We have a similar weird thing going on over here east of the mountains... building generic suburban houses with wood in a climate that a) has no trees (IE: mate

We have a similar weird thing going on over here east of the mountains... building generic suburban houses with wood in a climate that a) has no trees (IE: materials have to come from far away) and b) because it's desert, really would benefit from design that better channels heat and breezes through the house. So point being much like flat roofs in rainy Seattle, builders / architects are not actually building for the local climate.