The construction of Apple Park is one of the most imposing buildings in Cupertino and probably in the world. Not so much for its height but for its structure and what it hides inside. The technology company treasures a unique headquarters for its design elements and based on this, something that has never been cheap. Do you want to know the figures? Attentive because it is really surprising.
The third most expensive building in the world
The Abraj Al-Bait is a complex of buildings whose main skyscraper is the third tallest in the world. Located in Mecca, its construction cost the Saudi government a whopping $ 15 billion, making it the most expensive in the world. Next to this we find the Marina Bay Sands of Singapore, another skyscraper whose cost of almost 7 billion dollars is staggering. Although the surprising thing is that in the third place another luxurious skyscraper of Dubai or Doha does not appear … The third is neither more nor less than the one that has been the headquarters of Apple since 2019 .
The three most expensive buildings in the world
Apple invested a total of 5 billion dollars which, although it is true that it seems much lower than the Saudi building, it is still a chilling figure. It was a quirk of Steve Jobs that he became obsessed with since buying the land in 2006. Curiously, those land belonged to a company for which the mythical Apple co-founder worked as a young man, Hewlett-Packard.
Jobs achieved the approval of the city council in 2011, a few months before his death, without being able to see its construction or its inauguration in 2017. Today this 464-square-meter complex houses different rooms. From offices, laboratories and offices to an exclusive store for visitors. And, of course, the Steve Jobs Theater that the company used for its presentations before the COVID-19 pandemic and that is expected to receive an audience again in 2022.
It should be noted that at the tax level, the company computes 40 million dollars a year for this headquarters. That only counting taxes, since at the maintenance level figures have not transpired. However, taking into account the magnitude of the complex and that they even have a forest and a lake inside, we imagine that the figures for maintaining it must also be staggering.
In 2019 it was appraised at a value lower than its cost
Interestingly, even though Apple’s investment amounted to $ 5 billion, a couple of years ago a Santa Clara County assessor valued it at around $ 4.17 million. A news that was echoed at the time by 9to5Mac and that despite not being much lower than the cost of construction, it seems at least strange.
Taking into account the value of the land and the investment made in materials, we are surprised to think that this headquarters could be acquired for such a low amount. Be that as it may, we do not believe that Apple has even a remote thought of getting rid of what is already an iconic building and the company’s first hallmark at the design level.