Sir Tony Bologna wrote:South of DC many homes do not have basements due to the following reasons:
1) Clay is a terrible material to have around a basement as the amount of moisture it pulls in and then dries out can cause major damage to foundations.
2) In a lot of states the water table is too high to make it worthwhile to have a basement.
3) Basements were originally created in the north for cold storage for produce and your jarred veggies and fruits, it was then found that having these deep holes below your house also allowed you to have pipes for water/waste move freely year round without fear of them freezing in the winter. That is why a large percentage of houses in the North have basements, but with Modern technologies the need for having a basement is a thing of the past.
The exception to that being tornadoes. As I said many houses in Kansas have basements, because its one of the best places to be during a tornado. So no matter how good technology gets basements will be pretty good for old tornado alley. I mean I suppose maybe some day we could build houses that can withstand tornadoes, but I don't think that's anytime soon.