In 1987, workers began constructing what would be the tallest hotel in the world in Pyongyang, North Korea. The frame was finished two years later—a little behind schedule, the structure was supposed to open in 1989. Then in 1992, after the collapse of ally and backer the Soviet Union, work stopped completely on Ryugyong Hotel.

The 105-story, 1,083-foot structure protrudes above the rest of the North Korean capital's skyline. It remains the largest abandoned building in the world.

The hope put forth by then-ruler Kim Il-Sung had been to build a hotel that would exemplify the country's robust tourism industry. It came to represent the opposite. The empty hotel seems like the perfect symbol for the isolated Communist nation with delusions of grandeur. More than $750 million has gone into the lodging that's frequently referred to as the "Hotel of Doom."

Ryugyong Hotel is not dead yet. An Egyptian company called Orascom started working on the project again in 2008, adding a glass exterior to the building's facade. But construction on the luxury hotel seems to have halted again. Recent reports have said the inside of the structure has no plumbing, electricity, or really anything at all. The gigantic building that looks like a winged spaceship from the outside serves to shroud a hollow interior.

The price of finishing this project would be steep. Although there is one man who might be able to help fund it, the Daily Beast notes:

In 2008, the South Korean media estimated that the Ryugyong project could require another $2 billion to finish construction and ensure safety, which is around 7 percent of North Korea's GDP. Perhaps Kim Jong-un, worth a rumored—and ill-gotten—$5 billion, will dig into his own pockets to make good on a 30-year promise.

Triumph of Socialism!

in all it's glory... not to mention the lack of tourists that would actually ever want to use the hotel...

Cool looking building, looks like a target.

or a spaceship...from flash gordon era...

North Korea has a tourism industry?
A "thriving" tourism industry?

What about China? Does anyone know? I seen on YouTube that they have more abandoned buildings than any place else. Entire towns.
But it gave no explanation.

another sign of socialism working for it's people..

People see abandoned buildings in China and North Korea.


I see an end to the housing crises for Syrian refugees.


It's a win/win.

The easiest explanation is the laws involving investing, land ownership, and use.

Other than that the easy but less so explanations include:
- preemptive infrastructure improvement.
Rural drain of farmers to the special economic zones where "capitalism" is "allowed" eventually creates a status seeking middle class that ultimately suburbanizes.
...enough of the population simply hasn't reached that stage yet, but they're expected to.

- Government owns land. Government corrupt. Government owns bank/bank stock. Government gets friends and family "land developers" to borrow money from bank to build apartment buildings, businesses, parks, etc.
No private land property, just land use via usufruct.
They use money to draw salary, build crappy buildings (graft and corruption e.g. use substandard cement pocketing the difference), and pay interest only on loan.
Loan coming due?! Take out another, bigger, for another building, moar expansion, use money to pay off interest and other loan, build crappier building. Keep going for an entire city.
Bank balance sheet improves! Bank stock goes up since so many people borrowing and paying back! Government portfolio increases. GDP increases. Win win win.

- Government controls (or tries to) what people can invest in.
Inflation > interest rates = type of negative interest rate for savers, guarantee to lose money with bank.
Stock market = based on lies, manipulated data, unsecured debt, and government control = gambling.
Real estate = tangible asset that can be used or sold.
Guaranteed loss and avoiding gambling creates demand for physical assets that can store value.
And everybody knows real estate value always goes up up up.

- Centralized planning causes bubbles, booms and busts.
This is a real estate bubble.