Construction costs have been skyrocketing this year due to inflation and supply chain issues, among other reasons. And this is being felt particularly hard in bigger cities. However, many buildings across the US have already come with steep price tags and plenty go well beyond the $1 billion mark. From the Pentagon to Apple's spaceship-style HQ in California, we round up America's 30 most expensive buildings, adjusted for inflation.
The only medical facility in the top 30, the Rush Hospital Tower is one of the Windy City's priciest buildings. Completed in 2012, the 14-story butterfly-shaped structure stands a modest 252ft tall but spans more than 800,000sqf. The final bill for the project works out to around $881 million in today's money.
Las Vegas leads the way with about half the buildings in this round-up. First up is the Treasure Island Hotel & Casino. The pirate-themed resort was completed in 1993 at a cost of $882 million in current US dollars. The family-friendly complex has a total of 2,664 rooms and 220 suites, and is home to Cirque du Soleil's Mystère show.
The 28th most expensive US building of all time is the South Point Hotel, Casino & Spa in Las Vegas. The swish 25-story tower, casino, spa and convention center, which is owned and operated by Michael Gaughan, opened in 2005 and cost the equivalent of $910 million. Amenities include a 16-screen movie theater complex, 64-lane bowling alley and an equestrian arena.
Staying in Sin City, the celeb-magnet Palms Casino Resort was completed in 2001 at a cost of $920 million in today's money. One of Las Vegas' hippest resorts, the hotel and casino complex boasts more than 1,300 rooms and suites, some of which the most expensive on the planet. There's also 90,000sqf of casino space, 73,000sqf of pool and spa areas and a 2,500-seat concert theater.
The 50-story Devon Energy Center in downtown Oklahoma City has a height of 844ft and serves as the headquarters for the eponymous gas and petroleum giant. Completed in 2012, the total cost for the glass-fronted office building came in under budget at $968 million when adjusted for inflation.
The replacement for the original Seven World Trade Center, which was destroyed in the 9/11 attacks, this 52-story office tower on New York's Greenwich Street stands 741ft tall and opened its doors in 2006, making it the first building to be completed on the site post 9/11. The final bill for the 1.7 million-sqf building came to just tad more than $1 billion in today's money.
Back to Las Vegas, the swanky Elara is a timeshare resort now owned by Hilton Grand Vacations. The 1,200-unit building offers a range of suites up to four bedrooms with full kitchens. Completed in 2009, the gleaming 52-story tower, which was developed by Westgate Resorts, cost around $1 billion when adjusted for inflation.
The headquarters of the United States Department of Defense is the shortest structure in this round-up at just 71ft tall, but qualifies as the world's largest office building with a bewildering 6.5 million sqf of floor space. Competed in 1943, the most venerable building in the top 30 cost a total of $63 million, which translates to $1.08 billion in current US dollars.
Part of the glitzy Caesars Palace resort on the Las Vegas Strip, the 29-story Palace Tower opened to guests in 1998. All in all, the project cost $1.09 billion in current US dollars. The 435ft tower comprises 1,180 rooms and reflects the opulent Greco-Roman theme of the resort with an abundance of grand columns, fountains and statues.
One of two properties constructed by the Trump Corporation to make the top 30, the 98-story Trump International Hotel & Tower in Chicago was completed in 2009 at a cost of $1.17 billion when adjusted for inflation. Initially intended to be the tallest building in the world, the height of the downtown condo-hotel was scaled back to 1,388ft following the 9/11 attacks.
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After nearly a century in its original 18-story building, the company behind the newspaper the New York Times decided to move into fancier new digs. Designed by world-famous architect Renzo Piano, the 52-story glass and steel building features delicate ceramic rods that create a screen to diffuse sunlight. When it opened in 2007 construction costs totaled more than $1.2 billion in today's dollars
Formerly known as the Transbay Tower, the Salesforce Tower in downtown San Francisco is the centerpiece of the Transbay redevelopment plan and has a height of 1,070ft. The city's tallest building and the second most lofty in California, the 61-floor tower was completed in 2018 at a cost of $1.3 billion after adjusting for inflation.
Located on the outskirts of Las Vegas, the Red Rock Casino Resort & Spa was completed in 2006 and set its developer Stations Casinos back $1.35 billion when adjusted for inflation. Highlights of the resort include a 6,500sqf penthouse suite, sprawling four-acre pool area and 16-screen movie theater complex.
The Bank of America Tower, which is located opposite Bryant Park, stands 1,200ft tall and has been lauded as one of the most energy efficient and eco-friendly buildings in the world. It features green roofs and an urban garden, and has its own 4.6MW generator that captures heat and provides two thirds of the building's annual energy consumption. The environmentally-sound, 55-floor structure was finished in 2010 and cost $1.36 billion in today's money.
This Parisian-themed hotel and casino complex on the Las Vegas Strip wows with everything from a replica of the Eiffel Tower, to a mini Arc de Triomphe, and the design of the 2,916-room hotel nods to the Paris Opera House and the Louvre. The complex was opened in 1999 by quintessentially French actress Catherine Deneuve and cost a total of $1.4 billion in today's money.
