Cashing In - The most expensive commercial buildings in the world

With the commercial building sector set to be booming throughout 2011, property investors are eyeing off market opportunities left, right and centre. We took a look at some of the most expensive non-residential buildings ever built, bought or sold.



National Ignition Facility, California – US$4.2 billion

Located in the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, this research facility took five years longer than expected to complete building, and cost almost four times as much as was initially budgeted, bringing the total cost of the project to a whopping US$4.2 billion at its completion in 2009.



General Motors Building, New York – US$2.8 billion

The home of CBS’s The Early Show, IMG and the Apple flagship store, the GM building was purchased by Boston Properties, Goldman Sachs, and Meraas Capital in 2008 for US$2.8 billion, making it the single most expensive purchases of an individual building in history.



Kurnell Desalination Plant, Sydney – AU$1.9 billion

The largest desalination plant in the whole of Australia, the Kurnell Desalination plant cost around AU$1.9 billion to build and took three years to complete. Water prices for households are estimated to rise 32 per cent between 2008 and 2012 to pay for ongoing costs associated with the plant, and many have criticised the plant, saying that it’s not necessary, and a bad case of property management. Sydney Water even designed the plant so that it could easily be made bigger (and, we assume, even more expensive to run).



666 5th Avenue, New York – US$1.8 billion

A 41-storey office building built in 1957, when it was sold in January 2007 it was the most ever paid for a single office building at that time?



Burj Khalifa Supertall skyscraper, Dubai – US $1.5 billion

Ok, so this one’s a combination of both commercial and residential suites, but the tallest man-made structure ever built deserves a mention. Finished in 2010, The Burj Khalifa took almost five years to complete, and cost around US$1.5 billion.



If you’re currently looking to buy commercial property, your budget probably isn’t going to be anywhere near as big as these exorbitant prices. Most people look to buys something much more affordable, especially when starting a business, but hey – it never hurts to aspire to big things…




This article is brought to you by Tim Green Commercial. Buy commercial property or lease at Tim Green Commercial - the experts on finding great office space in Sydney CBD and surrounds.