It is not just there, these silly things that you speak of.
Here one is often required (by a bank) to build to a certain size and value in proportion to the value of the land. That can account for a certain amount of the huge house / tiny lot thing. Then too, there has always been a certain amount of supply and demand for land in cities, as seen by the large number of apartments / condos / flats....and there are those who prefer living in such cities / structures because their focus in life is on other things..by choice or by necessity. We usually build or remodel and when it's time to sell, there is always someone there to quickly buy because they do not want the big, over built houses and that's mostly what they find in the areas that we've lived in and we do see a scaling back, a backlash to these large houses.
Our world is changing, has changed and we see it in the upscaling of our wants / needs. Things are not so different there as here....I'm amazed at the siz of the vehicles around me...lol..huge....who needs it? And yet...yes, my husband has to have a Jeep Wrangler...does it ever go off-road? No. Terrible gas mileage also.
I've spent the last 30-some years living in an area of wealth and while there are many gardens and gardeners, as mentioned, it can be a great luxury for many people.....with money many desires can be indulged. We've recently moved to an area of great beauty, but also of much poverty. The changing lifestyles and upscaling of our desires can be seen here in houses built in the 30's, 40's, 50's. We're renting a house from the 50's while we look for property and the contrast is easily seen. Very small bedrooms, one bath and a kitchen sink the size of a dishpan...lol..standard to the house I grew up in when I was quite young. An acquaintance recently went back to the area he'd lived in as a child and said that he was surprised by how small the houses were.
I'm very happy to be living now in an area with no Ferraris, Bentleys, Porsches and facelifts...there are not as many gardens, but the beauty here more than makes up for that.
