I visited Taipei and I was surprised to see no free-standing single-story homes even relatively far from the city center. People lived in row-houses four or five stories tall, and the first floor of pretty much every single one of these houses was occupied by a small store or restaurant. Many streets were very narrow and mopeds were common but cars less so. It was much livelier there than in a US suburb (or even many US city centers) and I enjoyed my tourist experience. Still, I would prefer to live in a quieter, less dense American-style suburb and drive if I needed to do anything except enjoy my property, but I can see why many people would prefer the opposite. I think it might be like being an introvert or extrovert.

It is. I'm currently fighting my city about it, because our zoning is actively bankrupting the city and making it a worse place to live. It's crazy, it feels like trying to persuade someone not to shoot themselves in the head because they think it's just what you're supposed to do.