[mabbo]

> Japanese people don't value buildings[0], only land

This is becoming true in most of the housing-is-too-expensive cities of North America. In my neighbourhood in Toronto, most houses that weren't built in the last 20 years would be torn down immediately when bought so that a new monster mansion can be built. The plot of land is worth millions- but mainly because there's such a low supply of housing.

The trick is to build tall to multiply the amount of land. Otherwise, you get the horrendous situation Silicon Valley is in.