Another reason why wood houses are the norm in much of the USA is probably because wood is relatively cheap here. We export a LOT of it to other nations, as well. I would imagine that in Greece and elsewhere in the Mediterranean most of the havestable forests are long gone, except for some managed timber bearing lands. Hence it's probably less expensive to build from concrete and steel there. And insulation is perhaps not as much of an issue in the mediterranean climate, at least not as much as it would be, say, in Minnesota.
Here in California it would be very rare to see a structural brick house. Older brick buildings of historical interest have had to be retrofitted with rather massive steel reinforcement to be up to seismic codes (the Dolby Labs building in SF, where I've worked, is a good example of such). It's not cheap. In some fire-prone areas some people have rebuilt in reinforced concrete, although withstanding a raging fire requires more than just concrete walls. The windows must have heat reflecting shutters, and the roof of course needs to be non-flammable.
Anyway, ditto on the OSB (oriented strand board) rather than particle board for exterior sheathing, subfloors, and roof sheeting. Plywood is also used, and I prefer plywood anyway - except one must be a bit more careful with plywood to get good quality. I've purchased some sheets that you could fold in half because of a discontinuity in the inner layers. In other words, each sheet should be inspected at purchase for such flaws. OSB probably doesn't suffer from such problems, but I don't think it's as strong as good plywood. Otherwise it would have been recommended for shear wall reinforcement - where only five-ply 1/2" CDX or better plywood will pass code.
Flexibility is sort of good in a quake, but the wood structure also needs to be firmly attached to the foundation (concrete, not cinder block, brick, or stone) with hefty bolts, and the various layers that make up a stick build house must be tied together with reinforcement plates as well. In hurricane country, the roof is similarly tied to the rest of the frame with stout plates - which helps prevent it from flying off in a high wind. A structure needs to be strong and tied together as well as flex a little.
I remember a co-worker from Egypt complaining during the dot com boom about the difficulty of finding a good house in Silicon Valley. "And they are all made of sticks", he complained. I had to break it to him gently that this was the building norm here, although of course there are a lot of tacky stick built homes around there. I got the impression he felt that wood wasn't a good construction material - which is understandable considering his background.
Here in California it would be very rare to see a structural brick house. Older brick buildings of historical interest have had to be retrofitted with rather massive steel reinforcement to be up to seismic codes (the Dolby Labs building in SF, where I've worked, is a good example of such). It's not cheap. In some fire-prone areas some people have rebuilt in reinforced concrete, although withstanding a raging fire requires more than just concrete walls. The windows must have heat reflecting shutters, and the roof of course needs to be non-flammable.
Anyway, ditto on the OSB (oriented strand board) rather than particle board for exterior sheathing, subfloors, and roof sheeting. Plywood is also used, and I prefer plywood anyway - except one must be a bit more careful with plywood to get good quality. I've purchased some sheets that you could fold in half because of a discontinuity in the inner layers. In other words, each sheet should be inspected at purchase for such flaws. OSB probably doesn't suffer from such problems, but I don't think it's as strong as good plywood. Otherwise it would have been recommended for shear wall reinforcement - where only five-ply 1/2" CDX or better plywood will pass code.
Flexibility is sort of good in a quake, but the wood structure also needs to be firmly attached to the foundation (concrete, not cinder block, brick, or stone) with hefty bolts, and the various layers that make up a stick build house must be tied together with reinforcement plates as well. In hurricane country, the roof is similarly tied to the rest of the frame with stout plates - which helps prevent it from flying off in a high wind. A structure needs to be strong and tied together as well as flex a little.
I remember a co-worker from Egypt complaining during the dot com boom about the difficulty of finding a good house in Silicon Valley. "And they are all made of sticks", he complained. I had to break it to him gently that this was the building norm here, although of course there are a lot of tacky stick built homes around there. I got the impression he felt that wood wasn't a good construction material - which is understandable considering his background.
