> In US in many areas the earthquakes safety requires to build lighter houses. A lighter building does not protect you from earthquakes. Less-brittle materials

> In US in many areas the earthquakes safety requires to build lighter houses. A lighter building does not protect you from earthquakes. Less-brittle materials, much more securely fastened together is what you want. With wood building this means metal strapping around studs nailed in perpendicular to the forces. With masonry buildings it means a lot of steel to hold the everything together. > Plus many areas are subject to tornados and hurricanes when it is rather pointless to build anything that lasts 100 years. On that time scale the house will be destroyed or badly damaged in any case. Tornadoes yes, hurricanes, no. Build strong and heavy, with durable steel shutters for all windows and very secure doors, and there's no reason your home can't survive hurricanes with minimal damage. Flooding is another matter, entirely.