Same sentiment.
When I travel to Israel, I notice that most homes are built with concrete, stone and various brick variations. Here in the United States, they have the tendency to build with wood from the inside out. Even if a house appears to be brick on the outside (be it a full layer or just siding), the house frame consisting of the posts, beams and even the load-bearing interior walls within are constructed with wood.
I've never understood why the incessant need to do this. They don't age well. Weather will slowly erode the material and storms (hurricanes and tornados) will literally blow your house down or at the very least make your roof disappear.
Any builders here care to share some reasoning behind this? Is it merely about costs?
"1"
Cost, useful life, and acceptance.
Cost = keep prices down and open the housing market, which is really the mortgage market up to more people.
Useful life = Europeans think in terms of centuries and Americans think in terms of decades. Americans expect about 100 years out of a house and then teardown and start over. There is a disposal aspect to everything in America.
Acceptance = Americans are far more willing to accept what the media or home building/real estate industries tell them. If CNN tells the public that a 1,000 SF home is a smart, responsible, environmentally friendly choice, the buying public react like lemmings. Up until 15 years ago the American dream was to own a home. Now the younger generation don't want to make the effort or deal with the hassle. If it wasn't for the mortgage interest tax deduction and equity building when stocks slide, the home buying market would be dead.
Plus....you need brick in Israel, we don't have Palestinian terrorists bombing us in Bay City, Michigan. But, all joking aside, there are some places in the country where your house is going to have to act as a place of refuge against growing urban crime.
