Consequences of the climate as well. Because we get no frost, termites are endemic here. Pretty much every house needs to be tented every 5 years or so, and after 30-40 there may not be much foundation left. Doesn't make a whole lot of sense to build to last when it's not going to last anyway.

Same thinking for earthquakes & wildfires. Over the short term, CA is paradise. Over the long term, it's temporary. That kind of thinking suffuses a lot of the CA worldview.