O que está ACONTECENDO com SANTA CATARINA?!

Santa Catarina’s Population Growth

Santa Catarina is attracting people from across Brazil. From 2017 to 2022, the state gained a net 354,000 residents from other states—nearly twice as many as Goiás, the next-ranking state. More than one in four arrivals came from neighboring Rio Grande do Sul. Migration is not limited to the coast: inland Chapecó also grew rapidly.

Jobs and security help explain the influx better than beach life alone. The narrator points to Santa Catarina’s low unemployment and violent-death rates, as well as economic centers beyond the capital, including Joinville, Blumenau, and Chapecó. These provide newcomers with options across the state, though housing demand is especially concentrated on the coast.

Coastal Housing and Development

Coastal property prices are exceptionally high. In the FipeZAP asking-price ranking cited for September 2026, four of the five most expensive cities after Vitória are in Santa Catarina: Balneário Camboriú, Itapema, Florianópolis, and Itajaí. These are advertised prices, not necessarily final sale prices.

The narrator argues that local incomes alone cannot explain the prices. Although Santa Catarina’s income is above the national average, other places with comparable or higher incomes have lower housing prices.

Balneário Camboriú

Balneário Camboriú illustrates the pressures of limited coastal land and vertical growth. The city is small and far denser than the state average, and its high-rises cast shadows across the beach. In 2021, the municipality widened the beach with publicly funded sand replenishment, citing erosion. The narrator criticizes the project for not addressing building shadows or the rules that allowed such intensive development.

Meanwhile, nearby cities such as Itapema, Itapoá, and Barra Velha grew faster than Balneário Camboriú itself.

Allegations of Money Laundering

Federal Police operations in 2022, 2023, and 2026 involved allegations that drug money was used to buy luxury properties, sometimes through other people or at understated prices. The narrator stresses that these cases show dirty money has entered the high-end property market, but do not establish how widespread the practice is or how much it affects prices.

Regional Infrastructure

Growth has spilled into neighboring cities: Camboriú and Palhoça grew much faster than Balneário Camboriú and Florianópolis, respectively. Yet nearby municipalities rely on shared roads and water systems.

The BR-101 corridor around Itapema and Balneário Camboriú has faced severe congestion, while water-company alerts cited low levels in the Camboriú River. The narrator argues that transport, water, and other services need to be planned regionally rather than city by city.

Florianópolis and Development Rules

Florianópolis faces a separate debate over development rules. Its 2023 Master Plan revision, which governs land use and building heights, faced legal challenges and public controversy. The narrator says the city is not yet as dense as Balneário Camboriú, though its apartment prices are already among Brazil’s highest.

The island capital has more land overall, but pressure to build—and the question of who can afford to live near the coast—remains.

Conclusion

The conclusion is not that the coast has collapsed, but that access to it is being decided through prices and planning. Balneário Camboriú continues to gain residents, so the narrator rejects the claim that it is already in collapse. Instead, the video argues that rapid growth, expensive housing, infrastructure constraints, and development decisions are reshaping who can live near the sea.

Presenter and Sources

The presenter is an unnamed narrator for Mundo Entrópico. No other presenters or on-camera contributors are identified. The video also cites official data, news reports, investigations, and viewer comments.