California's tallest building, the Wilshire Grand Center in downtown LA, has a height of 1,100ft. The soaring 73-floor tower houses the InterContinental Los Angeles Downtown and has thousands of square feet of office and retail space. The final bill for the project, which was completed in 2017, came to $1.45 billion when adjusted for inflation.
The Polynesian-themed Mirage hotel and casino resort in Las Vegas opened in 1989 and cost $1.48 billion when adjusted for inflation. Boasting 3,044 rooms and nearly 100,000sqf of gaming space, the complex also includes a sensational artificial volcano, a secret garden and dolphin habitat and two theaters.
Like the Bank of America Tower, Philly's 1,121ft Comcast Technology Center has been praised for its green credentials. The 60-story building serves as office space for Comcast but also contains America's highest hotel, not to mention a plethora of retail and TV studio space. It was completed in 2018 at a cost of $1.77 billion when adjusted for inflation.
Formerly known as the SunTrust Financial Center, the pyramid-topped building is named for the bank, which is now Truist following a 2021 merger. Nestled among the Tampa skyline and reaching 525ft, it may not be the tallest in the city, but it is by far the most expensive. The 36-story skyscraper was finished in 1992 and cost a hefty $2.11 billion in current US dollars. It's famous for its pyramid roof that lights up after dark.
The lavish MGM Grand Resort & Casino in Las Vegas has a total of 6,852 rooms across three towers, the tallest of which is 30 stories. But wait, there's more. With 850,000sqf of exhibition space, four swimming pools and more than 170,000sqf of gaming space, it's one of the world's largest hotels. Completed in 1993, the final bill for the resort came in at $2.26 billion in today's money.
One of the most luxurious developments in Las Vegas, the 50-story Palazzo is an all-suite hotel and resort with more than 3,000 premium rooms located at the Venetian resort. Its most luxurious suites include marble surfaces, options for pool tables or pianos and even private spas. Completed in 2007, the enormous Italian Renaissance-style development cost $2.57 billion when adjusted for inflation.
Constructed as a tribute to Venice, Italy, by businessman Sheldon Adelson, who honeymooned there, the entire Venetian resort mimics the floating city's style and architecture. With more than 3,000 rooms in its 35-story tower it's shorter than the adjoining Palazzo, but cost slightly more to build in 1999, at $2.67 billion when adjusted for inflation.
Atlantic City's Hard Rock Hotel & Casino was formerly known as the Trump Taj Mahal. It was built by the Trump Corporation in 1990 at a cost of $2.72 billion when adjusted for inflation, and was once described by Donald Trump as “the eighth wonder of the world.” At that time its 120,000sqf of gaming space made it the world's largest casino. However, the resort eventually became unprofitable and closed in 2016. It re-opened in 2018 as the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino.
Investment bank Goldman Sachs' global headquarters at 200 West Street was never going to be a low-budget build, making it the envy of Wall Street when their sumptuous building opened in its doors in 2009. The total cost of the 43-story tower, which stands 749ft tall, came in at $2.9 billion in today's money.
Inspired by the picturesque Lake Como town in Italy of the same name, the Bellagio is one of Las Vegas' most elegant and high-end resorts. Completed in 1998 at a cost of $2.91 billion in current US dollars, the hotel and casino known for its fabulous fountains has 3,950 rooms, a botanical garden and 156,000sqf of gaming space.
Hotel owner Steve Wynn announced construction for a new tower called Encore on the first anniversary of his Wynn Las Vegas resort. The Encore resort has around 2,000 suites, which are sized larger than those in the first Wynn tower. When it opened in 2008 it cost $3.17 billion in today's dollars.
Regarded as one of the finest hotels in the world, the Wynn Resort in Las Vegas was reassuringly expensive to construct, coming in at $4.1 billion in today's money. The deluxe 45-story, 2,716-room resort, which opened in 2005, includes a gigantic casino, 260,000sqf convention center and 160,000sqf of retail space.
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One World Trade Center is the principal building in the rebuilt World Trade complex in New York. Standing a symbolic 1,776ft tall, the skyscraper was completed in 2014 at a cost of $4.76 billion in current US dollars, and is now the tallest building in America, as well as being New York's most expensive building.
The most expensive building in Las Vegas, the 3,000-room Cosmopolitan cost a jaw-dropping $5.3 billion when adjusted for inflation. Construction for the art-themed hotel and casino was completed in 2010, and included two high-rise towers, a 1,800-seat theater and a 50,000sqf spa and fitness center. The hotel also underwent renovations in 2018 to expand many of its amenities.
Apple's round spaceship-esque headquarters in Cupertino, California, which opened in April 2017, cost an estimated $6.04 billion when adjusted for inflation. The 2.8 million sqf building, which has a circumference of one mile, has space for 12,000 employees, and is built around a tranquil nature courtyard, complete with an artificial lake.
Think these are pricey? Then take a look at the 30 most expensive buildings in the world