ITBI is 2%, and total closing runs around 2,8%–5% depending on whether you add a lawyer. On a resale they hit at purchase; on an off-plan deal, ITBI and registration usually fall at the handover/registration of the finished unit.

One point not to make up: there is no reliable "new vs. resale discount" percentage specific to Florianópolis —the FipeZAP index publishes a single m² value without separating new from resale. So the choice is qualitative: the protections + staged payment (with INCC) of new, against the certainty + immediate possession (without INCC) of resale.

Sources

• FGV/IBRE — INCC-M 2026 (12-month accumulated +6,56%, August 2026).
• Civil Code, art. 618 (five-year warranty) and STJ case law.
• Law 4.591/1964 (memorial de incorporação); Law 10.931/2004 (patrimônio de afetação); Law 13.786/2018 (distrato and 180-day tolerance); STJ divergence on the retention cap (2025).
• Sinduscon-SC — CUB-SC (R$ 3.151/m², August 2026); FipeZAP index (Florianópolis m²).