The north-american building tradition is certainly peculiar, but it has substantial benefits [1] [2]. Its fire safety is also not that bad as one would assume.

The north-american building tradition is certainly peculiar, but it has substantial benefits [1] [2]. Its fire safety is also not that bad as one would assume. For the specific conditions and large availability of lumber in North America, it seems like a good choice, and I say that as an European who built his own reinforced concrete house and that is working on concrete 3d printing. The drywall over balloon framing technique is a high productivity method that is adapted to the relatively high cost of labour. You wouldn't be able to produce the square footages Americans expect using traditional wet plaster methods. [1] https://www.construction-physics.com/p/balloon-framing-is-worse-is-better https://www.construction-physics.com/p/balloon-framing-is-wo... [2] https://www.construction-physics.com/p/stronger-faster-cheaper-the-future https://www.construction-physics.com/p/stronger-faster-cheap...