It didn't fail at solving this particular problems, just the authoritarian solution used caused corruption. In fact many of the buildings from that era still stand. It was not the abolition of rent that built them and parceled them out to people.

These two failed though at producing other goods, like food, due to various kinds of mismanagement. Not at housing people or providing employment. Or at basic to middle school education. (Only at higher it did ultimately fail due to anti-intellectualist streak.)