> This is such a true, yet sad, reflection of American society.
This was your original reply:
> Doesn't everyone want to touch grass or have decent access to fresh air and sunlight? I guess if we could hypothetically build really cheap apartments deep underground, it would be sad if people didn't want to live there?
You went from 0 to hyperbole in 20 words. So I called you out.
> And given only one chance to purchase a property, and given only the choice to live in the one house with a garden or live in the one apartment of equal quality/amenity/etc for the rest of your life, which would you choose? Honestly? And what do you think the vast majority of people would choose?
You're acting like a 12 year old.
Most people chose based on location. They want to be close to stuff they need for themselves (work, necessary amenities, entertainment) and for their kids (school, necessary amenities, entertainment).
Once they've figured out the rough location(s), then they triangulate based on that.
In an ideal world, sure, everyone would have a huge mansion with a huge front and back yard, with either servants helping them with their every wish, or stores and all necessary things within 1-2 minutes of walking.
But again, we're talking about reality and compromises.
Personally I chose an apartment and many others do the same. It's not just about offices and "mad about urban density" for offices. You can't have tons of pharmacies nearby in Nowhereland. Notaries, theaters, shops, cafés, supermarkets, cinemas, clinics, hospitals, etc, etc.
As the average person, if you want the best facilities in any given area to be easily accessible, you have to live in a city. The financial math for that only works with mid to high density. It doesn't even have to be the stupid US residential skyscrapers. Mid density only requires rowhouses to begin, duplexes, stuff like that. 4 story apartment buildings are more than enough to hit densities that can sustain a very complex service economy for the locals.
In sane countries, that means living in an apartment (at least 50% of the time). Or you go the US debt-fueled route and see how that pans out in a few decades. Go check US big city budgets and their debt service evolution over the years.