The cost of renovating an apartment in Curitiba depends on scope, not on floor area alone. Light renovations involve painting, joinery and lighting; full renovations include demolition, new services, surfaces and furniture. A reliable estimate only appears with construction documents, a finishes schedule and quotes from three contractors on the exact same scope.
This is almost every client's first question — and the honest answer is that price per square metre, on its own, means nothing. Two 140 m² apartments in the same neighbourhood can have very different renovation costs, because what matters is the scope, the condition of the existing services and the chosen level of finish.
The three levels of renovation
1. Light renovation
Without changing walls or services: painting, new flooring, lighting, new joinery and furniture. It is the most predictable intervention and the one with the fewest surprises along the way.
2. Medium renovation
Redesign of some rooms: integrating kitchen and living area, revising electrical and plumbing points, replacing sanitaryware and taps, new surfaces in wet areas.
3. Full renovation
The apartment is delivered practically new: extensive demolition, rebuilt electrical and plumbing systems, ceilings, air conditioning, automation, window frames and all surfaces. It is the highest-cost scenario and also the one with the greatest gain in value.
What pushes the budget up
- Wet areas: bathrooms and kitchens concentrate services, waterproofing and surfaces — they are the most expensive rooms per square metre.
- Old services: buildings over 25 years old often require a new electrical panel and pipe replacement.
- Bespoke joinery: usually the single largest item in an interiors renovation.
- Air conditioning and automation: they require provision in the design, ceilings and infrastructure — retrofitting later costs far more.
- Building rules: restricted working hours, service-lift use and required technical reports stretch the timeline and, with it, labour costs.
Items almost always left out of the first estimate
- Debris removal and skips.
- Fees and technical reports required by the building or the city.
- Temporary housing during the works.
- Loose furniture, curtains, rugs and decorative lighting.
- A contingency reserve — we recommend setting aside 10% to 15% of the construction value.
A renovation without a design is not cheaper: it simply shifts the cost to improvisation, which resurfaces later as rework.
How to reach a reliable number
- 01Technical survey of the apartment and diagnosis of the existing services.
- 02Defining the scope with the client: what changes, what stays and the level of finish.
- 03Construction documents with a specifications schedule — the document that makes quotes comparable.
- 04Three contractor quotes on exactly the same scope.
- 05A physical-financial schedule, to spread payments across the works.
In the studio's interiors projects, this sequence is what keeps construction on plan. It is worth discussing your apartment before closing any quote: the initial diagnosis usually saves more than it costs.
