Well, I would say it’s not that they aren’t built to last, it’s more that it costs a lot to maintain them, the houses are often subjected to a lot more natural disasters and a harsher climate (which is coupled with salty winds and rains), and there are a number of cultural factors that have led most people to rebuild rather than maintain, flip, and renovate houses. (But this is changing.)
The structures themselves are all post and beam and are generally very strong, so I would say that they are built to last, but the materials that are often used inside and outside aren’t great, so the siding and sometimes flooring, etc. needs to be replaced every ten to twenty years (which really isn’t so different from the US).
Thanks for helping make sense out of it!
Any time.
I think another issue is the large National house makers that can make houses cheaply. Again, it’s not that the buildings themselves aren’t built to last. They’re built to withstand massive earthquakes. It’s just that these large companies maximize profits by using cheaper cosmetic materials that need to be replaced more often (and this is also related to consumer behavior—needing to fix something but not wanting to choose the best option because of price and budget).