alt Hacker NewsUltimately houses are built in the way that works for the region they're built in.
Europe has few trees and few earthquakes (outside of Romania, Italy, etc). Masonry houses make sense.
In California unreinforced masonry is illegal and trees are plentiful. Making houses out of sticks is rational even if it's unsightly.
Those asphalt roofs though...
It's not the unavailability of trees. European countries have wisely decides that cities built of wooden houses are prone to massive fires. USians haven't learned that lesson and the Los Angeles fire isn't going to be the last one.